Betrayed by My Ex, Marked by His Alpha Emperor Brother novel Chapter 286

Chapter 286: Chapter 286

Elara’s POV

It had been a year since the war ended. The afternoon sun warmed my shoulders as I walked down the stone path of the estate, shifting my six-month-old daughter, Aurora, higher on my hip.

"Claire, I need you to double the medical supply order for next month’s training rotation."

"Double?" Claire’s voice crackled through the communication crystal balanced on my shoulder. "Your Majesty, are you trying to bankrupt the medical wing, or just give me paperwork nightmares?"

"Neither." I adjusted my grip on Aurora. She was already built like a small fortress. Alpha genes were no joke. "Kaelen’s expanding the border patrol exercises. More recruits means more injuries means more supplies. Simple math."

"Simple math, she says. As if I don’t have to coordinate with every supplier in the eastern corridor." A pause. A rustling of parchment. "Fine. Double it is. But while I have you—did you hear about Lord Ashworth’s daughter and the stable master’s son? Apparently they were caught behind the—"

"Claire."

"Right. Business first. Gossip later."

"Gossip never."

"Gossip always, Your Majesty. You just pretend otherwise."

I smiled and ended the call just as the stone path curved toward the garden entrance. Aurora gurgled against my neck, one chubby fist tangled in my hair.

"Mama!"

Lyra exploded through the garden gate like a comet trailing golden hair. She skidded on the flagstones, caught herself, and launched at my free side with the full force of a six-year-old who had apparently been waiting for a long time.

"Mama, the party starts soon and I’ve been ready for a while and nobody else is ready and it’s taking too long—"

"Breathe, Lyra."

"—and Valerius won’t stop reading and the ribbons still need tying and—"

"Lyra. Breathe."

She sucked in a dramatic lungful of air. Behind her, Valerius approached at his usual measured pace. Hands clasped behind his back. Expression calm. He looked at his sister’s theatrics with the patience of someone who’d long since accepted his fate.

"The ribbons are already tied," he said. "I did them this morning."

"Well, they need more tying!"

"That’s not how knots work."

Aurora kicked her legs and made a sound halfway between a laugh and a war cry. Lyra’s attention snapped to her instantly.

"Rory!" She stretched up on her toes. "Mama, can I hold her? Please? I’ll be so careful—"

"Let Helena take her first. My arms are about to fall off."

As if summoned by instinct, Helena appeared from the side door. The woman had a gift. Some kind of sixth sense for the exact moment a mother’s muscles started screaming. She lifted Aurora from my arms with practiced ease, and the baby went willingly, already reaching for the silver pendant Helena wore around her neck.

"Come see the baby," Helena said to the children.

Valerius stepped closer, his dark gold eyes intent. "May I hold her? I’ll sit down first. And support her head."

Helena settled into the garden bench and guided Aurora into his waiting arms. He held her like she was made of glass—rigid, terrified, deeply committed.

Lyra pressed her face close to Aurora’s. "Hi, Rory. Hi. It’s me. Your favorite sister."

"You’re her only sister," Valerius murmured.

"Exactly. Favorite by default."

The garden gate banged open behind me. Heavy footsteps on stone. Then a familiar voice pitched high with glee.

"Again! Again, Daddy!"

Kaelen rounded the corner with Liam perched on his shoulders. The boy had both fists buried in Kaelen’s dark hair, pulling hard enough that it should have hurt. Kaelen didn’t flinch. His gold eyes found mine across the yard, and one corner of his mouth lifted.

"We’re back." He swung Liam down in a wide arc that made the boy shriek with delight. "Marcus sends his report. Border conflicts are down this quarter. Significantly."

"How significantly?"

"Forty percent." He said it casually. Like it was nothing. But I caught the edge of pride beneath the words—pride not just in the numbers, but in the system we’d built together. The new training programs. The border outposts. The diplomatic channels that had taken a long time of careful negotiation.

"That’s remarkable," I said.

"It’s a start." He set Liam on his feet. The boy immediately toddled toward Valerius and Aurora, drawn by some magnetic sibling force. Kaelen’s hand found the small of my back. Warm. Steady. "You spoke to Claire?"

"Supplies are being doubled for next month."

"Good." His thumb traced a slow circle against my spine. "And the—"

"Daddy!" Lyra appeared between us like a apparition. "The party. Is it time? Is it three yet? It has to be three."

Kaelen looked at the sky. Looked at Lyra. "Almost."

"Almost isn’t three!"

"Patience is a virtue."

"Patience is boring!"

He crouched down to her level. "Tell you what. Help your brother set up the last of the chairs, and by the time you’re done, it’ll be time."

She was gone before he finished the sentence.

By a quarter past three, the backyard had descended into what I could only describe as beautiful chaos. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

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