Hatred

Victoria stepped into the bedroom and took out a packet of white powder she had received from the man. She retrieved a cup from her bedside cabinet and poured the powder into the cup. She started gently tilting it from one side to the other.

After she made sure that the powder wasn't visible in the cup. She placed it on Huxley's side of the bed. 

Then she closed the balcony window and took out a fountain pen and paper and sat down at her desk. She dipped the tip of the pen into black ink and started scribbling down with tremendous speed. Once she was done, she folded the letter and put it inside an envelope. Then she took out a stamp dipped in red ink and stamped it on the envelope. 

Victoria then lifted the envelope and a red flame started to crawl up to her hand. The figure wobbled while it cautiously consumed the letter. Her hands felt hot but she was used to it. After the strange flame swallowed the letter, she smiled at it. "Deliver it to Lord Bellaire. By tonight." She ordered. Stepping away from her desk as she watched the flame seep into the ground leaving no traces behind.

After making sure all her plans were set, Victoria made her way to her side of the bed and slept in peace.

If things do not go well by the end of tomorrow for Kai. All of her plans were already settled. Victoria had taken care of all loose ends and possible obstacles. 

Kai was up all night packing his stuff. He was planning to meet his father. He had already known his fate. And it wasn't a pleasant one.

After packing all night, he finally fell asleep after being awake for more than 24 hours due to his constant worrying. He fell into a deep sleep and had only awoken in the afternoon.

Not to his surprise, there was already knocking on his doors. Kai opened the door and found the face that terrified him most. He stepped back a little bit, he had not expected his mother to be at his doorstep. She had never done this before.

Hesitating a bit, Kai decided to address Victoria. "Moth..er?" He said, his voice cracking in between.

Victoria heaved a sigh and invited herself into the room and took a glance around. It was untidy and dust could be seen on the ceiling. It was obvious that it was not maintained well, only the simpler items on the floor were clean.

She smiled, knowing the servants listened to her orders very well. They were rather obedient, to be expected. She then glanced back at Kai, her mood soured.

Victoria had poured in all her effort into producing a child even though the Whitlock bloodline had a low fertility rate and it was extremely difficult to be pregnant while adventuring. She had to sacrifice her joy for a few months because of a mere child and now the child wasn't even useful. 

She had to suffer from the aftermath. She had lost too much blood in the process and her muscles had weakened. Victoria was bedridden for a week after that but she healed quickly due to her bloodline.

Even after all her effort, she had produced something of low quality. Even if Kai had white hair like the first Whitlock, it didn't mean anything. It was rare to have that feature but not impossible in commoners. 

Victoria's head filled with dark thoughts the first moment she laid eyes on the child. She had known from the start he had no such presence suitable for being a true Whitlock. She wanted to kill him for causing her so much trouble.

Nobody had survived after causing any sort of inconvenience to Victoria. She had them killed in the most brutal way possible. Families of her enemies were eradicated. She was an unstoppable force, just like her father.

Feeling pity for her husband, Victoria decided to let the child live. In the hands of a Lord nevertheless. Kai ought to be appreciative. And besides, she wanted to make some use of the child to form connections with the Bellaire Family.

The Bellaires were wealthy and owned an extraordinary amount of land. They were on the top of the food chain for their riches, even if they had a questionable background. No one dared rebut them, for the consequences would be severe. 

"You know too, don't you?" Victoria asked suddenly with no context as she shut the door behind her.

Kai shook his head quickly and slowly backed off to the window. Something was off, he felt a strange feeling tingling up his spine. His heart was pumping, legs were shaking. "Stay back!" He blurted out. 

After the door closed, Victoria advanced towards Kai with heavy footsteps. Once she had him cornered, she reached out her hands and grasped him by the neck.

Kai struggled and flailed his arms around, desperately hoping to get ahold of an object to release the grasp. He could feel himself losing consciousness as his body started to get more numb.

"Do you know how much I despise you?" Victoria asked, knowing well she won't get a reply back.

Victoria went silent and let out an evil laugh as she looked back down at the struggling child. Who was he even? But all she knew was that she loathed his face and personality. She always tasted something foul whenever she saw Kai.

"I hate you. I hate you. I hate you." She chanted, her pupils going out of focus as her lips twisted into a wicked smile. Tears flowed down her face like a stream. Her face darkened and she choked Kai harder.

Kai grabbed onto her hands and attempted to use his strength to get her grip off her. He kicked in front of him and managed to land one on his mother. He got an aggressive reaction in return. She banged his whole body into the wall. He could feel the concrete crumbling and his body blazing in pain though it was numb. 

"Father!" Kai managed to gasp out. He had to see his father. He promised he would save him! Where was he?!

"Your father doesn't care about you. He's not interested in you. He only spent time with you because he pitied you. Look, he's not even here when you're on the verge of death!" 

Kai hated her for the first time in his life. He had loved his mother even if he didn't receive the same affection in return. He feared her but would admire her from afar. He had always wanted to be just like her. But now all he felt was a root of hatred growing inside of him. 

She had to be lying. Father would never abandon him like that. He knew. He knew father even better than she ever did. For all she cared about is her measly little pride for her family. It was absurd. 

Kai lost consciousness and his eyes slowly shut. His whole body turned limp. While his mind ran wild with revenge.