<b>Chapter </b><b>746 </b>


    “We get out.”


    I nodded. I was about to push the door open, but Gavin reached for my arm, grabbing it gently.


    “You do not leave my side, understood?”


    The seriousness in his expression caused my heart to skip a beat, and I nodded.


    “Understood,” I repeated softly.


    His expression softened, and then he got out of the car, running around to the other side to open the door for me as well. He helped me out of the car, cing his hand on the small of my back, and I shivered.


    I stared up at the dark and brooding manor; it was unlike anything I had ever seen before. They weren’t kidding when they said this ce was the shadow region; everywhere I looked was shadows, and there was almost like a dark fog that rose from the grounds.


    Two footmen in charcoal livery swung the doors inward before we reached them. The entry hall swallowed us whole–ck and white marble underfoot, a chandelier of iron thorns overhead, portraits hanging on the walls like a jury. The air smelled faintly of candle soot and a sweeter<b>, </b>stranger note of


    herb smoke.


    “Chairmen Landry,” The butler’s voice was a de wrapped in velvet as he greeted Gavin. His sharp eyes


    turned to me. “Miss.”


    “Luna,” Gavin corrected.


    Buter’s brows raised as he took me in, scanning me head to toe.


    “I apologize, I wasn’t aware. There’s been no mention of you taking a Luna.”


    “I am not a Luna yet,” I blurted, giving Gavin a look.


    Gavin frowned <b>at </b>me.


    “You are my mate. Regardless of whether we have done the ceremony yet, you are my Luna.” <fn9394> Newest update provided by Find[?]ovel</fn9394>


    My cheeks flushed at his words; the thought of being a Luna had weighed heavily on my mind, but now


    was not the time to dwell on it.


    “Come this way,<b>” </b>the butler said, clearing his throat.


    The butler was a tall,nky man with hair so dark that it was like charcoal. He walked in long strides, his head held high, and his hands sped together behind his back.


    Pictures of the ckwell family lined the walls, my eyes finding Zachary ckwell and his wife<b>, </b>Selene.


    +15 <b>BONUS </b>


    She was gorgeous in the photo with her midnight, silky hair, threaded with a single silver sp that glinted like a star. Her eyes, a piercing gray with shards of silver, remained sharp as though she was staring <b>at </b>me, even though it was only a photo.


    Their sons, Emmet and Noah ckwell, Noah being the eldest, stood beside the two. Emmet with his smiling face and dimpled cheeks, and Noah with a stern expression as though he had never smiled a day in his life. It’s a perfect mix of the two. They were much younger than their current age, so I knew this


    portrait was an old one.


    In Selene’s arms was a little baby that I knew had to be L. There was something about the baby that made it hard for me to look away; there was a slight familiarity to her that made my brows furrow. L has blonde hair, but this baby looked to have traces of dark hair, though it was hard to tell in this


    painting.


    “First painting after Miss L’s birth,” the butler exined, startling me.


    I hadn’t realized I had stopped walking or that they were waiting for me. I blinked a few times, getting my bearings straight. Gavin was looking at me with a concerned look on his face.


    “Are you okay?” He asked me, keeping his voice low and soothing.


    I swallowed.


    <b>“</b>Yes, sorry,” I said, nced at the portrait onest time, the light blue eyes of the baby staring back at me,


    like a warning.


    Pulling my eyes away from the picture, we followed him down a corridor to a pair of doors carved with roses and vines devouring one another. The entire manor gave me an eerie feeling. My heart thudded against my chest, a nervousness clouding me despite Gavin’s presence beside me.


    The butler opened the door, stepping inside.


    “Alpha, Chairman Landry, and his Luna have arrived,” he announced to an unseen figure.


    “Luna?” A deep tone, tinged with an ent, asked. “I had no idea he had taken one.”


    “His mate, Sir,<b>” </b>the butler exined.


    “<b>I </b>see. Allow them entry.”


    The butler stepped aside, letting Gavin and me pass him. A table of ck wood carved the space<b>, </b><b>set </b>with crystal that winked like fangs. A chandelier with candlelight hung in the center, its presence giving the room dimmed lighting.


    At the head of the table <b>sat </b>Zachary ckwell.


    His presence hit like cold iron in the blood. Not loud. Not showy. Just… absolute. A man carved from


    midnight and old oaths. At his right sat Selene ckwell; the portrait and photos in the corridor did her no justice. She was even more beautiful in person, and my heart thudded rapidly against my chest at the


    sight of the gorgeous couple.


    Emmet also sat at the table beside L, who stared at us with a predator’s poise, her eyes sharp and


    unyielding.


    And then beside her sat another woman, much older. She was in a wheelchair with snow white hair, and her eyes were fixed on me. My breath caught in my throat at the sight of her, and I had to take a step back.


    My eyes had to be deceiving me.


    It couldn’t be… could it?


    That was the same woman who appeared in my dreams only a night ago. Her words echoed in my head,”


    Blood calls to blood.”