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“Do you know who you are talking to!?” Luna Genevieve’s voice echoed against the corridor. “I am the Luna of the Nightfall Pack, the very pack hosting you. Why am I not allowed to see my daughter?”
When the guards didn’t answer, she continued. “I am demanding <i>to </i>see my daughter. Why am I being barred from her room?”
Behind her, Lilian, the Beta’s daughter, hurried to her side, clearly rattled. “Luna, please,” she said gently, trying to soothe the rising fury. “I’m sure the young miss is alright. Let’s not escte this-”
She turned to the guards in crimson and ck standing like sentinels outside the chamber doors. “You,” she said, pointing at the one nearest to her. “We brought healers. Why are you refusing us entry? We only want to help Atasha.”
The corridor almost felt too suffocating, the kind that made the air feel too heavy to breathe.
However, this wasn’t enough to rattle the guards stationed outside the chamber. They stood there like statues. Towering in their dark crimson and ck uniforms, they stood shoulder to shoulder like a wall of stone.
“I said, why am I not allowed inside!?” she demanded again, her voice cracking with a mixture of
rage
and desperation. How dare these people ignore her!? She is the Alpha of Nightfall Pack for goddess sake!
Still, the guards said nothing.
“Answer me!” she snapped.
Behind her, Lilian shifted anxiously, her fingers curling into the fabric of her sleeves. “Luna… please, maybe we should wait for Alpha Collin—”
“I am her mother,” Genevieve spat, her voiceced with disbelief. “My daughter could be dying behind those doors, and these dogs think they can keep me out?”
“They won’t even look at us,” Lilian murmured, her voice almost lost beneath the weight of the corridor’s quiet.
Then Celeste came running around the corner, her cloak half–falling from her shoulders, eyes wide with fear. “I heard what happened!” she gasped, her breathing in quick bursts. “I came as soon as I can. Is she… is she alright?”
The moment the words left her mouth, her knees gave slightly and she reached for the wall, steadying herself. “They said someone attacked her. Is it true?” Her voice cracked. “Did
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someone try to kill Atasha?”
“Yes,” Genevieve said, her voice softening as she looked at her youngest. “But we don’t know the full details yet.”
“I can smell blood inside,” Celeste’s eyes immediately filled with tears. “No, no, please—” She turned to the guards, her expression crumbling. “Please. She’s my sister. Let me see her. Please, I have to see her!”
Genevieve pulled her daughter close, wrapping her arms around her as she sobbed into her chest. “Let them through,” she whispered, this time pleading rather than demanding. “Just for a moment. Please.”
Yet, the guards remained statues. Their gazes were fixed straight ahead, as if the cries of a mother and sister were nothing more than passing wind. Not even a flicker of emotion crossed their faces.
Lilian stepped forward again. “We brought healers. If the young miss is wounded, we can help. We want to help.”
Still, the guards didn’t answer. Seeing this, Celeste let out a choked sob and sank to her knees on the cold floor. “Why won’t they let us in? She could be–she could be…”
“Get up… what are you doing?” Genevieve whispered, tightening her hold around Celeste. “They’re Cassian’s. And they don’t answer us.”
“Maybe we should tell the Alpha,” Lilian said.
In response, the Luna shook her head. The Alpha is currently with the warriors, fighting against the Demon Fangs. She red at the guards. “Atasha is my daughter, are you trying to end her life by refusing her medical help?” She straightened her back. “If that is the case then we will be reporting this to the King!”
“I didn’t know that the Luna of the Nightfall pack is such a loving mother, “a sarcastic voice interrupted Genevieve. They immediately turned and found a man, one of Cassian’s Lieutenants walking their way. If Genevieve was right, the man’s name should be Lucas.
Genevieve’s spine straightened like a drawn bow as her eyes met the Lieutenant’s. “Then tell them to move,” she said. “I will see my daughter.”
Lucas merely snorted, amused. “You misunderstand, Luna. Lord Cassian’s physicians have already examined her. She’s stable. Resting. And as of today, she’s no longer just your daughter, she is a Valemont bride. A northern princess.” He tilted his head, mock sympathy tugging at his features. “You don’t simply barge in on royalty because you feel like it.”
The wordsnded like a p, Genevieve blinked, stunned. Princess?
Atasha? The same girl they had so easily given away?
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Celeste’s tear–streaked face turned toward her mother, confusion mirrored in her trembling lips. Even Lilian looked lost for a second, her mouth parting as if to question what they’d just heard.
“You–treat her like royalty?” Genevieve asked, her voice low now, disbelieving. “Atasha ck is my daughter and no royalty can change that fact.” Her tone hardened again. “You will let me see my daughter and let my physicians examine her! I will make sure that my daughter is safe.”
Lucas’s grin darkened. “Unfortunately, I cannot do that.”
“You- “Lilian’s gaze narrowed. “A mere Lieutenant would dare stop our Luna from seeing her child!?<b>” </b>
“I suggest you stop demanding ess to what is no longer yours.” Lucas said, ignoring Lilian’s outbursts. He eyed Celeste then bravely met Luna Genevieve’s gaze as he stepped forward, deliberately closing the distance between them. “Make no mistake, Luna. I don’t care who you were to her before. What matters now is who she belongs to.”
Genevieve didn’t back down. “I am still her mother.”
“You were her mother,” he corrected smoothly. “And being the wife of a southern prince doesn’t change that you no longer hold power here.”
His hand dropped casually to the hilt of his sword..
Lilian gasped. “How dare you speak like that in front of a Luna?”
Lucas’s gray eyes flicked toward her, unbothered. “I speak like this because I serve Lord Cassian. He has given me full authority to protect the princess,” he said with a drawl. “And should anyone–even you–pose a threat, I’ve been granted the right to kill. Cleanly. Without hesitation.”
Celeste stumbled back a step, her breath catching. “He… he gave you permission to-”
“To protect her,” Lucas said, his tone like steel drawn in warning. “From anyone who might harm her. Orpromise her safety. That includes you, me, your Alpha… and even your beloved Luna here.”
The words hit harder than they should have. Genevieve’s jaw clenched. This wasn’t supposed to happen. She had expected formality. Maybe arrogance. But not this kind of silence. Not this level of shielding. They were treating Atasha like she were someone important. Like a damn valuable treasure. Are they insane? She is but a wolfless girl!
That… hadn’t been part of the n.
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She blinked, adjusting the mask of emotions on her face as her mind scrambled behind it. “I see,” she murmured, keeping her voice carefully level. Almost maternal. Yes, this was her goal. “So that’s how it is. You’re protecting her now. Shielding her from those who ‘might harm her.“” She stepped forward, her eyes locked on Lucas. “And yet… you won’t even let her mother through the door.”
Her voice didn’t rise. “Tell me,” she continued, letting the silence stretch just long enough to sharpen the tension. “Is that really because you wanted her safe or was it because she’s already dead?<b>” </b>
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