Chapter 553 BETRAYAL
"Uncle, you are awake!" Rhea called out cheerfully. She rushed toward Knox and clung to him. She giggled when she found the man staring at her with a frown. "You slept for so loooong. I thought you died."
Knox smiled lightly when he heard that. "I thought I died too."
"Why were you sleeping for so long? Why didn't you wake up?" The little girl kept asking questions, she tilted her head and then climbed up to sit on his lap, which made Knox slightly uncomfortable, because he was not used to being so close with this little girl. "Aren't you hungry? Why don't you do this again and make food for yourself?" She flicked her finger, imitating what Knox did before. "Can you do it again? I want to see magic!"
"I can't."
"Why?" Rhea looked disappointed when she heard that. "Why can't you do it? Flick your fingers like this."
She took Knox's hand in her palms and it felt incredulous when those little fingers caressed his coupled with how serious her expression was right now.
"I am too tired," Knox replied curtly.
"But, you slept for a long time, why are you still tired?" Rhea moved around in his lap and almost fell if it was not for Knox who immediately secured her small body and put his arm on her back.
"Be careful." Knox frowned, because Rhea didn't seem to care about that. She must have taken after July for her recklessness and sure enough this little girl cared too little about her own safety.
"Why are you tired? You slept for years!" She said exaggeratedly. It seemed, she still had not yet grasped the concept of time.
"Really? And after so many years, you are still small like this?" Knox didn't know what had gotten into him, but he teased her instead, which made her pout her lips. She was dissatisfied because he told her that she was small.
"I am not small, I just don't eat too much." She blinked her eyes in disapproval for what Knox said. "If I eat more, I will grow bigger than you."
"Really?"
"Yes!" Rhea nodded her head and her arms flailed around to show him how big she could be. "I will eat more and grow bigger and bigger!"
"Then, why don't you eat more?" Knox found this silly conversation relaxing, especially when he saw how her eyes were very expressive. She was so pure that he couldn't help wondering, how could she be Chaos's shattered soul?
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtThis pure little girl was Chaos's shattered soul? How could such a thing be possible?
"Because I am…"
However, before Rhea could answer that question, the door was opened and July stepped in, she was shocked to see her daughter sitting comfortably in Knox's lap and giggling to see him.
"Mommy! Scary uncle is awake!" Rhea said cheerfully.
Scary uncle?
Knox frowned when he heard the way Rhea addressed him. So, he was a scary uncle for this little girl now?
"Come here, Rhea," July said, as she put the tray she was carrying on the table and picked Rhea up from Knox's lap, she was afraid that Knox would take her away again like the last time.
However, Knox was too tired to do anything and just watched as July told their daughter to play alone in her bedroom and not to come here.
Knox saw the displeasure in Rhea's eyes when she was being shooed away. She wanted to protest, but July was firm with her order and she closed the door once Rhea was outside.
"How are you feeling?" July asked Knox, after she managed to save their daughter from him.
"I am fine. I just need to rest for a few days and after that, I will leave," Knox said, trying to reassure her that he didn't have any intention to stay for long.
"Okay." July felt her chest tighten because Knox would leave again, but that was for the best, she didn't want him to stay here and become a threat to her daughter. This was for the best after all. "What happened?"
July took a bowl of porridge and handed it to Knox. She felt it was a little bit too much if she had to feed him
"Nothing. You don't need to worry." Knox was silent for a while before he answered her. He didn't reveal anything.
"You know that I can tell when you lied, right?" July lifted her head and looked Knox right in the eyes for the first time. "I just want to know if my daughter is in any kind of danger?"
"No," Knox answered that truthfully. "But, she will be if you keep associating yourself with Aaron."
July lowered her head again. She didn't forget about the consequences for someone, who asked a favor from a devil, but then she didn't feel anything wrong even now.
"You need to eat before the porridge turns cold." July wanted to leave, she couldn't bear the thought of Knox staring at her with such an accusatory look in his eyes.
"Don't associate with the devil again. He will use her."
"Isn't it better than being dead in the hands of Chaos?" July didn't look Knox in the eyes when she said that, as she stood up.
"I would rather her die than be used."
July didn't respond to that, she just left the room and closed the door. Her chest caved in and she felt tears run down her cheeks.
On a normal occasion, July would agree with Knox. She didn't want to be used and would rather die than have to live such a life, but then it was her daughter that they were talking about.
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"Is there something that is bothering you?" Ariana asked Emily when she saw the girl spacing out again with a crease between her brows.
"Hah?" Emily gasped in surprise and then shook her head. "No. I am fine." She bit her tongue to stop herself from telling Ariana what happened when Liam called her a few days ago.
She had been struggling to avoid her and Eros, because it was so hard to keep a secret from both of them, but sure enough, they could tell there was something wrong with her.
"Are you sure?" Ariana sat down next to Emily and then stared at the things that she was doing. "You have not yet done with that herb, though you should have been done with it an hour ago."
Emily gritted her teeth. She stared at the herbs in front of her, but she ignored Ariana's statement, instead she spoke out of the blue.
"Alpha Liam has a list of the warriors who agreed to help gamma Colton to overthrow his reign." Emily couldn't hold it back any longer.
"What are you saying?" Ariana sat straight and grabbed Emily's arm. "What did you say?"
Emily lifted her head and then looked at Ariana, guilty evident in her eyes. "I am sorry I didn't tell you sooner." She then told her about what she and alpha Liam talked about, not everything, because she kept the important part to herself. "I am sorry."
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm"How can you do this to us?" Ariana hissed, she threw her hand away and Emily could feel how betrayed Ariana felt right now.
"I just want to keep Eros safe." Emily didn't want Liam to link everything back to Eros. He was not on the list, thus there was a high chance he wouldn't get involved in this mess.
Their plan had failed and Emily didn't want them to drag Eros down with them. She didn't want anything to happen to him.
If Eros died being labeled as a traitor, she wouldn't have any future as well.
"I am sorry." Emily stood up, she lowered her head.
She made that deal with Liam, she would be the only healer for this pack, as long as he didn't do anything to Eros, since he wasn't involved in that as his name was not there. She didn't want Colton and Ariana's betrayal to implicate her or Eros.
"Sorry?" Ariana shook her head as tears welled up in her eyes, she felt betrayed. "I thought you were a na?ve little girl, I took you in and sheltered you, but this is what you did to me?" Ariana didn't raise her voice, but pain was palpable in her voice. "You have learned how to betray someone and one day you will know the feeling of betrayal."
That plan was a sinking boat and Emily just wanted to save Eros and herself from being drowned.
"I am sorry…" were the only words that she could say as Ariana stormed out of the room.
The healer looked around frantically. Because she couldn't find him in the dining hall or in their bedroom, she asked a young warrior there about Colton's whereabouts and he told her that he was in the training ground.
The sun was almost set, but he was still in the training ground.
However, before Ariana could run toward the training ground, two of Alpha's personal guards came approaching her.
"The alpha wants to see you in the main hall," one of them informed her, she believed his name was John.
"What is it about?" Ariana felt her heart lurch to her stomach. She took a few tentative steps back.
"We don't know, we were just ordered to bring you to the main hall."
"I need to find Colton first, I will go after I find him." Ariana needed to find him and tell him what happened.
"Don't worry, the gamma is already there," John told her.
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