Chapter 14
Chapter 14
POV
“You can’t possibly believe that Rowan, your Beta is the traitor in our midst, Alpha. His family has served yours for centuries. It doesn’t make
Councilman Eleazar says.
“He is also your best friend, so you should know hum better. Are you sure this evidence isn’t doctored, Councilman Gabus addi
The voces of the security Council rises and falls around me. I can’t think straight. I feel like a limb has been torn from me Rowan? My Beta?
therything suddenly falls into place. Only a highly placed person and someone close to me could have planned and executed all these. To think he w
pg to rope in Lyanna into his schemes. White hot fury blinds my vision.
I raise my hand for silence in the room. The cacophony y around me stops immediately.
“I have definite proof that he is the spy we’ve been searching for. As it is, his mother and sister are on the run. He’s been imprisoned, pending his trial. From this hour, his mother and sister are declared wanted. All their lands and estate are forfeit. Anyone who is found associating with them will be
tried for treason and sentenced to death.”
“Then why haven’t you put Rowan to death“, Councilman Ulric says in a mocking tone
look at him with irritation. He has always been a thorn in my Desh. Sometimes I think he covers the Alpha title
Before I can respond. Eleazar butts in
“We should not be too hasty in this matter. Word of this in the pack will demoralise everyone. I support his imprisonment but I suggest a secret trial. Let’s keep this under wraps. We wouldn’t want our enemies to think we are weak. Our security is of utmost importance right now.”
I øye Utric and make a mental note to put him under surveillance. Something about him rubs me the wrong way,
I dismiss the council but Eleazar lingers.
Ludian, I didn’t want to say this in front of everyone but I think you might be wrong about this. It just doesn’t sit right. Also, as your uncle, I am obligated to advise you on the dangers of making an enemy of the McCall family. Both families have fought side by side for centuries. Don’t break that
bond
Inid, already distracted by one name, Olivia.
Rowan was the last person seen with her. I need to have a that with him.
I stand at the edge of Rowan’s cell, my hands clasped behind my back. The air is heavy with dampness, a mix of mildew and desperation that seems to cling to his every breath. His dark eyes blaze with fury as he paces the narrow space, chains clinking with every agitated movement.
“You’re making a mistake, Lucian,” he growls, his voice raw and sharp as broken glass. “They’re playing you.”
I hold his gaze, unmoving. “And who are they, Rowan? The same nameless enemy you keep mentioning without proof?”
He slams his fist against the wall, and the sound echoes through the underground chambers. “You know me! You know I wouldn’t betray the pack! For centuries, we’ve fought at your side. My family is out there, fleeing for their lives because of this-” He chokes on the words, his frustration palpable.
For a moment, doubt flickers in my mind, but I crush it. Betrayal comes in many forms, and his connections to the enemy are too coincidental to ignore. Yet, I can’t bring myself to order his execution. Rowan was my Beta, my brother in all but blood. Ending his life would be like severing a limb.
“You’ll have your time to prove your innocence,” I say everly, though the words feel like ash in my mouth. “Until then, you stay here.”
“I have one question though. Where is Olivia? Is she a pawn in your sick games? Was it your plan to use her against me? Where is she, goddammit?”
“You keep focusing on the wrong things, Luce. There is a traitor out there, and I, your only ally, am locked in here. Have you really asked yourself why the Mark Moon Pack has a particular interest in this pack? Whatever is going on is bugger than you and I. Focus, Lucian FocusTM
I am taken aback by his words. Is he trying to sideline me or he is trying to tell me something?
Without a woad, I turn on my heel and leave. There is a heavy burden in my heart. Something is still off.
115
Chosen by the Moon: Rise of Female Alpha
Chapter 14
I see Depar, Uric and Gaius clustered in the hall of the mansion. What the hell do they want now?
“Uncle Eleazar, where do I find the records of all the invasions of the Black Moon Park?“, I ask quickly.
He looks startled. “The library of course”
“Or your family’s vaults“, Ulric slaps in
I break into a run, heading straight to my family’s vaults. I know exactly where to find what I want.
The family vault is colder than I remember, the chill seeping into my bones as I descend into its depths. The air smells of old parchment and dust. My Emily’s legacy is housed here centuries of secrets, alliances, and betrayals carved into stone and inked into leather–bound comes
the archive is hidden behind a false wall, a mechanism 1 only discovered after my father’s death. I push the stone aside, revealing the narrow passage
leads to the heart of our family’s secrets. The air grows thicker, heavier, as if the past itself is alive and watching.
Lamarching desperately for any letter or document with the mention of Black Moon Pack. My eyes fall on a strange scroll, hidden away from others. I am drawn strangely to it.
The Crescent Stone. The name leaps out at me, etched into the parchment with a precision that feels almost reverent
As I read, my pulse quickens. The Crescent Stone is no mere artifact. It is said to hold the power to hind or sever destinies, to shape the fates of wolves and their kin. A weapon of raw power that amplifies the powers of whoever wields it. The text speaks of a hidden connection between my bloodline and an ancient prophecy tied to a woman of great power. A woman from Shadow Forest Pack.
The Pack sounds strange to me. I have never heard about this pack, or received messages from them. What’s the connection between us?
Before I can delve deeper,
ton
, a faint sound reaches my ears–a scrape of metal, a shuffle of movement. My head snaps up, senses sharpening
“Who’s there?” 1 bark, the torchlight dancing wildly as I scan the shadows.
No answer.
I curse under my breath, setting the scroll aside and drawing the blade at my hip. The vault is supposed to be impenetrable, but the unease coding in my gut tells me otherwise.
Then I smell in Smoke
The realization comes too late. Flames erupt from the passage behind me, hungry and wild, devouring the dry parchment and brittle wood. Someone followed me here, Someone has set the archive ablaze.
f
Idart forward, but the heat forces me hack. The e fire spreads with unnatural speed, a wall of orange and gold consuming centuries of knowledge in seconds. Panic surges through me–not for my safety, but for what’s at stake. If this archive is destroyed, so is any hope of understanding the connection between my family, the Crescent Stone, and the mystery woman.
my throat My
I grab the scroll, shielding it with my coat as I search for an escape. The flames lick at my heels, the air thick with smoke that claws at my vision blurs, but I force myself to move, to think
The only way out is through.
I charge into the inferno, the heat blistering against my skin. My wolf roars inside me, its strength lending me speed and resilience as I crash through the burning debris. The world narrows to a single goal: survival.
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