Chapter 138

"Can I ask you something?" I said quietly, my fingers idly tracing circles on her back as she remained curled up in my lap.

"Sure," Riona replied, her voice soft, her head resting against my shoulder.

"Why were Lilith and Ophelia in the palace? I thought we'd dealt with them. For good."

For a moment, she didn't respond. Her eyes flickered away—not out of guilt, but hesitation. She seemed to be deciding how best to explain. Then, with a quiet breath, she met my gaze head-on.

"Well… after you left, and I finished off the rest of the Luciano family, I was figuring out what to do with the bodies—Lilith and Ophelia. Then, out of nowhere, Uncle showed up and said he needed the parasites that had been inside them."

"The same ones were inside Lilith and Ophelia?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

She nodded. "Yeah. But I'd already used them—extracted them and… used them on Ezekiel. They died in the process."

I gave her a slow look.