2/2
The Alpha’s Borrowed Luna
Chapter 174
Click.
The sound echoed in the silent room like a thunderclap, yet I felt nothing. No pain, no sudden darkness, no release from the agony tearing through my heart.
I pulled the trigger again. Click. Click. Click.
Empty. The gun was empty.
A hollow laugh escaped my lips as realization dawned. Even in this y final, desperate act–1 had been denied. Kaius had given me a gun without bullets. Perhaps ke’d never loaded it, or perhaps he’d removed them after I’d proven I could handle it.
I wasn’t even trusted with the means to end my own life.
I lowered the gun, suddenly aware of how ridiculous I must look–on my knees, tear–stained and broken, pointing an empty weapon at my own head.
“How fitting,” I whispered, my voice raspy from crying. I placed the useless gun on the floor beside me and slowly rose to my feet.
Kaius stood watching me, his expression unreadable. Had there been a flash of concern when I’d raised the gun? Of relief when it didn’t fire? I couldn’t tell, and it no longer mattered.
Without a word, I moved to the closet and began gathering my belongings–the few items that had been truly mine before coming to Ravenhollow. The clothes Kaius had bought me, the jewelry, I left them all.
As I worked, a strange calm settled over me. The pain was still there raw and throbbing beneath the surface, but something else had awakened alongside it–a cold, clear determination that grew stronger with each item I placed in my bag.
I had survived Dorian’s betrayal. I had survived slavery in the Mistwood Pack. I had survived the captivity of my early days at Ravenhollow. I would survive this too.
My eyes fell on the check Kaius had placed on the bed. With deliberate movements, I picked it up, examining the staggering amount written there. Enough to start a new life, he’d said. Enough to ease his conscience, perhaps.
After a moment’s hesitation, I folded it and tucked it into my pocket. Then I moved to the dresser where Kaius kept his valuables. With steady hands, I selected several pieces–a diamond–encrusted watch, cufflinks made of rare metals, a small sculpture I knew to be priceless. I added these to my bag without remorse.
Kaius watched silently as I helped myself to his possessions, making no move to stop me. The corner of his mouth might have lifted slightly–in amusement or approval, I couldn’t tell and didn’t care.
“You are right, I said, zipping my bag closed. “I did a job well done and deserve my pay.”
I glanced around the room one last time, memories flashing through my mind like fragments of a shattered mirror. All the nights we’d shared, the whispered promises, the moments I’d believed were building toward something real and lasting.
How had I allowed myself to fall so completely? When had I surrendered my dignity, my self–respect, my very identity to this man who now looked at me with such cold indifference?
The answers didn’t matter. What mattered was that I was walking out of here.
I straightened my spine, adjusted my clothes, and wiped the last traces of tears from my face. Then I lifted my bag and walked to the door, refusing to give Kaius the satisfaction of a backward glance
1/2
Chapter 174
The corridors of the pack house were eerily silent as I made my way toward the main entrance. The party had evidently disbanded after the dramatic scene in the grand hall, but I could feel eyes waterling me from doorways and alcoves–curious, pitying, perhaps even gloating.
Let them look. Let them see that Elowen might be leaving Ravenhollow, but she was doing so on her feet, head high, spirit
unbroken.
As I approached the main hall, a commotion caught my attention. Gards were escorting someone toward the lower levels–toward the dungeons. With a jolt of surprise, I recognized the figure, but its appearance was considerably more haggard.
Lysandra.
Her hands were bound, her expression defiant despite the armed escorts flanking her. Our eyes met across the hall, and for a moment, I saw something like understanding pass between us.
“You don’t need to be bothered,” she called out, her familiar arrogance barely masking the anger beneath. “I won’t be having him either, at least not in the dungeons where I would be spending a long time.”
I paused, struggling to make sense of her situation. “I am not sorry for you,” I replied honestly. “But I never intended for this to happen.
“I know. This is a change of event, one even I didn’t see coming.” There was a bitter twist to her lips as the guards urged her forward.
watched her disappear down the stairwell and then continued on my way.
The main hall was not as empty as I’d expected. Pack members lingered in small groups, their conversations dying as I entered. I recognized faces from the party earlier–wolves who had witnessed my downfall, who had heard Kaius deny me as his mate, his Queen, his Luna.
The massive doors of the pack house stood open to the night beyond As I approached the threshold, I caught sight of Frost standing in the shadows near the entrance, his face a mask of barely contained fury. Our eyes met, his a deep, reluctant gaze that lingered before he gave me a slight nod.
The cool night air hit my face as I stepped outside, a gentle reminder that the world continued to turn despite the cataclysmic changes in my life. A sleek black car waited at the bottom of the steps, its engine already running. Beside it stood a figure I hadn’t expected to see.
“Elowen,” my mother called, stepping forward with open arms.
I collapsed into her embrace, the strength that had carried me through the pack house suddenly deserting me. She held me tightly, her familiar scent a balm to my raw nerves.
“Do you really think I would let you go without me?” she murmured against my hair.
“Of course not,” I replied, my voice muffled against her shoulder.
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