Chapter 874\u00a0<\/p>\n
The ride home was quiet. Gavin kept one hand on the steering wheel and the other resting on my thigh, grounding me in a way nothing else could. I stared out the window, watching the trees blur past, trying to ignore the faint hum beneath my skin.\u00a0<\/p>\n
That strange feeling still rested deep in my chest; it was like energy settling into my bones, stretching out after a long sleep.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re quiet,\u201d Gavin said, peeking over at me before turning his gaze to the road.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I thought about telling him about that feeling I had when I was with Meg, how it seemed as if she wanted me to be pulled into her mind, and how I almost went. But I didn\u2019t wish for Eliza, who sat in the backseat, to overhear this conversation. This wasn\u2019t something I wanted everyone to know about\u2026. at least not until I can figure out what it\u00a0<\/p>\n
means.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was just hard,\u201d I admitted. \u201cSeeing her like that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t a complete lie; this was a woman I would have assumed to be my mother\u2026 if I hadn\u2019t found out that she switched me at birth and I was really a Blackwell and not a Churchill\u2026 I wouldn\u2019t have thought differently.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I couldn\u2019t really explain the connection I felt towards her\u2026 but it was there, and it was strong. It was like I was always meant to meet her\u2026 always meant to know who she was, even if she wasn\u2019t actually my mother.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But then did that mean I was connected to Lila in some way?\u00a0<\/p>\n
What did all this even mean?\u00a0<\/p>\n
When we finally pulled into the driveway, relief washed over me. We were finally home; it was familiar and safe.\u00a0<\/p>\n
We dropped Eliza off at the packhouse first before we reached the Villa. Irene was the first to spot us as we walked in the front doors.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDaddy?\u201d Irene said as she descended the last step. \u201cJudy\u2026 she breathed. \u201cDid you find her?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
We both nodded; Gavin tightened his grip on the side of my waist and pulled me into him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe found her,\u201d he confirmed. \u201cShe\u2019s being brought to Eliza\u2019s clinic, where we can keep an eye on her. She\u2019s been in a coma for 23 years.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s a long time,\u201d Irene whispered.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She looked tired, which wasn\u2019t unusual for her lately. She was wearing casual jeans and a sweater. Her hair was down, and there were no products in it that gave it a shiny and sleek look. No\u2026 her hair looked natural and a bit frizzy in some parts, like she just got out of bed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She was also wearing barely any makeup.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I knew Irene\u2026 this wasn\u2019t her. She was depressed\u2026 1\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI have some phone calls to make,\u201d Gavin said, pressing his lips to my head. \u201cWe can go to the packhouse as a family this evening for dinner.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSounds good,\u201d I said in return.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI have to talk to Judy about something first,\u201d Irene said, sucking her bottom lip into her mouth.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Gavin nodded and kissed my cheek before he turned and walked towards his study. Something about the way Irene was almost avoiding my gaze and fiddling with her fingers made me uneasy. She had never been this nervous before, and it made me wonder what was running through her mind.\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/2\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 874\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIrene?\u201d I asked, prompting her to speak. \u201cWhat is it?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She finally looked up at me, and I could see the worry in he pretty blue eyes. It went beyond exhaustion\u2026 this was something entirely different.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s something you need to know,\u201d she told me, wrapping her arms around her body like she was trying to hold herself together. \u201cOlivia and her stupid friends are protesting you at the packhouse. They don\u2019t want you as our Luna, and they made that painfully obvious these last few hours.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
My heart stopped in my chest, and my breathing hitched.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, they went through with it\u2026\u201d I said softly. \u201cThey are actually protesting me\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She nodded slowly, and at that moment, I knew there was something else. Thankfully, I didn\u2019t have to ask her because she started talking before I could.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThey got even more people to join them\u2026\u201d she said slowly\u00a0<\/p>\n
She slowly reached into her sweater pocket and pulled out her phone. She started swiping along the screen, her eyes focused.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many more?\u201d I asked, narrowing my eyes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot more\u2026\u201d she replied, then her fingers stopped gliding along the screen, and she looked up at me. \u201cJudy, they are saying you cheated during the Gamma competition, and it opened up an entire investigation.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d I gasped, louder than I intended.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou could lose the Gamma win and your reputation,\u201d Irene explained. \u201cThese girls are out for blood.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
We Built a Kingdom From Ashes That Still Remembered Love by Aila Frost 874 Chapter 874\u00a0 The ride home was […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[38],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21943","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-shadow-slave-by-author-novelnozi-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21943","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21943"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21943\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21943"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21943"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21943"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}