Rebirth of the Broken Luna A Second Chance at Luna's Heart novel Chapter 167

Chapter 167

SILVIA

2

I stood motionless in the hospital parking lot, watching my son’s taillights disappear into the darkness as he drove toward the forest.

The weight of what I had overheard earlier in the hallway pressed down on my chest like a physical burden, which in turn made every

breath that I took feel labored and painful.

My hands were still shaking from the shock of it all, but I forced myself to take a deep breath and clench my fists until my nails bit

into my palms, spilling blood.

There would be time to fall apart later. Right now, I had work to do.

I turned back toward the hospital entrance, my mind already shifting into the calculated mode I’d perfected over decades of pack politics and social maneuvering. The performance I was about to give would require every ounce of acting ability I possessed, but I’d been playing roles my entire life. This one just happened to matter more than most.

The hallway leading to Sophia’s room felt endless as I walked back, my footsteps echoing off the sterile walls. I could hear voices coming from inside the doctor’s professional tones mixed with Sophia’s artificially weak responses. Perfect timing.

–

I pushed open the door and immediately arranged my features into an expression of maternal concern. “How is she, Doctor?” I asked, rushing to Sophia’s bedside with what I hoped looked like genuine worry.

“Mrs. Blackwood is recovering well,” the doctor replied, making notes on his clipboard. “The head injury was minor, mostly superficial. She’s been cleared for discharge whenever she feels ready to leave.”

Sophia looked up at me with eyes that sparkled with fake tears, her lower lip trembling in a performance that would have been convincing if I hadn’t known the truth. “Oh, Silvia,’ she whispered, reaching out to grasp my hand. “Thank you for coming. I was so hoping Xenois would be here when I woke up. We need each other now, more than ever.”

The touch of her skin against mine made my stomach turn, but I forced myself to squeeze her fingers gently. Xenois wanted to be here, I hed smoothly, but he felt his time was better spent coordinating the search efforts. He asked me to look after you tonight while

he’s out there trying to find Kiley.”

For just a moment, I caught something flash quickly across Sophia’s face annoyance, frustration, maybe even anger that her carefully laid plans were not going exactly as she’d envisioned.

But she recovered quickly, her expression shifting back into the mask of a grief-stricken mother

“Of course,” she said, her voice breaking slightly as she sobbed. “He’s such a good man, so devoted to finding our son. I just… I feel so helpless lying here while my baby is out there somewhere, probably scared and alone.”

The word ‘our’ grated against my ears like nails on a chalkboard, but I maintained my concerned expression.

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Chapter 167

“The doctors want you to rest, dear. Let me handle the discharge paperwork and get you somewhere comfortable. You’ll need your strength for when Riley comes home.”

68

Sophia nodded gratefully, apparently buying my act completely. I spent the next twenty minutes dealing with hospital papers, paying her bills and signing forms while she sat in a wheelchair looking like she was fragile and traumatized.

Every minute felt like an eternity to me, but I forced myself to move at a normal pace, to maintain the illusion that this was nothing more than one concerned family member helping another.

Finally, we were in my car, pulling out of the hospital parking lot and heading toward the part of town where I lived with my husband

Samuel.

Sophia had asked to go back to Xenois’s house, but I’d convinced her that she needed somewhere quiet to recover, somewhere without

painful memories of Riley.

As I drove through the darkened streets, my mind kept replaying what I’d overheard in that hospital room. I’d arrived at the hospital fully prepared to blame my son for his carelessness, angry that he’d allowed rogues to get close enough to threaten his family.

The story made sense – Xenois had been distracted by his concerns for Ollie and Lumina, and predators had taken advantage of his

divided attention.

I’d gone straight to Sophia’s room, ready to offer comfort and support to a woman who’d just lost her child, regardless of my actual

personal feelings about her, the ones that I keep hidden because in a world between Lumina and her, she was less poisonous to be

around.

The door had been slightly ajar, and I’d been about to knock when I heard her voice coming from inside.

She was on the phone, her tone completely different from the broken voice she’d used with the medical staff.

This voice was confident, almost gleeful, as she spoke to someone called Bullet,

“The plan worked perfectly,” she’d said, and I’d frozen in place, my hand halfway to the door handle. “Nobody suspects a thing. As far

as they know, rogues took Riley and I was just an unfortunate victim who tried to protect him.”

My blood had turned to ice as I pressed myself against the wall beside the door, straining to hear every word.

“It was so easy,” Sophia had continued, her voice filled with satisfaction. “The boy trusted me completely. He actually believed I was taking him on some kind of bonding adventure. When I pushed him off that cliff, the look of betrayal in his eyes was almost… satisfying.”

I’d had to cover my mouth with my hand to keep from gasping aloud. She was talking about murdering Riley – her own son, as far as

everyone knew – like it was nothing more than disposing of an unwanted object.

“This is just like before,” she’d said, and my entire world had tilted on its axis. “Just like with Xena. Nobody will ever know what really

happened, and I’ll get away with it exactly like I did then.”

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Chapter 167

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แค

Xena. My daughter’s name on this monster’s lips had nearly sent me into a rage right there in the hospital hallway. My beautiful, vibrant daughter who’d been found dead six years ago with Lumina standing over her body, a bloody knife in her hand. The evidence had seemed so clear, the handprint on the murder weapon a perfect match. But Lumina had maintained her innocence even under Alpha command and torture, insisting she’d been unconscious and had no memory of how she’d ended up with the weapon.

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Reborn From Regret A Second Chance at Luna’s Heart