<h4>Chapter 242: We Have To Go</h4>


    But Luna met his eyes, unwavering. "Blood City is my city by marriage. I have to do what I can for it—for my son." Her gaze dropped to the baby, then back up, steady and resolute. "So yes, I will stay with you for a few days recovering... but I will go back to my husband. We have to be clear on that."


    His wolf wed beneath his skin, snarling against her decision, desperate to im what was right in front of him. But Kyllian only leaned closer, trembling with all the things he couldn’t say. "Clear," he whispered. But his eyes promised anything but.


    Kyllian didn’t want to argue. Every instinct in him screamed to fight, to demand she stay, to rage against the chains she wrapped around herself in Damien’s name—but he swallowed it down. What mattered now was getting her home, safe, hidden where no one could reach her. Home. Goddess help him, he thought darkly, jaw tightening as he looked at her fragile frame, he would rain down hell on anyone who tried to take her again.


    Morvakar’s sharp eyes followed every unspoken flicker of emotion. A half-smile ghosting his lips. The sorcerer’s gaze slid between Luna and Kyllian, his mind weaving silent observations. So the young alpha king was still smitten with the queen. It was almost amusing. The mate bond was gone—or at least, severed enough to free him—and yet here Kyllian was. Luna, he thought, must be an extraordinary woman. Even after everything, she still wraps them all around her little finger. Kings.


    "We have to go," Talon finally broke the heavy silence. He had watched enough of Kyllian’s torment, enough of Luna’s hesitation. He respected Luna—who didn’t?—but his loyalty was to his king. And right now, the king’s heart was visibly unraveling in front of him.


    Luna turned at Talon’s words, her eyes softening as though pulled back into reality. She shifted the baby in her arms, staring down at the little face, the silent cries that wed at her already wounded heart. Slowly, she turned to Thessa. Their gazes met as she gently passed the child into her arms. For a moment, neither woman spoke. They didn’t need to. In that gaze, Luna poured everything she couldn’t say aloud—Take care of him. Protect him. This may be thest time I see my son. Thessa’s lips trembled as she nodded, though doubt lingered in her eyes. She wanted to promise it would be okay, but the truth was murkier. She wasn’t sure.


    Luna’s chest constricted as her arms fell empty. The ache of absence struck her harder than she expected. She rose to her feet slowly, regal even in sorrow, and turned to face Morvakar. He stood, waiting. For a moment, she simply looked at him. Then, before she could overthink it, she stepped into his embrace.


    Morvakar’s arms wrapped around her, and he lowered his head so he could whisper in her ear. "Seeing you this sad," he whispered, raw honesty bleeding through his usualposure, "it hurts me more than you can imagine."


    "Fix my son. That’s all I need."


    She swept from the room with that quiet, regal strength that made men bend to her will, her steps steady even as grief pulled at her shoulders. Kyllian and Talon fell into ce at her sides. Morvakar’s eyes followed her until the door closed, the echo of her absence leaving the room lonelier. His gaze dropped to the child now nestled against Thessa’s chest, its tiny face pale and restless, and a low hum escaped his throat. "Hmmm."


    "Hmmm what?" Thessa snapped, sharper than she intended. Her nerves were already raw. She rocked the baby instinctively, her hands tightening protectively as though she could shield him from whatever storm was brewing in the room. Her eyes narrowed at Morvakar. She never liked that sound from him—it always meant some theory, some revtion, some hidden string being pulled.


    "Did you know they were mates?" Morvakar asked casually. His long fingers tapped against the table, restless, calcting.


    "No." Thessa blinked, startled by the suggestion. "I haven’t been working for the royal house very long, but I doubt many people in Blood City know. We all knew they were betrothed once, of course. The whole kingdom gossiped about it. But King Damien—" she hesitated, "—crashed their wedding."


    "I severed the bond between them myself," he confessed. He leaned back, dark eyes glittering as he watched the baby squirm. "Months ago. Before she ever married Damien. The tether should be gone. But it is... strange, isn’t it? He doesn’t act like it. Not even a little."


    Thessa frowned, her brow knitting as she tried to process it. "Is that a problem?" she asked carefully, though her gut already whispered yes.


    "I wouldn’t rmend her staying in close proximity with him for too long." His fingers trailed over a vial of shimmering liquid on the table.


    "She said it was just for a few days," Thessa reminded him, though the wordscked conviction. She tightened her hold on the baby.


    "Right," Morvakar drawled. His eyes flicked to the closed door again, where Luna had vanished, and a faint smirk ghosted across his lips. "Good thing I sent a message to King Damien too."


    "You didn’t tell her that."


    Morvakar shrugged, the picture of nonchnce, but there was a glint of satisfaction in his gaze that betrayed him. "He needs to know his wife is in the hands of her ex-mate. If I were him, I would want to know. Wouldn’t you?"


    Morvakar turned back to the table. "okay, lets get to work. So I have most items here including the sun stone shards."


    "Oh goddess...." Thessa sighed in horror.


    *****


    Lucivar entered Luna’s old building. Isolde sat at a small table, her delicate hands wrapped around a steaming cup. The moment she noticed him, her breath caught. Quickly, she set the cup down, its porcin clink sounding loud in the silence. Rising, she smoothed her dress and dipped into a nervous curtsy. "Lord Lucivar."