Chapter 360: The Things Left Unsaid

The sharp anger inside Aliana instantly gave way to a dull, aching pain in her chest. Every time another truth about Gavriel’s history came to light, it brought a suffocating heaviness, reminding her of the burdens he carried alone.

Noticing the shift and eager to step off this dangerous landmine, Cillian quickly added, "So... Mord has only been able to hide this effectively because of that restriction. A Devil wielding his full power can accomplish things that other demons could only dream of."

"I understand," Aliana whispered, her gaze dropping to her lap as she traced the lines on her palms. "So that brings me back to my original question... what is the connection between Mord and the lab?"

Cillian glanced at Gavriel. "I believe your husband is far better equipped to answer that."

Aliana bit her lower lip, catching Gavriel in the corner of her eye before looking back down. "I’m listening."

Gavriel saw how she refused to even look at him and felt frustration and restlessness rise inside him.

Why was she reacting so strongly?

It was true he hadn’t been entirely upfront with her, but he simply didn’t view those topics as relevant at this stage of their lives.

It wasn’t that he had intentionally tried to hide anything from her, whether it was the matter of bearing his child or the fact that he possessed only half of his powers. They were simply subjects he had never liked to dwell on and, therefore, had never considered important enough to bring up with Aliana.

Besides, Gavriel had never even entertained the thought of Aliana wanting to have his child, given how their relationship had begun.

He knew that, by universal law, only a true demoness chosen by the cosmos could be the mate of a devil.

But Gavriel had never cared about that.

He had no desire to find his mate, for he was perfectly content to have Aliana alone. It was enough for him that she had chosen to stay by his side after everything they had endured. He expected nothing more than that.

He had no wish to complicate their dynamic... he only ever wanted her.

Now that she was with him, he was determined to do everything in his power to ensure she never left. He would give her whatever she desired and stand as her shield against the world so she could thrive and pursue her ambitions in peace.

’A child?’ Gavriel thought, his brows drawing together.

She had never shown the slightest inclination toward motherhood. Aliana was a fighter, driven by a fierce ambition to cement her power as head of the Van Empire and crush the vultures circling her inheritance. On top of that, her life was already overwhelmed by her evolving powers and looming enemies. He was certain a child was the last thing on her mind, and he was perfectly content without one as well.

The reason was simple.

First, he would never want a child if it didn’t come from Aliana, who was the only wife he would ever acknowledge, even knowing it might be a high possibility for them not to be true mates.

And secondly, if by some miracle Aliana actually did turn out to be his mate, then why would he ever willingly allow someone else to take away the attention that belonged only to him?

To Gavriel, his reasoning was flawless.

’Even so... I underestimated how deeply this silence would wound her.’

He watched her silently staring at her hand before speaking gently. "Ana..."

’Forgive me for keeping this from you,’ Gavriel said internally, unable to voice the apology with her gaze still fixed on her lap.

Knowing she needed time to sort through everything she had just learned, he decided to broach the subject again later, when they were alone.

For now, he let out a quiet breath and answered her earlier question instead.

"Like I said before, I’ve been trying to hunt down Mord for quite some time. But the demon was too slippery and went into hiding the moment he realised I was searching for him. It wasn’t until I reached Aria and sensed traces of his magic at the witch’s residence that I began to suspect he might be involved with someone far more powerful."

Aliana’s brows furrowed. "Why would you think that?"

Gavriel then briefly told her about Sofia, the powerful witch who possessed the rare ability to see glimpses of the past and future. He explained that when he had gone to check on her the night the creature attacked Aliana, he had found the witch dead inside her own home.

More importantly, the powerful barrier he had placed around her house had been destroyed, something that should not have been accomplished by even a higher level demon.

That raised questions about Mord’s involvement.

Why would he target the very witch who was supposed to give Aliana answers about her powers? And why had traces of his magic been found in Aria in the first place?

It wasn’t until the laboratory was discovered that the pieces began to fall into place. Whatever was happening in Aria suggested that Mord, and possibly whoever was backing him, could be involved in something far more sinister than Gavriel had initially imagined.

Since then, he had been quietly following every lead, every rumour and every whisper that might bring him closer to Mord.

"A couple of days ago, I received a lead about a demoness named Layla who serves Mord, so I sent one of my trusted men to follow her. She eventually led him to Mord, but the demon managed to escape by throwing her in the path of the attack and using her as a shield. My man was the one who informed me of this latest development, which is why I had to leave early this morning to interrogate Layla."

"Is that so?" Aliana’s eyes flickered up to meet his, but she caught herself and looked away just as quickly. "What did she confess?"

"She gave us the location of the laboratory Mord had been visiting, as well as his secret hideout."

Cillian, who had not been privy to these latest developments, leaned forward intently. "Where is it?"

"A cave on a deserted island near Karden," Gavriel answered. "But when we arrived, we discovered it was nothing more than an ordinary cave. However, the residue of Mord’s magic suggested that he had been using the place to open a portal to somewhere else, where he could meet his master."

"No wonder we haven’t been able to detect him until now," Cillian muttered in frustration.

"That’s not all," Gavriel added, drawing both their eyes back to him. "Layla admitted that Mord recently met with someone from the Underworld to receive a powerful artifact... one he was explicitly commanded to guard with his life."

"Let me guess," Cillian said, brow furrowing. "She has no idea what the artifact actually is?"