Chapter 50
“Why won’t you heak at me? She asked. Since I came back, youve barely spoken to me, harely knowledged i exist, I knew this is hard for you. I know yest loved her: But cant vu give as a chance?”
I looked at bei Then, ty fated mate. The woman I was supposedly destined to be with. She was beautiful, kind, and trying so hard
Lached cuss the table and took her hand I’ll try. I promise. But I need time to adjust to all of this.”
Hope flickered in her eyes. That’s all 1 ask.
“I have an emergency meeting tonight, I said, withdrawing my hand. ‘Regional Alpha business.”
“I’ll come with you,” she decided. As your Luma.
The words sent a pang through my heart. She wasn’t my Luna. Juno was my Luna, even if she now belonged to someone else.
But I nodded. ‘Fine.”
I deliberately waited for Isabelle to finish dressing, knowing we’d be late. Part of me wanted to avoid this confrontation as long as possible.
By the time we pushed open the doors to the meeting hall, chaos had erupted. A table had been overturned, and most of the Alphas were standing around the edges of the room. In the center, Maddox and Kieran faced each other, rage pouring off them in waves. The room stank of angry pheromones, and several Betas were positioning themselves to prevent physical violence.
“You lied to me!” Maddox was shouting. “You said it would be a simple rescue mission, not a fucking declaration of war against Clifflands!”
Kieran’s laugh was cold. “Don’t act innocent
Maddox. You knew exactly what we were doing. You’re only upset because we failed.”
Maddox spotted me and whirled around. “Matthew!”
Kieran’s eyes locked with mine, challenging. “The great Alpha Matthew finally emerges from his cave of self–pity. How convenient.”
I crossed the room in long strides until I stood directly in front of him. The air between us crackled with tension. Without warning, I swung at him, but Kieran caught my wrist, his strength matching mine.
“Don’t try that again,” Kieran warned. “I respect our alliance, but I will defend myself.”
I wrenched my arm free and stepped back. “What alliance? Consider it terminated, effective immediately.”
The room fell silent. Not a single Forestvale Alpha objected.
“In case you’ve forgotten, Kieran, this is my territory,” I continued. “I may not have your reputation, but in Forestvale, my word is final. Quinn formed this alliance with my authorization, and I’m ending it with the same authority.”
Kieran’s expression shifted from anger to a cold smile. “You’ll regret this, Matthew. All of you will. When Clifflands marches on your territories, you’ll wish you had Fireland at your back.”
“The Alpha King is a snake,” he continued, his voice rising. “He’ll wait until you’ve lowered your guard, and then he’ll strike. This peace you think you have is an illusion.”
“If that’s true,” I countered, “then why were you so determined to extract Juno from Clifflands? That has nothing to do with conquering Clifflands, does it?”
Kieran fell silent, something flickering across his face.
“It’s not wrong to want to save her from that monster!” he finally burst out. Juno deserves better than being some northerner’s trophy! She’s brilliant and kind and-
He caught himself, but not before I saw the softness that entered his eyes when he spoke her name. The pieces suddenly clicked into place–his immediate interest in her at the gathering, the dance they’d shared, his insistence on ‘rescuing her specifically.
1/2
Chapter 50
Kieran, the infamous Fang of Phytoed, had fatten for any at white
stared at him with new weariness, remembering how he had looked that night.
$ can confirm that tone had absolutely no previous connection with tom. Why the hell is this happening?
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