Chapter Forty-Seven

I blink up at Adrian in confusion, trying to process his words. Finding nothing plausible on his face, I turn to Serene instead. Her expression is apologetic. “We weren’t supposed to tell you. Since your magic seems to be dormant…”

“Martin asked me to keep it that way,” Adrian finishes, taking the blame off of Serene. “I told Serene to play along, but I’m tired of keeping secrets from you. This is your reality now, so you should be able to see everything for what it is.”

“But… I saw her die,” I recap, trying to wrap my head around this revelation.

Serene places a gentle hand on my knee, a consoling gesture. “Yes, you did. Sorcerers are human too; just with magic. Some of us can keep ourselves alive for as long as Vampires or Werewolves with our magic, but we can still be killed just as easily as humans,” She glances to Adrian again, as if asking permission to unveil another truth. Apparently whatever she finds in his expression is enough to continue, so her gaze wanders back to me and she continues. “There's a rumor that she died protecting you from a Hybrid. She glamoured your memory to think that it was a car crash, so you wouldn’t be at risk of another attack. The last thing she did was cast a cloaking veil over your magic so you wouldn’t be found again.”

My mind reels as I try to accept the information, but my memories of my mother are so clear that it doesn’t make sense. The way her blue eyes crinkled at the corners when she smiled, the way her soft hair shone like spun silk in the sunlight, the soft warmth of her hands on my cheeks when I cried, those are all my memories of her, for sure. But she was powerful enough to cloak any magic I had to keep me safe from these Hybrids? Why were they hunting my mother? “That explains why I don’t have any magic,” I say numbly, finding it almost funny. I take a sip of my tea but struggle to swallow, feeling like my throat has closed up.

Adrian’s arm is my reminder that he’s still there, stroking my shoulder gently. “Are you okay?” He asks, his warm breath fanning my face. “You look really pale. We should stop talking about this for now.”

I shake my head, forcing myself out of the stupor. I’ll have time to peel back the layers of my memories later, but for now, I need to gather as much information as Serene can give me. “No, I’m fine. What else is there? I’m assuming that Hybrid attacked my mother to get to my dad?”

Serene looks hesitant to continue, casting Adrian a doubtful look. “Lydie… Maybe we should talk more about this tomorrow,” She says, her voice more gentle than I ever heard it.

I shake my head again firmly, gripping my mug tightly. “No, please, I need to know more,” I plead, looking between the two of them. “I’ve lived my whole life thinking that I was a normal girl. Now that all this is being sprung on me, I have to learn as much as I can. I’ll have time to process it later.”

Adrian holds my gaze for a moment, searching my face cautiously. After a few beats, he sighs, gesturing for Serene to continue. “She won’t let up now, so we might as well keep going.”

Serene looks surprised at his permission to continue as if it’s out of character for him to be so lenient. “Okay, if you say so. Lydia,” She says, drawing my attention back to her. “Your parents were arranged to marry because of their bloodlines. They were considered the Prince and Princess of the Sorcerers; the purest, strongest bloodline there ever was in our history. You were the child that was supposed to save us from The Big Three.”

My limbs feel numb as if my body is no longer my own. Has there really been so much power inside of me and I just never knew it? There’s no way. I always thought that I was special, of course, and daddy always told me so, but I assumed that it was because I was destined for a historic modeling career like Marilyn Monroe. Not that I was destined to murder the strongest entities ravaging this supernatural realm. I could almost laugh at the thought, but neither of my companions shares in my hysterics. They both remain quiet, allowing me to process the news.
“You’re joking,” Is all I can manage.

Serene looks to Adrian again, almost accusingly. “I wish we were,” She says, her tone gentle as if to coax a stray cat from running away. “But it’s true. Now if anyone tries to lift the barrier that’s keeping your magic dormant, the Hybrids will find you. There’s not enough time in between to train you how to kill them, so it’s an impossible plan. That’s why Martin never told you any of this.”

I don’t realize I’m gnawing the skin inside of my cheek until I taste the copper tang of my own blood. “So I’m useless either way,” I say, almost in relief. I might still be able to live a normal life, as long as I don’t try to mess with my magic. My mother’s last gift to me was the greatest; she gave me supernatural protection. She must have been super powerful to be able to do that, especially in her last moments. I can’t help but wonder what really happened that night if there was no car crash after all.

Adrian reaches for my head and gently directs it to his shoulder, seeming to sense my sudden fatigue. “If you’re not going to use it, put that fucking book away,” He growls at Serene, making her flinch. She does as he asks and gets up to set her Grimoire by the door, taking the enchanting scent with her, leaving me feeling colder.

“Sorry,” She mumbles her apology as she settles back into her cushion. “Let me take that before you spill,” She adds, gently prying the mug from my limp fingers and setting it on the coffee table. It’s gone too cold to enjoyably drink now anyway, so I don’t fight her. “Is this what happened last night too?” She asks Adrian.

I feel him nod against my hair, laying his chin on top of my head as he draws me closer to his chest, feeling my muscles shiver at the sudden cold. “She doesn’t take being around magic very well. It’s probably because she hasn’t been exposed to it in so long, her body doesn’t remember what it is at all.”
I sigh, breathing Adrian’s familiar scent deeply as I soak up his warmth. He’s like my own personal little sun, and it slowly starts to bring me back to life. The strong scent of mint clears my mind, cutting through the fog that started to clutter it. He’s right; this is exactly what happened in De Leon’s study before I passed out. Regaining some of my strength, I sit back up.
“I’m fine. Let’s keep going; I have more questions,” I demand, hearing the slurring of my own voice, even as my mind begins to clear.

Serene gives another tentative look as she brushes a hand against my forehead, checking my temperature. A frown touches her lips as she pulls away, rubbing her hands together as if residual energy shocked her. “Her magic is still in there, though it seems to react poorly to lesser power like mine. I’m just a normal Sorcerer since my mom fell in love with a human guy, so I’m not as strong.”

“So, keep it away from her then,” Adrian suggests with a growl, more of a command than anything. “We aren’t going to risk removing the veil so there’s no point in exposing her to it anymore.” His words are firm, absolute. As if I ever gave him permission to make decisions for me.

I shoot him a withering look. “Don’t make conclusions for me,” I say, feeling my usual rebellious spirit ignite in my belly again. “I can make the decision for myself. If it will help get rid of those monsters; if it can help Jasper, especially-”

Adrian cuts me off with a cold stare, looking at me like I’ve never seen him do before. He removes his arm from my shoulder to place his fingers on my chin, making me look up at him. “No,” He says, unmoving in his choice. “You are my Mate now, and Mates have to obey each other’s wishes. I’m telling you I disagree with this. If you respect me at all, as your Mate or as the Alpha that your father is in allegiance with, you’ll listen to me.” The warning rumble resounds throughout the townhome, taking me by surprise. Some instinct in my gut tells me to keep my mouth shut, not to argue with someone who can radiate that much power through just his words.

I frown deeply, resisting the urge to yank my chin away from him and tell him to fuck off. I open my mouth to do so, but all that comes out is, “Okay.”