My Fated Mate Can Have Her-Chapter 79: Offering

Violet

The world seemed to tilt a sudden chill ran through me that had nothing to do with the ice cream.

Her mother was an Omega?

"I am no stranger to the sad discriminations Omegas face," Ila continued, her voice still soft. "I witnessed it, after all. Though, not on a personal level as you have. I didn’t grow up privileged like Tow and Kael. And while we weren’t nobility, my father was a respected soldier. And my mother..." She trailed off, then dug the pointed foot of her flat shoe into the dirt, digging up the sand.

Then she knelt down and picked up a small handful of earth from the small spot she had just dug up, letting the sand sift through her fingers.

Then she scraped the remaining ice cream from her bowl into the hollow before covering it back up with earth, and patting it down gently.

I stared at Ila’s back, at the careful way she touched the earth, and couldn’t find words to even offer my condolences.

My chest tightened uncomfortably.

Her hand lingered on the spot. "She loved ice cream," she said, a smile ghosting across her face. "She couldn’t afford it often, but when she could..." She shook her head, the smile turning bittersweet. "She would savour every spoon like it was the most precious thing in the world."

I swallowed hard. The ice cream in my bowl suddenly felt too heavy. "How... how did she...?" I clamped my mouth shut, regretting the words that had come out.

Her hands stilled on the earth.

That was such a wrong question to ask!

I immediately stepped in to correct myself, "I’m sorry. I shouldn’t—"

"No, it’s fine." The smile had faded from her lips. "He killed her... for being weak."

My throat tightened as horror crashed over me. "That’s horrible. I’m so sorry..."

"So I killed him."

I stilled as she dusted her hand against her thigh and rose to her feet. She had said it so casually that it had taken me aback.

"He loved battles of strength, and I gave him the same mercy he showed her."

I was speechless. She didn’t seem angry, she just seemed fulfilled. I couldn’t blame her...

"I may or may not fully understand your situation," she said, her voice still gentle despite the weight of what she had just revealed to me. "You’re the one who grew up as an omega, not me. But again, I saw what it did to my mother."

She slightly tilted her neck upwards, eyeing the tree. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

"But I also believe that growth rarely happens in convenient situations. Please, don’t take my words the wrong way. I am not referring to the unjust discrimination." She paused, as if trying to gather her thoughts.

Then she turned to look at me for the first time since we had come here.

Her gaze sharpened, holding mine.

"I am likely going against Kael’s instructions by doing this, but I want you to make the choice yourself. If you’re truly uncomfortable with the environment in the settlement. If it’s damaging rather than strengthening you, then I will gladly pull you out immediately. Keep you safe until Kael returns, and that will be that."

She paused, letting the offer settle.

"But, please understand this. The wolves in Fresna respect power above all else. I partly understand the obsession with it. This place has been a dangerous nation for centuries, and things have only become relatively peaceful within the last hundred years. That strength helped us survive."

She turned back to the tree, her expression softening again as moonlight filtered through its branches.

"But the Moon Goddess wouldn’t have created Omegas if they served no purpose in this world." Her hand rested briefly on the tree bark. "Having you there, noticing how you’re slowly changing Kael’s perspective, and bringing awareness to something he never gave a second thought to... while not immediate, that could be the beginning of real change."

My lips parted, her words profound in a way I hadn’t thought of before. I could not believe such a thought hadn’t crossed my mind. I had resented the Moon Goddess a bit as a child, but this was a perspective I felt ashamed I didn’t realise sooner.

Omegas wouldn’t exist if they were as useless as many wolves claimed.

We stood in silence for a long moment, the weight of her words hanging between us. Then Ila turned back to face me.

"Then again, due to the toll it might have on you, maybe it would be best if you trained after—"

"No!" I gripped the bowl tight and then stiffened, shocked by my loud outburst.

I repeated, quieter this time. "No. Please, I really am in a better state of mind now and—"

Ila shook her head. "No. Think it over. You can give me your decision tomorrow." She then smiled. "Your treat is melting."

I clutched the bowl, watching a fat lump of the cream in a watery pool.

"It’s still edible," she said and then started to walk away. "You could drink it even."

I stepped beside her and as we began walking back to the marketplace, Ila spoke again, her tone shifting into something lighter.

"I run an orphanage. For Omega children specifically. You should come see it sometime."

My steps faltered, but I still kept walking. I was starting to see Ila in an entirely new light.

"Does he know?" I asked.

She smiled, shaking her head. "No. He knew I had my own dealings in the outer district, but as long as it brought no harm or wasn’t suspicious, he never looked into it. He only gives Tow and I that leeway, of course... but now he knows."

"I would like to see it," I said quietly, and Ila smiled. A real, warm one.

"Good. Also, it would be best for you to finish your ice cream before it melts completely."

The creamy white lump had already started to soften. I paused to take a sip of the already melting treat.

It was still sweet.