Page 208 of Severed Heir

I leaned in, eyes skimming the faded ink until a name stopped me cold.

“Liliana Morse?” I murmured, the syllables unfamiliar on my tongue. “Who is that?”

Coordinates were scrawled in the margins. I recognized them instantly as those of North Colindale. I had seen this page before, buried deep in the Serpent Academy archives when Malachi first took me there.

“This is Charles’s birth record,” I said, the words catching in my throat. “But it’s different.”

Hadrian’s voice lowered. “Andri had four children. Two with Liliana. Two with Fallon.” He hesitated. “His father valued legacy above all else. He poisoned Andri with that belief, convincing him that only a child born of a truemate could carry the Blanche line forward with strength. Bloodline mattered more than love. It was under his father’s blessing that Andri was permitted to marry your mother.”

The words settled like ash in my chest, bitter and suffocating.

“But the Academy records say something else,” I whispered, staring at the page as if I could will the truth to change. “Charles was born there. I read it myself.”

Hadrian’s expression hardened. “That would be your brother Cully’s doing. His ambition to keep it a secret ruined everything. He was assigned to the Academy during Charles’s third year. Found the original documents about his mother’s identity and changed them.”

He slammed the book shut. A cloud of dust rose between us.

“That decision cost Charles his title. It cost Cully his future. Forced him to write in the prisons. All to protect a truth he thought would shame the Blanche name.”

I swallowed hard. “Cully ruined his life to protect us… That’s why Charles left the Serpent Academy.”

Hadrian’s jaw tensed. Something raw flickered in his eyes. “Charles was expelled. No one really cared. Cully thought it was a scandal, but in the end, it was nothing more than a Serpent finding their truemate. If he hadn’t stepped in, Charles would’ve been your father’s heir. I have no doubts about that.”

“And why are you involved?” I asked. The question came out sharp. Bitter. “Were you that obsessed with my family that you kept our records?”

“Because your mother spent twelve hours staring into an illusionist wield,” he said. “She told me Andri had found his truemate, and that the woman was pregnant.” He drew a slow breath. “That same day, I learned my son wasn’t mine by blood. We were both ruined humans. I was your mother’s Serpent mentor… but I knew, even then, I was more than that to her.”

Anger flared behind my ribs. “Then why? Why did she let Andri—my father, have children with someone else?”

“She didn’t want to lose him,” Hadrian said, his voice taut with restrained emotion. “Fallon wanted to give his bloodline a chance. Her power… it was volatile. She feared a child might inherit too much of it. And Andri’s father made one thing clear: to earn his blessing, Andri would need to have a child with his truemate.”

I gripped the edge of the table, my nails digging into the wood. “Then why am I here? Why did Victor’s bargain fail?”

Hadrian’s expression faltered, grief and guilt warring behind his eyes. “Klaus and Knox are your half-brothers. Your father paid a Seeker years ago. It prophesied that only sons would be born to his line. He believed his first daughter would never come, so he gambled with her, never realizing Fallon was one step ahead. I didn’t know until I found my port cracked open and Caius confessed the truth.”

“You didn’t know?” My voice came out hoarse. “You swear you didn’t know I was yours?”

“I didn’t,” he said, bitterly. “But I know now. And I’m sorry I wasn’t there.” He scoffed under his breath. “You lost years of your life in that frozen valley. If you’d been raised here, I would’ve taught you how to wield flame.”

“You will never be my father, Hadrian.”

“The cruelest part?” His voice dropped to a whisper. “She never needed to make that bargain with Victor. I would’ve givenher everything. And you…” His gaze lifted to mine. “You would’ve grown up in a family that understood you.”

My head spun. I was unraveling from the inside out.

“There was an aide at the Academy,” I said quietly. “She told me my mother was pregnant with Charles.”

Hadrian’s mouth pressed into a line. “Sometimes the lie is softer than the truth. Maybe that aide believed it would break you too soon. Maybe she was waiting.”

He stepped toward the window, the land of Wrathi stretching beneath it. “Now that my son is gone, I can’t afford to crumble. Too many depend on me. But you can let this break you, or you can rise above it.”

“Caius saved me. Your son saved my life.”

For a moment, his expression cracked. “Gods... you look just like her. My mother. You even have her nose.”

Another bloodline. A grandmother. Maybe aunts. Uncles. A fire-lit lineage I had never known.

“Can I meet them?” I asked, almost breathless.

---