Chapter 3

3.

Inside the luxurious Rose Suite, Alaric was lounging on the bed, holding Sienna in his arms. They were laughing together.

The moment I entered, Alaric's face soured.

He pointed at the blood on my skirt with a look of pure disgust. "You are the Luna of the Obsidian Pack. Have you no shame appearing like this?!"

"Go change into something that doesn't smell like a slaughterhouse."

I leaned heavily on Cora, struggling to even stay upright. I bowed my head. "Alpha, I have already changed."

"I am unwell. I cannot control the bleeding. I ask for your understanding."

Alaric froze. He stared at me for a long time, his eyes unreadable.

Sienna noticed his gaze and let out a soft, dramatic whimper. "Alpha... she's here, and I suddenly feel so much better. The shadows are moving away..."

Alaric snapped out of his trance. He grabbed his heavy cloak from a chair and threw it at me. "Put it on. You're an eyesore."

I wrapped the cloak around myself. "Thank you for your kindness, Alpha."

My lack of emotion seemed to irritate him. He pointed to a small wooden stool by the bed. "Sit there. Guard her until she falls asleep. Then you may leave."

To torment me, Sienna stayed awake for hours.

She curled into Alaric's chest, her voice like honeyed poison. "Alpha, shouldn't the Luna be a noble-born werewolf? A lady of high status?"

I could feel Alaric's eyes on me in the dark.

"I gave her my word," he said shortly. "An Alpha's word is law."

Sienna wouldn't let it go. "But what if Seraphina were still here? Would your promise have changed?"

Alaric didn't even hesitate. "If Seraphina were alive, I never would have looked at another woman, let alone made a promise to one."

Sienna pretended to be hurt. "I am her sister. Can't you make an exception for me?"

"No."

He seemed to realize he was being too blunt. He added, "I don't love the Luna, but the marriage is a political reality. I cannot simply undo it."

Every word was a stake through my heart.

When Alaric was a nobody, I had married him in a tiny village in the Wilds. The ceremony was simple, but I had been the happiest woman alive.

He had held my hand in front of my clan and sworn to live and die with me.

The mountains and the streams had heard him say he loved me.

Now, he dismissed it all as if it were a chore he was forced to perform.

I swallowed the bitterness in my throat. "If the Alpha wishes to appoint a new Luna, I will step down willingly."

"Silence!"

The roar was followed by a sharp slap that sent me sprawling to the floor.

Alaric looked at his hand, a flash of regret crossing his face. "I told you, you will always be my Luna. That will not change."

"Don't let me hear such nonsense again."

That night, the two of them slept soundly in each other's arms.

I didn't close my eyes once. I watched the shadows on the wall and remembered every lie he ever told me.

I told myself that when the sun rose, the memories would fade. When the blood stopped flowing, the tears would stop too.

But I had no idea just how many tears I had left for a man like him.

The next day, I slept until midnight.

When I woke up, Silas was standing there with an empty ceramic bowl. He was talking to Cora.

"Lady Sienna is still having palpitations."

"The shaman found a cure, but he needs a very specific ingredient from the Luna."

Cora was instantly on guard. "What ingredient?"

Silas sighed heavily. "The bone and blood of someone with her specific spiritual aura."

"The Alpha said that since the young prince carried the Luna's blood, he counts as a source."

"He ordered me to... dig him up before the body rots completely."