CHAPTER 54: QUESTIONING SOPHIA

Kael’s POV

Though buried in work and focused on finding a way to deal with the council, the moment I received a call from the hospital saying Sophia wasn’t feeling well, I headed straight there.

When I arrived and entered her room, I saw her parents were already present. Her father—a tall, middle-aged man in a sharp gray suit—stood stiffly beside the bed, while her mother, as always, was dressed in her signature style: a light designer blouse paired with a dark, knee-length skirt and heels, adorned with layers of fine pearl jewelry.

Bruce and Meryl Katz.

One of the wealthiest business families in our pack—and once, close friends of my parents. I always made an effort to treat them with respect, even though their arrogance had grown insufferable after my parents passed. Still, I remained civil, for Sophia’s sake. They were her parents, after all.

Bruce was a hybrid male, and Meryl a pureblood female, though not of particularly high rank. Their daughter, Sophia Katz—also a hybrid—was regarded as one of the strongest among her kind, thanks to the pureblood traits she’d inherited from her mother.

That was why my parents had chosen her for me. Finding a true pureblood female—one who could actually match my rank—was nearly impossible. It was like searching for a needle in an endless field of grass.

"You’re here?" Sophia’s soft voice reached me.

I nodded briefly at her parents before walking to her bedside. She extended a hand, and I took it, sitting in the chair beside her.

"Are you alright?" I asked, my voice firm but gentle.

She gave a small hum, and just then as Liam entered the room.

"Alpha," he greeted with the respectful tone he usually lacked these days when he visited my home.

I glanced at him. "Is there anything wrong with her condition?"

Liam shook his head. "She’s fine."

I turned back to Sophia. She gave me an apologetic smile. "Kael... I just missed you. Not seeing you made me feel anxious, like I couldn’t breathe. I’m sorry for troubling you..."

I gently caressed her hand. "It’s alright."

"What trouble?" her mother interjected sharply. "You’re in this situation because of him. You even carried his child at the cost of losing your life. The least he can do is show up when you’re unwell."

"Mom, please..." Sophia said softly, trying to rein her mother in, while I chose to ignore her.

Eira came into our lives because of me—because of my brothers. If anyone was to blame for Sophia’s situation, it was us. It was me.

"Alright, I won’t say anything more," Meryl said curtly, before turning her sharp gaze back to me. "I heard you’ve finally found a pureblood to treat Sophia."

I gave a faint hum, not bothering to look her way. My only plan was to spend a little time with Sophia before returning to my work.

But then the woman spoke again.

"She used to be a whore. And you’re planning to treat my precious daughter using a filthy whore?" Her voice dripped with disgust. "How revolting!"

I wasn’t sure why, but her words rubbed me the wrong way. I finally looked at her, my gaze sharp and icy.

"Then feel free to find a perfectly untouched one yourself," I said coldly. "And I’ll return that ’whore’ to wherever I found her. Shall we do that, Mrs. Katz?"

Her face contorted, stunned by my tone. "You—"

"Mom," Sophia interrupted quickly, her voice calm but firm. "Please don’t insult Kael’s efforts. And don’t insult that pureblood either. She’s the one who’s going to help save my life, isn’t she? Despite who she was—or what she went through—you should see her as a blessing for me, not shame."

Before such thoughtfulness from her daughter, Meryl had no choice but to relent. While Bruce was as useless in front of his wife to even stop her.

"Alright," she huffed. "You two talk. We’ll leave you."

I didn’t hide my relief as they exited the room. The moment the door shut behind them, Sophia gave my hand a gentle squeeze.

"I’m sorry about my mother," she said softly. "You know she’s just worried about me."

I gave her a quiet nod in understanding.

"Umm... Kael," she added hesitantly, "I want to meet her—the pureblood. Can I?"

I stilled for a moment.

I couldn’t let her know it was Eira. Not yet. I didn’t know how she would react if she learned it was the same woman who had once harmed her—who had cost us our child.

"She’s not well enough to leave her room," I told her. "And with the news out that we’ve found a pureblood, it’s not safe to move her. You understand, right?"

Though disappointed, she nodded. "Alright. I’ll see her once I’m better."

I agreed with a faint hum. "There’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you. Something from six years ago."

"What is it?" she asked, calm and composed.

"What made you so certain," I asked, "that it was Eira who leaked information to our enemies?"

Back then, we trusted everything Sophia said without question. The loss we suffered was too painful, too consuming to think rationally. It felt as though our entire world had collapsed in a single night.

All we wanted was to get a traitors and tear them apart in a painful death. And the traitor turned out to be her, who we didn’t expect to be even in our wildest dreams.

At my unexpected question, Sophia’s expression flickered with brief surprise, but she quickly composed herself. My gaze remained fixed on her, watching closely.

"Didn’t you all see the video of her with Keiren?" she said, her voice steady. "She was fooling around with him. Don’t you remember? Even Alice once mentioned that Eira had a boyfriend—but she never said who. Why would she hide it from Alice, when she told her everything? Because she was with the enemy. She wanted you, but you had me. So she chose another Alpha from the rival pack."

"Having an affair is one thing," I said quietly. "But that doesn’t mean she was the one who leaked information."

Sophia’s gaze faltered for a moment. Her brows drew together.

"Are you doubting me, Kael?" she asked softly, her voice delicate, touched with sadness. "I saw her talking secretly on the phone, more than once. Always whispering like a thief, answering unknown numbers. When I confronted her, she admitted it was her boyfriend. And the rest..."

She pressed a hand to her temple.

"Maybe it’s this condition. My memories are getting blurry. I haven’t thought about any of it for six years. I’ll try to remember everything... I just need a little time."

"It’s alright. Don’t force yourself," I said gently, wrapping my hand around hers. "Just calm down."

She gave a faint smile, a touch of warmth finally returning to her pale face.

"Do you know what today is?" she asked suddenly. "Why I missed you so much?"

I thought for a moment, but nothing came to mind. I shook my head.

"It’s the most important day for us," she said, her voice growing tender, her cheeks blushing ever so slightly. "It’s the day we conceived our child."

Her words brought back those memories from the six years back.