Lahat ng Kabanata ng The Alpha's Hidden Debts: Kabanata 101 - Kabanata 104

Sera's POVThe drive back felt different. Every mile put more distance between us and that basement. I kept the file on my lap. My hand rested on it the whole way. I did not put it in the bag. I needed to feel it there.Cael rode in the vehicle behind us. I caught the shape of his head through the rear window sometimes. My father. The word still sat strange on my tongue. I turned it over in my mind and let it stay there.Riven drove. He kept both hands on the wheel and his eyes on the road. He did not fill the silence. I was grateful for that. The quiet gave me space to breathe.At some point his right hand left the wheel. It found mine on the seat between us. He did not make a big thing of it. He just rested it there. I turned my palm up and held on. His grip stayed warm and steady.I looked out the window. Trees passed in a blur. The file under my hand felt like a bridge. My mother had run so I could sit here. I kept that thought close.Riven squeezed my hand once. "Almost home."I

Sera's POVI closed the door to my room and leaned against it for a moment. The box sat on the small table by the window. I had carried it upstairs myself. No one followed me. I needed this part alone.I crossed the room and sat down. My hands stayed on the lid for a long time. I breathed in deep. Then I opened it.Inside lay a small collection of things. A photograph of my mother standing in a window. She looked young. Tired but determined. A pressed flower, its colors still faint after all these years. A folded piece of paper. And underneath everything, a small smooth stone.I picked up the stone first. It fit perfectly in my palm. The moment my fingers closed around it a faint warmth spread through my hand. The same warmth my ability carried when it woke up strong. I held it tight and closed my eyes.The stone pulsed. Gentle. Steady. Like it recognized me.I sat with it for a long time. The room stayed quiet. Northesk moved on outside my door but in here it felt like time slowed do