Free Web NovelChapter 168: Chapter 168
Riley’s POV
I rushed forward the moment those hands grabbed them.
"Hey—who the hell—"
I stopped mid-step.
Because the person holding them was not what I expected.
It was a woman.
And not just any woman.
She was... beautiful in a way that made it hard to look away. Her face was calm but serious, her eyes sharp like she was always aware of everything around her. She held both girls close, one arm around each of them, pulling them in like she wasn’t taking any chances.
"Mommy!" Both of them shouted at the same time. fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm
I froze.
"...wait."
I stared at her.
"No... no, no, no," I whispered.
My eyes moved between her face and theirs again.
"That’s not... that can’t be..."
But it was.
The woman turned slightly, adjusting her grip on them, and for a second— ƒгeewёbnovel.com
Her eyes lifted. Straight toward me.
My breath caught.
"She can’t see me," I said quickly. "She can’t—"
But the way she looked...
It didn’t feel like she was looking past me.
It felt like she was looking at me.
My mouth slowly fell open."Wait... wait a second..."
I stepped back slightly.
"She looks like me."
No.
That wasn’t right.
I looked closer.
"I look like her."
My chest tightened hard."Oh my God."
I covered my mouth with my hand.
"That’s... that’s my mother?"
I stared at her like I was trying to memorize every detail at once.
Her face.
Her eyes.
The way she held them.
The way she moved.
"Oh my God," I repeated, this time louder.
I didn’t even realize my eyes were starting to water.
"I’m actually seeing her."
She turned away again, focusing on the two girls.
"What did I tell both of you?" she said, her voice firm.
She started leading them quickly inside, one hand still holding each of them.
I followed immediately.
"I warned you not to go out and play," she continued. "How many times do I have to say it?"
Carian spoke first.
"It was Aemoria," she said quickly, pointing at my younger self. "She dragged me out."
I blinked.
"Aemoria?" I repeated under my breath.
My younger self didn’t even argue.
She just looked down, like she knew she was caught.
I frowned.
"Wow," I said quietly. "You just threw me under the bus like that?"
They moved deeper into the place, and I stayed close behind them.
"This is insane," I muttered.
They entered a room, and the woman shut the door behind them immediately.
"You don’t go out again today," she said. "Your father is not at home."
Her voice had that tone that made it clear she wasn’t joking.
"Yes, Mommy," both of them said.
She looked at them carefully for a second, like she was making sure they understood.
Then she sighed slightly and walked further into the room.
I stood there, just watching everything unfold before me.
"This... this is real," I said quietly.
My chest felt tight again.
"Are these... memories?" I asked myself.
It made sense. But it didn’t feel like just memories.
It felt like I was there. Actually there.
I looked around the room, taking everything in.
"Is this what I forgot?" I asked softly. "Is this what I lost?"
My head started to hurt slightly.
I pressed my fingers against my temple.
"This is too much."
Then suddenly—
Everything shifted again.
It didn’t happen slowly. It just changed. One second I was there, and the next—
I wasn’t.
I blinked quickly."What—"
I looked around, was time evolving me around or fücking what?
"This isn’t the same place."
I wasn’t in the citadel anymore. I was somewhere else and it was familiar this time.
I frowned, trying to recognize it.
Then it hit me.
"Crescent Hollow."
I looked around more carefully. "Yes... this is Crescent Hollow."
But it looked a bit... different and more quiet.
Then I saw two people.
A man and a woman.
I stepped closer slowly.
"...my parents."
My human parents.
I stared at them.
They were talking quietly, like everything was normal.
And then— I saw her again.
Me.
But older this time.
Not five anymore. A bit older, standing near them.
Talking.
Living.
Like nothing was missing.
My chest tightened again. "What is this?" I whispered to myself.
My head started to hurt more.
Then something hit me hard.
A memory.
I gasped. My eyes widened.
"No..."
Another one followed. Then another. And another.
"They’re coming back," I said, my voice shaking slightly.
My memories.
The ones I didn’t even realize were gone.
They were coming back.
All of them.
I grabbed my head, shutting my eyes tightly.
"This is too much," I muttered.
Everything started rushing in at once.
Faces.
Voices.
Moments.
Things I had forgotten.
Things I didn’t even know I forgot.
"Stop," I said, but it didn’t stop.
It kept coming.
I felt overwhelmed. Like I couldn’t hold all of it at once.
Then suddenly— Something hit me. Cold.
I gasped sharply and shot up immediately.
"What the—"
I coughed slightly, wiping my face.
It’s Water.
I looked up.
Amelia stood over me, holding a bowl.
"What was that?" I asked, my voice still a bit shaky.
"That’s not ordinary water," she said quickly. "It helps bring you back."
I frowned."Back from what?"
She didn’t answer that directly.
Instead, she grabbed my arm."We don’t have time," she said.
"What are you talking about?" I asked.
"We need to move," she said.
"Move where?" I asked.
She looked straight at me."They’re about to summon your sister," she said.
I blinked."...what?"
"To help heal Cane," she added.
I stared at her."You’re joking," I said.
"I’m not," she replied.
My brain struggled to catch up."They’re summoning Carian? Isn’t she practically dead" I asked.
"Yes," she said.
I shook my head."No... no, that doesn’t make sense."
"It doesn’t have to make sense right now," she said. "It’s happening."
I pushed myself up fully, still trying to process everything.
"This is crazy," I said. "You’re telling me they’re bringing her here?"
"They’re trying to," Amelia corrected.
"And that’s supposed to fix Cane?" I asked.
She hesitated.
"In a way," she said.
"That doesn’t sound convincing," I replied.
"Because it’s not the right way," she said quickly.
That made me pause."What do you mean?"
She stepped closer to me, her expression serious now.
"The Satyre," she said. "They don’t fix things. They twist them."
My stomach tightened again.
"They’ll make it worse," she continued. "Much worse."
My face twisted."Then why would they—"
"Because they’re desperate," she cut in."They’ve been looking for the last bloodline of Emberwyn as well."
My heart skipped."...what?"
Her eyes stayed on me.
"And if they find out it’s you," she said slowly, "they won’t let you go."
I felt my stomach drop."What do you mean they won’t let me go?"
"They’ll use you," she said. "Or worse make use of you, everyone wants to harness you and they’re not an exception."
