Chapter 72: Chapter 72: A Mother’s Conscience

Chapter 72:

A Mother's Conscience

Olivia sat in her study. It was a room with a desk, sitting chair, two dark grey cushioned couches with a fancy marble coffee table between them, and many bookshelves filled completely. The desk itself was made of solid mahogany. Upon it was a computer which currently turned off. The rest of the desk was completely, the only other item that usually rested upon it missing.

That item was a picture frame. This picture frame held the one picture Olivia cherished more than any other. It was a picture of her and little Selene. She was just a baby in the picture, but it was one of the very few times she ever held her. Kenneth was very strict about affection.

Olivia was in the sitting chair, a large grey cushioned armchair. Her feet were kicked up on a footrest that matched the chair. She was currently reading the news upon the tablet she held in her hand. Sipping some red wine from a crystal wineglass, she could feel the tears well up in her eyes.

These tears were very complicated. The room was currently dimly lit, with dark walls and floors. There were no windows in this study, with only the biometric scanner door the only way inside. So, she sat in the security of her study with the complicated emotions welling inside of her.

Of course, it had to do with her daughter, Selene. Glancing to the small side table next to her chair, she gazed upon the picture frame she had taken from her desk. There was a trick to this picture frame, for while at one moment it showed a picture of Olivia holding baby Selene, a simple touched changed it to reveal a different picture.

Setting the wineglass down, she reached over to it and did just that. Gently touching the frame, it registered her fingerprint and the picture before her altered to reveal a rather surprising image. Selene was smiling, and with her was a young man with golden hair.

She was sitting at a table in the picture at a restaurant called The Medallion in what would be considered the Rosewood District. The young boy was gazing out of the window, but Selene's attention was on him. She had never seen her daughter like that.

Olivia sighed as she gazed tenderly upon the image. When she had received the alert that Selene had used the family name at a restaurant, she was quite curious, unlike Kenneth who sent agents to pick her up. By force if necessary.

Olivia could only scoff at the thought. "That man...I kept warning him.." Olivia knew she had only married into the family, so the reach of what she could do wasn't much. The most she could do was hack the security systems.

Selene was thorough, much to Olivia's pride. There wasn't much left on the feeds. Still, Olivia was able to obtain this. The picture she saw before her. After this, however, she became a lot more careful. She became a ghost again.

She tried to convince Kenneth to leave her be. She was happy now. In all the years Olivia knew her daughter, that was the first time she ever saw her smile with such tenderness. She had to admit, she was curious about this boy. However, once again, Selene was very good at covering her tracks. She couldn't find anything on him.

Olivia was, of course, rebuked by Kenneth. He wanted Selene back, whatever it took. Olivia just wanted her daughter happy. After years of being forced to neglect her, Olivia held an intense guilt. She should have done more, but she was a prisoner of her own fear. Kenneth would have killed her if she tried anything. That's just how controlling he was.

She had been such a foolish woman in love. She saw this handsome, brilliant, and driven man. If only she knew who he really was, but by the time she did, it was too late. She was already married to him, and her family was devoured by him. All of their assets were merged into the St.Claire Family. Nothing was left.

In order for her and her family to survive, she had to obey. The damage done was now irreversible. "Could Selene forgive me?" Olivia wondered, though she wouldn't blame her if she never did. It hurt even more, because she still loved Kenneth till the end. That's why these tears were so complicated.

The news headline she continued to read was of his death. "Kenneth St.Claire, CEO of St.Claire Industries, Killed During Terrorist Attack". Or so the article stated. She knew the truth. Selene had killed him. It was going to happen; it was just a matter of time.

Olivia tried to get through to him, but when she couldn't...she left. It was a risky move, but she could no longer stand by him. She knew it was long overdue. It should have been done long ago, but the past could not be changed. Only the present could.

She wasn't entirely dumb. She had privately been accruing her own wealth again. Taking back was Kenneth took from her family. He had manipulated her into marrying him. She was the perfect match, according to genetics. So, when he manipulated her pregnancy, Selene was created.

It was a horrifying process of Kenneth controlling and manipulating her every movement. From the food she ate to the clothes she wore. The activities she could participate in here limited, and most of the time she spent in labs as they continued to modify Selene. By the end of it, Olivia was exhausted.

Even so, seeing that little child brought her a strange sense of peace. She thought that, if anything, she could give this child a good life. How wrong she was. In the beginning, she doted on her, but as time went on, she was made to distance herself. She was given the task of ingratiating herself with the rest of high society, and Selene helped with that.

It was in this moment everything changed for all of them. Much to Olivia's shame, she became intoxicated with the attention. It soon became easy for her to obey Kenneth's orders of distancing herself from Selene. It all came crashing down when Kenneth sold her hand in marriage.

She was barely of age when he attempted to marry her off. That was when she finally broke free of them all. In that moment, Olivia should have been there for her, but she failed. Not just as a person, but as a mother. Selene left, and never looked back.

Olivia realized just how much her daughter meant to her. How she should have fought, even if it meant she would die. The guilt and shame ate away at her, and when she saw her for the first time in years...and she was smiling? There was no way she could disrupt that happiness.

Hearing that Kenneth was trying, once again, to sell her hand in marriage...she was enraged and worried. She knew nothing good could come of this, and she was right. Selene declared war. It was a war Kenneth could not win. It was a war that Olivia didn't want him to win.

She did what she could to help Selene behind the scenes, but there was hardly anything for her to do. In fact, she was stopped from doing so by the Mercer Family. It seemed Selene had already made a move, and she was under watch. It was frustrating, but once again...she was just a bystander. Watching from the sidelines.

Kenneth was now dead and the company, along with the family was in Selene's hands. Olivia felt such great relief from being out from under that man, but the part that still held love for him ached. "Why couldn't he have just been a better man..." Olivia could only shake her head, wiping the tears from her eyes and returning the image back to normal.

Could her daughter forgive her? Did she have another chance, now that Kenneth was gone? How many years were wasted? Ten? More? Olivia had wallowed in self-pity for many of those years. It was pathetic of her.

Picking up her wineglass, she went to take a sip of it when the entire room went pitch black. "What the hell?" Olivia clenched her jaw, gathering power within her. She was an Ascended, one reason Kenneth chose her. She wasn't the strongest, but she had a rare gift. Healing.

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"Who's there?" Olivia spoke up, her eyes glowing a deep blue.

"...Mother," A familiar voice spoke up.

Olivia's heart suddenly jumped from her chest before becoming quite heavy. "Is that...really her?" Yet, there was no mistaking it. Olivia would know her anywhere, no matter how much she changed. She was her daughter after all.

Sure enough, the lights flickered back to life, and there before her was her daughter. Standing tall and regal in the middle of the room. She looked elegant in a beautiful black dress. It fit her body perfectly. Long sleeved and quite modest with a turtleneck. It was split along the left side of the hem, revealing her leg which was covered with black tights.

Her beautiful silver hair was tied back in a messy updo. Deep blue eyes with dark violet specks stared out from an impassive face. Olivia couldn't believe what she was seeing. Her hand began to shake and the power in her eyes faded as she attempted to get up.

"No," Selene raised a hand, "Stay sitting."

Olivia froze, swallowing hard. Looking around anxiously, she sat back down. This was the chance she wanted. She couldn't ruin it. Her mind was racing a million miles an hour. She ached to hug her but knew that was far from appropriate after everything that had happened.

Selene eyed her closely. She seemed to be assessing the situation herself. "This must be hard for her too..." Olivia's heart ached at causing her daughter pain. Selene's eyes moved towards the glass of wine, her eyes seeming almost disappointed.

"...Jace doesn't like drinking," Selene mumbled to herself, though Olivia just barely heard it.

"Jace?" Olivia's ears perked up, getting a bit excited. "Is that the boy you've been seeing?"

Selene shot a warning gaze at her, cold and deadly. Olivia shrunk back, understanding it may be a touchy subject after what Kenneth had done. Taking a breath, Selene then relaxed and nodded.

"Yes," Selene stated, walking slowly around the couch, she leaned against it and crossed her arms, "He is the one I've been seeing, and the one I intend to marry."

Olivia could only smile, for there was no doubt in her daughter's voice. This was a fact to Selene.

"I know I don't have the right to say this, but..." Olivia cautiously said, "As long as you're happy, you have my support."

"I'm not here for your support," she said curtly.

Olivia's heart felt like it had just been stabbed, though she took it in stride. She was right, she didn't need her support. Selene watched her for a moment, and after a brief pause, she continued with a more relaxed tone.

"However...Thank you," Selene's words surprised her, Olivia's eyes widening, "I am not here to fight you, mother. I am here to offer you a deal."

"Anything," Olivia answered almost immediately, much to her embarrassment as her ears turned red and she quickly reworded her answer, "I mean...Of course, what can I do for you?"

"...First, I have questions," Selene told her, "Answer them...then we'll discuss my deal."

"Of course," Olivia nodded, taking a sip from her glass.

Selene watched her intently as she did, almost too intently.

"Is something...wrong?" Olivia asked nervously, barely taking a sip of the wine.

"No," Selene shook her head, "Drink, though I would suggest you slow down."

"Because of what you said earlier?" Olivia wondered.

"We'll discuss that depending on your answers," Selene took a deep breath and began her questions.

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