"Will you help...?" Celia looked at Leland with a pleading gaze. "To show our gratitude, I bring you something."
She took out something from her pocket and showed it to Leland. The man's eyes instantly narrowed when he saw it.
It was a simple ring made of gold with a small ruby on it as decoration. He recognized that simple ring and thought he would never see it again.
"How did you have Anne's ring?" he snatched the ring angrily. "I didn't know witches can be grave robbers!"
Celia shook her head. "We didn't rob any graves. This ring was taken from a living person."
"WHO?!" Leland grabbed Celia's collar and was so ready to kill her for an answer. "Who dared rob Anne's grave and steal her ring?"
Celia's body trembled. She replied with a choked voice. "She was not dead. Your mother kept her in prison for years."
"What?!" Leland's grip on the old witch's body suddenly loosened and he stepped back. This information was too shocking for him to digest, he needed time to understand that he didn't mishear. Celia's body dropped to the ground.
Leland's entire body felt hot and he was seething with rage. He didn't know if he could trust Celia. How could his mother do such a thing, even though she hated Anne so much? How could she hide the fact if she truly kept Anne locked up for so many years? And why?
It would make more sense to just kill Anne than to lock her up. Leland tended to believe that his mother had a hand in Anne's and Jack's deaths. But not like this...
"Don't spout nonsense," he said coldly. "Anne is dead."
Celia shook her head stubbornly. "Anne faked her death together with her husband's to avoid getting chased down by both the royal lycan hunter and your mother's accomplices. There's a reason why their bodies were in such bad condition. They took other people's bodies and destroyed them."
"You're lying..." Leland muttered. He was so angry and had to hold back from killing Celia on the spot because he wanted to know more. If Celia was lying, he wanted to know why, and if Celia's story was not a lie, then Leland would want to know if Anne and Jack were still alive.
"You can kill me if I lied to you," Celia said bravely. "You can ask your mate if her parents were recognizable when they were found by the villagers. Ask her if her mother's ring was buried with her. I am sure both the answers would be no."
Leland didn't want to make Sophie worried. If he let Celia talk to Sophie now, his mate would feel shocked and distraught by the information that might only be a lie spread by the witches for whatever reason.
He knew how much losing her parents made Sophie sad. Leland wouldn't want her to relive the moment when she found out her parents were killed and their bodies were beyond recognition.
"You, I will torture you and give you the slowest death if you dare lie to me." Finally, Leland looked at Celia sternly. "Tell me everything you know."
Celia shook her head.
"No. Not until you promise to help Eloise." She pleaded with him again. "Once you vow to help Eloise, I promise to tell you everything, including the fact if Anne and Jack are still alive or not."
Leland wanted to say something but his eyes caught sight of two little wolves standing near the door. He knew Sophie must have sent them to find out what was going on.
He didn't want Luciel and Jan to hear this matter and made Sophie worry before Leland could verify this shocking information.
"I promise. Now come with me," he said coldly and motioned Celia to follow him. The old witch fixed her clothes and bowed respectfully. She looked relieved that Leland was giving her a chance. He didn't immediately kick her out or block her. He even gave her a chance to speak to him in private.
Inwardly, Celia was impressed by Eloise's judgment. Initially, she didn't think they could find a way to invite Leland out of his pack, but apparently, Eloise knew the man more than anyone.
Now, Celia only needed to keep her story and be convincing. Leland would definitely want to find out the truth about Anne's and Jack's deaths and the mystery surrounding them.
When Luciel and Jan walked behind Leland and Celia, the Alpha immediately turned to them and spoke gently, "Boys, I need to have this important conversation in private. Tell your mother that everything is fine. I will be with her shortly."
The two little wolves looked reluctant to leave, but Leland's stern gaze finally made them growl softly and returned to their mother's side.
Sophie furrowed her brows when she saw Luciel and Jan coming back and they looked unhappy. She quickly approached them and rubbed their fur. "What's wrong? What did the witch say? Did you hear anything?"
Luciel transformed into a boy and pouted. "Father was angry about something and then he asked the witch to come and talk with him in private."
"Huh?" Sophie didn't understand why Leland did that. Her husband never did something like that before. Was this witch special? What was their relationship and why Leland didn't want the boys to hear his conversation? Was there a terrible secret that he didn't want Sophie to know?
"Is there anything else?" Sophie asked Jan who just transformed. "Did you see anything?"
Jan nodded. "The witch gave father a ring. I didn't see it clearly though."
"Gosh..." Sophie's mind was filled with questions. What ring was so important that her husband suddenly acted unlike himself?
She decided to go and see Leland. Sophie patted Luciel's back and motioned to her babies. "Please watch over Anne and Jack. I need to see your father."
After making sure Luciel and Jan understood her request, Sophie walked out of the room and went to see Leland in his study. She immediately told Duncan to watch the babies when she saw the man on the way there.
"Duncan, please watch my kids. I need to see Leland," she said.
"Eh... Luna, the Alpha is busy. He told me you shouldn't come and see him now," Duncan said with a concerned expression. "He will be with you shortly."
.
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From Missrealitybites:
Sorry for the radio silence for a long time. Many things happened over the past two months and I lost the inspiration to write. It was so difficult to sit down and churn words when my mind was not in it.
Fortunately, I have awesome mentees who are writing wonderful stories and I found joy in reading their books. I love their stories so much that I am using my own money to turn them into comics.
Anyway, have you read my mentee's book, "The Alpha's Replacement Bride"? It's written by Rossita and is currently my obsession after "Odette & The Cursed King", written by Ogi.
If you want to read a compelling werewolf story that is fast-paced, filled with snusnu, and has SO MANY twists and turns, you should give Rossita's book a try.
Search by the title "The Alpha's Replacement Bride" or go to my profile and check my reading list "Missrealitybites Books". The story also has a comic version available.
THE ALPHA'S REPLACEMENT BRIDE
SYNOPSIS
Marchioness Harriet Goldlane, a talented noblewoman, made a deal with Old Duke Almandine. To save her younger brother, she was willing to become a substitute mate for Liam, the grandson of the Old Duke.
Liam was an Alpha whose 'mate' died long ago. He was severely injured and had been living without a heart for a long time. He could only wake up from his sleep when there was a full moon.
The Old Duke and Liam himself guessed that the man would die soon due to his worsening condition. Because of that, Old Duke wanted Harriet to give birth to an heir to the Almandine Family from Liam's seed so that their family would have a new leader.
The Alpha's replacement bride would soon find that she was in love with the dying man and now they both wished for a miracle to save Liam's life. Could she fulfill her duty to bear the next Alpha for the Almandines? Would Liam survive to protect his bride and family?
Read lat𝙚st chapters at fre(𝒆)webnovel.com Only