I covered my mouth in utter shock, unable to believe what I just heard.
"How could they do that?" I asked.
"There are many reasons, the biggest being they believed the rumours and would've rather die at their own hands than be tortured at mine."
"What were the other reasons?" I asked hesitantly.
This seemed to be something he didn't want to answer, but there was no going back, he had already revealed this much, and I had so many more questions.
"If possible, I'd like for you to make me a promise first," he said.
I nodded.
"Promise me that no matter what I say, you will listen until the end."
"Of course, I promise," I said and sat up straight on the bed to show I was all ears.
Caspian got comfortable as well at the edge of the bed and surprised me when he grabbed my hand to hold as he prepared himself.
"I was born with two older siblings, a sister and a brother. I was born the weakest of the two, but since I was the youngest, there was no chance I would be next in line for the throne. My older brother had the strongest of the Alpha gene within him and was the most likely candidate, but he died on a pack hunt when they were attacked by rogues that greatly outnumbered their own. After his death, my father fell ill and was bedridden, and we lost a lot of support from our pack and allies, we needed to do something to strengthen our numbers again, so my sister was married off to the Akrotiri Pack as an ally proposal.
"That was the final nail in the coffin for my father and he soon passed, leaving only my mother and I to rule over our people, but even she doesn't believe I can be the ruler my father once was, or that my brother was meant to be. Her only hope is that I find a female strong enough to give birth to another heir with strong Alpha genes, and she will do anything to get that child, which is why I have gone through so many marriages despite none of them working out."
I remained silent as he gathered his thoughts and allowed what he said to settle in. I have yet to meet his mother, but I had heard brief talk of the former Luna Queen and none of it was ever good. It was said that she was a cold woman with a fierce appearance and dark aura, and ruled with an iron tongue when she was briefly in charge before Caspian came of age.
"Is she the one who made up the rumours about you?" I asked.
He looked at me in shock and I was afraid I overstepped.
"How did you know that?"
"It was just a guess, I never understood where these rumours came from when we hardly ever saw who the Alpha King was. My family had attended many ceremonies and banquets here, and my sister always wanted to get a glimpse of you, no matter how much she might have been afraid, and she always complained that you would never show."
Caspian laughed quietly. "Those were only parties for my mother to show off that we were doing just fine on the outside, when in fact she was falling apart inside without an heir she can control."
"What is that?"
He looked as if he said something he shouldn't have.
"Your mother wants an heir she can control?" I asked.
He sighed. "It has always been my assumption for great reason that, yes, my mother wants the next heir to be under her complete influence and control, so she can feel like she has some sort of power again. My mother is still rather young, and she has always felt that her years of power were taken away from her too soon after my father passed, and she craves it so much that I wouldn't put it past her."
The gears started turning in my head. "May I ask…how did the girls before dying exactly?"
"When most of them found out that the only reason for the marriage was to give birth to an heir, they sought ways to make themselves barren. Some died in the process by using unholy methods, while others succeeded."
I hesitated to ask the next question. "What happened to the ones who succeeded?"
"My mother has no use for women who can't do what she wants them to do."
Chills are sent down my spine. I had never once become pregnant despite how many times Magnus forced himself on me without protection. What if it turned out I was barren too? What will his mother do then? Not to mention when she discovered that I'm actually an orphaned slave and don't actually have any Alpha genes in me, I was already a walking dead man.
"Sevika, are you alright? I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything," Caspian said.
I assumed my face showed how terrified I was, and I quickly composed my face.
"It's okay, I'm the one who asked." I tried to smile at him.
He gripped my hand tight and brushed away a piece of stray hair with the other, then cupped my cheek again. "Thank you for asking, and for listening. This is the first time I have said these words out loud, and I didn't realize how good it would feel after all this time of holding it inside."
I relaxed a little at this, but the thought of my condition and his mother still lingered at the back of my mind for the rest of the night.
~*~
A letter arrived at the manor a few days after the commotion at the auction house happened, and it was addressed to me from Rosalyn. To my surprise, she was coming to uphold the favour Caspian asked of her, though I assumed she would have forgotten by now. A day after her letter arrived, so did she, in a carriage covered in gilded gold and marble.
"Who is she to afford such a luxurious carriage?" I asked as I gazed out the front window with Caspian and waited for her arrival.
"Someone of the royal family, which means there are details she left out when we last spoke," he said and clenched his jaw. I noticed that if there was anything that Caspian didn't like, it was being lied to or deceived by anyone, even someone as unimportant as Rosalyn.
"I'm sure she has her reasons for having some secrets," I assured him.
"My gorgeous girl! It has been too long," Rosalyn exclaimed as soon as she entered the room. She rushed to hug me, but Caspian pulled me back and stopped her from touching me.
Rosalyn pouted against his outstretched hand. "You're too protective of her. Am I not here to heal her?"
Caspian growled but released me reluctantly.
"Shall we?"
~*~
I led Rosalyn to the bedroom and Caspian kicked everyone in the west wing out while she was there. I was nervous about anyone seeing her pour blood on my back and arms, I couldn't imagine what kind of sight that would be.
"So, uh, how does this work?" I asked her.
Rosalyn chuckled. "Don't worry, dear. It won't be as weird as you think it is." She takes out a small container about the size of her palm. "As Sirens, we take pride in our beauty and have successfully created many remedies for skin disease and all sorts of wounds. The main ingredient is our blood, of course, but we mix that with many other natural and nutritional ingredients."
She opened the container and revealed a simple white cream, nothing like what I thought she was going to do. She proceeded to tell me to lie down and lifted my shirt to expose the scars on my back.
I heard her gasp. "Oh, dear," she muttered. "Hold still, this shouldn't take long."
I nodded and relaxed as she spread the cream over my scars, the cool tingling feeling a nice sensation on my rough and chapped skin.
"If you don't mind my asking, who gave you your name?" she asked.
"I've never known my birth parents; I assume it was my adoptive family. Why?"
"I don't think the name suits you at all. In fact, I'd like to gift you a new name, if you will allow me."
I tried to turn over and look at her in shock, but she held me steady on my stomach.
"Don't move, I'm not done yet."
"How could I accept a new name? I was given the name I have to represent my status," I muttered into the pillow.
Rosalyn scoffed. "Status can change, dear. Has your status not changed after you married the Alpha King? You have now become the Luna Queen, what kind of name is deserving of that status?"
She had a point, but no matter who I married or where I ended up in life, my origins would never change. I would always be the same orphan girl with no background and nothing to her name, regardless of what that name may be.
"Aurora," she said suddenly.
"What?"
"That is your new name; Aurora."