Eira’s POV
Even the mere mention of that man, my mate, was like a thousand blades tearing through my heart. I hated him. I didn’t even want to think about him.
Dead? Yes, he was dead to me. And if I could, I would kill him a million times over.
He would never know he had a child. A monster like him didn’t deserve it. I could never allow my son to turn out like him. I’d rather my child be raised by strangers than grow up under the shadow of that man.
But still...the hope of seeing my son just once, to make sure he was safe, that no one was hurting him, that he wasn’t alone... made me want to find him.
"All right," I heard Liam say. He was still there, probably waiting for me to speak.
Even if I didn’t fully trust Liam, I had to try. I had no other choice.
"Will you truly help me find my son?" I asked, my voice low but firm.
"If you’re willing to cooperate, I will," Liam said gently, his tone reassuring.
"But you can’t tell anyone, not even these five," I said, looking him straight in the eyes. "If they find out, they’ll kill him to get revenge over me. I’m sure of it."
"I won’t tell anyone," he promised. "But you’ll need to tell me when he was born, where you were at the time, and any details you remember—anything about the people who were around you."
I told him everything I could recall, but it wasn’t enough. I didn’t know those people and the exact place. They kept moving me here and there in drugged conditions that I even lost track of day or night, time and dates or even which season was going on.
"Can you still find him with such little information?" I asked, a faint tremor in my voice.
"I’ll try, using all the sources I have," he said. "But I can’t promise anything. If I fail, we’ll have to seek help."
"From who?" I asked, my stomach tightening with dread.
He gave me a hesitant look, almost skeptical, as if he already knew I wouldn’t like the answer. "You won’t agree with what I’m going to say."
"What is it?" I asked anyway, bracing myself.
"The people who can find your son are... the ones you’re living with," Liam said at last, his voice edged with hesitation. "You can’t trust outsiders. But these—"
"These five?" I cut him off, my tone final. "They’re the least trustable people."
"Eira, think about it," he tried to reason. "These five are powerful. Their network is unmatched. If they want to, they can find your son within days."
I shook my head slowly. "Either you find him on your own, or just let him be wherever he is. What if he’s safe? What if he’s with good people, and I end up ruining everything by dragging those monsters into it?"
"They’re monsters, yes—but they’re not heartless enough to kill a child," he said.
"No," I said coldly. "Don’t even try to test that theory. I know them better than you. I know how cruel they are. I have experienced it all." I let out a mocking scoff, my eyes full of hate. "Trust? All I have for them is hate. If not for the pureblood in my veins denying me death, I wouldn’t be even here anymore. I would rather die the most painful death than being here."
As I said it, Liam felt speechless. Probably he didn’t have any more words to defend them.
"They want a child from you, but you can’t give them one," he tried to reason out. "Sooner or later, they’ll realize it. Before that happens, you need to act and use them to find your son. Your child is a pureblood, Eira. He could possess rare powers, something others would kill to control. You can’t let him fall into the wrong hands. Think about it."
I didn’t reply, but I was relieved there was someone who was willing to help me, though I didn’t trust him yet entirely. After all, his loyalty lies with his Alphas, and who knows what wicked, selfish plan he had of his own in finding my child? These werewolves could never be trusted.
"Another thing," Liam continued carefully. "Do you still share a bond with your mate? Or was it broken?"
His question made it clear—he still didn’t believe me when I said the bastard was dead.
"Do you see a mating mark anywhere on my body?" I asked flatly. "No mark means the bond disappeared when he died."
"To conceive a child with your mate, a mark isn’t necessary," he said. "But I was curious about the bond you felt with him when both of you found each other? Is it still there?"
"There’s no bond," I said sharply. I didn’t want to go into the details.
But it was true.
He rejected me the moment we found we were fated mates, and the bond was broken right there. That’s good he did it—if not, I would have rejected him anyway.
That hellish pain I felt when he rejected me—it was worth bearing just because I didn’t want anything to do with him. It was worth breaking every thread of connection with him.
"You were minor when you were sent to prison and one can find a mate only when they are an adult. That means, you found him after you went to prison" Liam finally concluded the thing he was asking for. "You conceived child then, and after that he rejected you?"
I couldn’t deny this fact and simply hummed. But I was not going to answer anything more. I didn’t trust him.
"I am tired. I need rest," I told him and closed my eyes as I rested the side of my head on the backrest of the couch and closed my eyes.
Just then we heard the sound of someone entering the home. That was Roman. He had returned.