Suki:
There stood Yorick’s mother in the doorway, her smile stretched so wide that I felt my body tense.
"Oriana, my dear daughter-in-law," she remarked through a clenched jaw.
I had no idea why she was looking at with such happiness. I had thought Oriana had forced herself on Yorick, so his mother should have been angry with her as well.
Unless she believed Oriana was telling the truth and that her son had committed the cri he was accused of.
If that was the case, then I could understand why his mother would not believe him and would be pleased with Oriana.
After all, Oriana was the one saving his life by not demanding his execution.
"Co on, why are you standing outside? Co inside," his mother insisted, and I began to look around anxiously.
Although I was not an alpha myself, I had been to Joshua’s mansion many tis. He was an alpha too, so I knew how things usually worked. Standing outside Yorick’s ho, I felt confused by what I was seeing. There were not many warriors posted outside. The usual signs of wealth, like the cars lining the driveway, were missing as well.
"Lady Rimi, it’s okay. I just want to speak with Yorick," I told her, remaining where I was.
I did not want to waste ti going inside and pretending I intended to stay married. Ti mattered. The sooner I got away from all these people, the safer I would be.
"Of course, Yorick is in his room. Co on in," she insisted again, holding the door open as she stepped aside.
"Um, actually, what I need to talk about will only take a few minutes. And if he agrees, we can both be on our way," I explained.
I wanted to make it clear that her son had been spared and that I had not co here intending to stay for long.
"Oh, that’s okay. You can talk to him about anything inside the house," she replied.
There were monts when I noticed the way she lingered on certain words, pressing them a little too hard. I wondered why, but then I pushed the thought aside.
Her son had been discharged from the academy after being accused of such a serious cri. Of course she might feel the need to be overly kind to make up for his actions.
"No, really, it’s okay. Can I please see him here?" I requested again, growing more agitated.
I noticed her smile start to fade, just a little, before she forced it back into place.
"Co on, Oriana. Get inside. The weather is bad. It’s going to rain soon. You don’t have a vehicle. You don’t have anyone with you," she urged. "Co inside, speak with him, have dinner with us, and then you can go wherever you want."
She was likely holding on to my earlier words about us going our separate ways.
I looked toward the road and then up at the sky. Dark clouds had already filled it. She was not wrong.
Besides, every few seconds, warrior vehicles patrolled the area. Ever since the news broke that the academy had been hiding secrets, people had turned into reporters overnight.
After Ian’s interview, I had t countless people who claid they thought they knew .
Even when I tried my best to cover my face, I heard mixed reactions to everything. Many people were unhappy with the clips that had been shown of Oriana.
Of course they were. Even when so of the ringleaders released statents claiming it had only happened because she was under the spell of a monster, people did not believe it.
They had never been to the North. They did not know what kinds of monsters existed there, that they did not only challenge us physically, but ntally and emotionally as well.
In the end, I gave in, stepping into the mansion and looking around.
The mont I went back ho, I planned to discard Oriana’s clothes. People would be confused to see her suddenly dressed so differently.
However, the truth was that Oriana’s style was not bad. She had been the one who arrived at the academy with the most luxury and branded clothes.
As I stepped inside, his mother welcod . She still had a strange smile on her lips that made uncomfortable.
The mansion was beautiful, though. At least it was spacious. As for the interior decor, I did not think they had upgraded it in a long ti.
Even the chandeliers looked old-fashioned. Did they not care about luxury brands or modern interiors?
My gaze returned to his mother. That explained why she was wearing old-style pants and a top, with her pride resting on her shoulders in the form of her lab coat.
"Have a seat," she told , pointing toward the living room.
I looked around once again, wondering where Yorick was.
"Co on, have a seat," she insisted, drawing my attention back to her.
I sat on the couch and looked up, noticing there was a TV. It was not a very large screen or anything impressive.
Beside it sat a VCR and a cassette player, almost as if they were untouched by modern technology.
"I don’t rember the last ti I saw one of those," I joked, pointing toward the cassette player.
"Of course you don’t," she replied. "You must be very young. By the ti you were born, these things were already outdated."
She sat down on the sofa, crossing one leg over the other and resting her hands around her knee.
"What do you watch on it?" I asked, smiling.
"Oh, just so tapes," she muttered, quickly uncrossing her legs and dropping her hands. She looked away, avoiding my eyes.
"You must have heard about all the news going around," she remarked, bringing it up herself.
"Yeah, it seems like the academy turned out to be holding a much darker secret. Who would have known that these alphas..." I paused suddenly when I looked at her. "Of course not soone with such high grace like you," I quickly added.
I noticed the way she tilted her head, smiling through her eyes at .
"They would be having so much fun at soone else’s misery. Even when it involves children, their own children," I continued, and she gave a slow nod.
There was a strange eeriness around her, even in the way she smiled.
"Anyway, where is Yorick?" I asked again, feeling anxious this ti.
"It seems like you’re really eager to see your mate," she replied calmly. "Wait, let call him here. In the anti, you can rest. Lie down if you want."
As she said that, she fluffed the couch behind . I shifted toward the edge of the couch to avoid her hand brushing against .
Honestly, after arriving here, I realized how badly I wanted to leave. Joshua must have been waiting for .
From everything I had heard on the way to this mansion, I had figured out there was no way the academy would be sending anyone back to the north anymore, at least not anyti soon. That ant Joshua was going back ho.
I was happy. We were finally alive. I an, thanks to him, I was alive. I had heard from my Wolf here and there, but she was still recovering slowly, so it was fine.
Then I turned to the side and finally saw Yorick coming downstairs.
He looked very relaxed, and that was what scared . He was wearing a black jacket and black pants. He must have showered recently because his hair was still wet.
But there was sothing else that confused . As soon as he entered the living room, he smiled in a way that felt almost taunting.
His mother smiled at him as well, giving his elbow a gentle squeeze before gesturing to that she was heading toward the kitchen.
"Yorick, hi," I greeted him, getting up from the couch.
It was strange seeing him again. He looked handso as always, but of course he was not mine, and I was not his.
Still, we did not need to be hostile because of what Oriana had done. I felt sad that I could not openly tell him I was not the one who had wronged him.
"How are you?" I asked, giving him a small smile.
"Good. How are you?" he replied. "It’s shocking that you returned from the North."
The mont he started speaking, I sensed bitterness in his tone.
I felt like maybe he hated because of Clentine. Even though I had convinced myself not to involve myself with her, now that I was out, breathing in fresh air, I could not wish for anything more than her death.
I would be happy if she never lived to see another day. Since she had made such public statents about the academy, I wondered how many hitn might be waiting for the chance to take her out, and how no one would suspect it if Joshua and I hired soone to get rid of her.
By the end of the day, I refused to admit again that my death had been my fault. It was Clentine’s fault.
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