Alpha's Regret: The Seventh Time was Forever

Chapter 592: Chapter 592 - That’s why I called her Marigold

That smile spreading across Coco’s face sent a chill down Seraphine’s spine. She couldn’t quite decipher its meaning, but something about it felt predatory, hungry.

It was like the more Coco chatted with Seraphine, the more she wanted to possess her, to take everything that belonged to her, her face, her husband, her life. The greed in those borrowed eyes was unmistakable, a bottomless pit that could never be filled.

Coco was certain that if she had Voren, she could end up with billions. That was why Seraphine easily threw twenty million at her without blinking.

The woman saw dollar signs, saw a future of luxury and power that she could never achieve on her own. ”Fifty million for that information,” she retorted, her tone casual, as if she were ordering a cup of coffee.

Seraphine’s gaze darkened dangerously, her eyes narrowing to slits. The exhaustion still pulled at her, but the fury burning in her chest cut through the fatigue like a blade.

”Coco, you are crossing the line. I can stop being nice, reverse that money, and send those pictures viral.” Her voice dropped to a dangerous register, each word measured and thoughtful.

A smug smile tugged at the side of Coco’s lips, her confidence unshaken. ”You can’t reverse it.”

Seraphine scoffed, a sharp, humorless sound. ”I didn’t ask you for a bank account number before making the transfer. Doesn’t that ring a bell?” She raised an eyebrow, watching the realization dawn on Coco’s face like a slowly breaking wave.

Coco’s expression chagrined, her smugness crumbling into wariness. Seemed to her that Seraphine was more complicated than she looked, more layered than the elegant exterior suggested. ”What are you?” The question came out sharp, demanding.

”I won’t tell you,” Seraphine said seriously, her voice brooking no argument. ”How did you end up with my daughter?”

Coco pursed her lips thoughtfully, her eyes taking on a calculating gleam. ”You’ve not studied much about witches, have you?”

Seraphine frowned imperceptibly, a chill racing down her spine. She knew that Coco was up to something, that every word out of her mouth was carefully chosen to manipulate and misdirect. ”Wait, you are a witch.”

The realization settled in her stomach like a stone. Seraphine would have been more comfortable if Coco was merely her mother’s pawn, a tool used by someone more powerful.

But if she somehow possessed her mother’s powers, then she was more dangerous than met the eyes—a threat that couldn’t be easily dismissed.

”Not only that.” Coco leaned forward, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. ”I’m a hybrid. See, my father is a human wizard, and my mother is a half witch, and half she-wolf.”

She counted off on her fingers as she listed her heritage. ”I don’t know if I possess wolfy abilities because I only ever visited a pack when I was a child. I wished to stay longer, to explore that part of myself, but my father never wanted me away from him. That’s why I got stuck in the human world.”

A bitter edge crept into her voice, resentment bleeding through her words.

Seraphine gritted her teeth as the meaning of Coco’s words sank in. The implications were staggering, a nightmare unfolding in slow motion.

”So, I can’t kill you because you are protected by the human law.” Her voice was tight with frustration. ”But I can as well destroy your image.” The threat hung between them, sharp and undeniable.

Coco laughed, the sound light and musical, utterly at odds with the darkness in her eyes. ”Sera, I’d like to give you one piece of advice. Never trust or believe everything a witch tells you.” Her smile widened, revealing perfect teeth.

”So you lied,” Seraphine pointed out, her voice flat, her expression unreadable.

Coco shrugged, utterly unconcerned. ”In certain things. But it’s all up to you to figure out the lies from the truth.” She spread her hands in a gesture of mock innocence. ”Consider it a test.”

Seraphine was getting tired. Her eyelids felt heavy, her limbs weighed down by exhaustion. The twin pregnancy was demanding every ounce of her remaining energy, and Coco was proving to be a handful—slippery, evasive, impossible to pin down.

It was time to get Voren involved, to let him handle this mess. But before she could call for him, Coco began to speak again.

”I was at a coffee shop after a failed attempt to get back with my ex.” Coco’s voice took on a reminiscent quality. ”I broke up with him because of Voren. I was having fun with other men, enjoying my freedom, so by the time I went back, he had married.”

Her jaw tightened with remembered anger. ”I tried to use spells to break his marriage, but his wife was too powerful. The human way of fighting against witchcraft is different, and she knew it well. That was how I ended up at that coffee shop after narrowly escaping from her.”

Her eyes grew distant, lost in the memory. ”Then a woman entered with a little girl and sat on the table next to mine. I wouldn’t have noticed them if the woman hadn’t told me to watch the girl whiles she used the restroom.”

A humorless laugh escaped her. ”I agreed without interest. I was distracted, planning my next move. But when I was ready to leave, she had not returned. No one could find her. The restroom was empty, the exit was unguarded. She had simply vanished.”

Coco paused, her gaze growing dim. ”I left my number with a coffee shop attendant and told her to call me if the woman came back. I left with the girl and when I didn’t receive any call the next day, I decided to take her to social welfare. But my mother came up with a plan to use the child to get back with Voren.”

Her lips twisted into a bitter smile. ”It was strange because the girl had a few of Voren’s features—his thick black hair, the shape of his lips. I cursed myself for not thinking in that manner sooner. We forged documents to make it seem she was mine. That’s why I called her Marigold.”

She fell silent for a moment, her gaze dropping to her hands. ”But Voren refused to marry me. However, the money he offered was good. More than good—it was life-changing. So I gave him full custody.”

Seraphine leaned forward, her exhaustion momentarily forgotten. ”Can you describe the woman who brought her? Do you know anything about her?” She wondered if it was the moon goddess herself, or if she had used somebody else to deliver the child to Voren. The possibilities swirled in her mind, each more improbable than the last.