Chapter 96
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Chapter 96
LUNA AQUAMARINE’S POV
“Offer?” I asked.
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Lorenzo’s lips curved faintly, not quite a smile. “The Primus gave you a pack. A gift no outsider should hold. Especially one with your… history.”
My brows creased.
An outsider? My history? What’s that supposed to mean? What does he know about my past?
The Elders behind him shifted, robes whispering as if they agreed without speaking.
“There is nothing I can do about it, Elder Lorenzo,” I said, my hands tightening at my sides.
“That is exactly the problem,” Lorenzo replied. “A gift accepted without question grows into a claim. And the Moonstone pack shouldn’t be yours.”
Clifford stirred beside me, but he didn’t speak. His eyes stayed on Lorenzo, but somehow, I could understand what he was going through.
He came here to claim his pack back. Yet, other people are after it like hungry wolves.
“It shouldn’t be yours either. The true heir of that pack still lives till this day.” I said, heat rising in my chest.
Lorenzo didn’t even spare Clifford a glance, “He lost his right over it the moment Primus Alexander claimed it.”
“And now, Aquamarine holds it until I prove myself. Those were the Primus’s exact words.” Clifford added.
“And she should be wise enough to refuse,” Lorenzo said. His gaze narrowed, cutting into me. “Do you think the rest of us will simply stand back and watch as you tighten your claws around that pack? Do you think you’re fit to rule a pack? Your actions have done more damage than good.”
If you were fit to rule, Alexander would have given you instead.
The second Elder, a sharp–faced man with thinning hair, finally spoke. “We have a rule we’ve been following for years and we definitely won’t allow a woman to be the reason for it to change.”
The words hit hard, but I forced my voice steady through gritted teeth. “So you’d rather tear apart what he builds, just because you don’t like who he chose? Because I’m a woman?”
My eyes darted between their faces, “How shallow–minded could you be? Who says a woman can’t and shouldn’t rule? Alexander has no issues with me taking charge and ruling so why should I bend to your words?” I spat.
Lorenzo stepped closer, towering over me. “We would rather protect The Order that has kept us alive for centuries. Whatever Primus Alexander does and tells in his bed is his own affair. What he does with packs,
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Chapter 96
with power–that concerns us all. Not you.”
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I swallowed hard. My thoughts snagged on his earlier words. “You want me to give up the Moonstone pack to you.”
“Exactly,” Lorenzo said, his tone soft but sharp enough to cut. “Step back before it is too late. Deny the title. Show us that you know your place by focusing more on giving us an heir, Luna. We’ve waited for a very long time, Luna.”
Silence stretched between us, broken only by the slow grind of my own breathing.
Shame crept up my spine. I still had no sign of pregnancy and I know very well that’s the news Alexander has been hoping to hear. I know when he rests his head in my stomach at night as if searching for a heartbeat.
But I still don’t know why I’ve not seen signs yet. And now, the elders are talking? What would the entire pack speak about now?
Clifford shifted again, his hand brushing the hilt of his blade as though ready for whatever came next, but he still didn’t speak.
Lorenzo’s gaze never wavered. “Do that, and perhaps you will survive here. “Refuse, and you will–find out in due time.”
He turned his back on me before I could answer, as though I already didn’t matter. Then, he sniffed the air and turned back, staring at me. His eyes roamed over my body in such a way that my heart flew to my stomach.
Before I knew what was happening, Clifford stood in front of me. Blocking Elder Lorenzo from taking a step
closer to me.
When Lorenzo and the others finally left, I stayed frozen, swallowing the rage burning up my throat.
I never imagined he would speak to me like that. Lorenzo had never cared enough to even look my way before–always minding his own business, quiet, respectful.
And I liked it that way. Now he has shown his true colours. He’s just like the rest of them.
Clifford broke the silence first. “Are they always like that?”
I dragged in a breath, hands rubbing my temples. “What do you expect? It doesn’t matter what I achieve—I’ll never be fully accepted in any pack. Not in theirs. Not in yours. Not in anyone’s.”
His jaw tightened, but he didn’t argue. We kept walking until the castle swallowed us whole.
The sting in my palm dragged my eyes down. The place where the melted iron had hurt me. It surprisingly stung. It was not raw anymore, but not healed either.
I flexed my fingers, trying to shake it off, but when I looked up, I froze.
Alexander. Standing at the end of the corridor with Fiona, yet again at his side.
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Chapter 96
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I scoffed and tried to look away, pretending I hadn’t seen him, but then I caught it–the shift in his eyes. The way his stare cut past my face, past Clifford, past everything else, and locked dead on something.
I followed his gaze. Just for it to land on my hand.
Not my arm.
My heart kicked against my ribs. My skin went cold.
Run!
The voice came sharp, hissing in my head. And I obeyed. I didn’t wait for Clifford, didn’t think, just turned and bolted. My breath came sharp, feet pounding, sweat sliding down my back as if his gaze still clawed at me from behind.
By the time I reached my room, he was already there.
Alexander caught me before I could shut the door, dragging me inside with a force that made my chest slam against his. The door slammed, and then I was shoved hard against the wall.
“Where the fuck did you get this?” His voice cracked through the air, low but dangerous. He snatched up my hand, holding it in front of us, his grip iron around my wrist. His eyes flared as if the sight alone was enough to set him on fire.
“It’s nothing—”
“Nothing?” He roared, the sound vibrating against me. “You think this is freaking nothing? Do you even know what you’ve done?
Anger cracked through my panic and I yanked at his hold. “Don’t shout at me like I’m a child, Alexander! I can handle a damn wound.”
His jaw clenched hard enough that I thought his teeth might shatter. “No it’s not! Fuck!-Minutes from now, if the scent stays long it would have-”
Before I could ask what the hell that meant, the door flew open. Levi stormed in, eyes sharp as they landed on the scene.
“Levi! Thank the Goddess you’re here!” I cried. “Get this beast off me!”
He didn’t waste a second. He was already dropping to his knees, pulling a kit from under his coat.
“Hold her still,” Levi snapped.
My heart raced and my eyes went wide in fear.
Hold me still?
Alexander didn’t let go of me. He grabbed me and pressed me down to the floor with one hand on my shoulder, the other still crushing my wrist. I struggled, the rage clawing at me as much as the sting in my palm.
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Chapter 96
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“Let me go!” I shouted, thrashing against him.
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“Stop fighting me, damn it!” Alexander’s voice cracked, fury and something else bleeding through. His body pinned mine with unrelenting weight, his breath harsh against my ear. “You don’t know what you’ve done. You don’t understand-”
“Levi! I comm-” My voice was muffled with a rag Alexander inserted into my mouth.
Levi’s hands were already working, cloth pressed to the wound, a sting biting into my skin as liquid poured over it. I hissed, teeth snapping together, but neither of them gave me space to move.
I felt Alexander’s heart pounding against my back as though it wanted to tear free.
His anger wasn’t just anger–it was fear.
And that scared me more than the wound itself.
田
