76- The Mark of Blood and Moonlight
POV Lunara Grimwald:
The small wound healed quickly, so I had to repeat it a few more times—biting the skin until it broke and a drop of blood appeared. I stained every tree around me, not limiting myself to them, but marking the low branches and leaves too, where the rainwater wouldn’t wash it away.
Elowen should already be looking for me. She had seen me running into the forest; she knew where to start searching.
When I finished, I crossed my arms and wrapped them around my body, trying to control the wave of cold. The weather was mild, but without the sun to warm me, it felt colder. My clothes were far from suitable for this kind of weather.
I turned around in a full circle, scanning my surroundings.
The sky was completely dark, and the silver light of the moon reflected on me, stretching my shadow forward.
I let out a heavy sigh, satisfied with the result, before walking back with stiff steps toward the borders of Eldoria territory—where it was still safe for me.
“Well, well… Alessio won’t believe our luck when we tell him,” a male voice sounded to my left, and every hair on my body stood on end.
I turned toward it, spotting a tall, strong male. The moonlight highlighted the contrast of his brown hair, eyes of the same shade, and dark brown skin.
I took a step back, and he took one forward. I moved away as he advanced, in a predator-and-prey dance.
“You won’t live long enough to tell him anything,” I whispered through clenched teeth.
The male laughed.
“Of course we will. The bitch was alone and outside the territory of the alpha who protects her.” His nostrils flared. “A marked bitch, at that.”
“If you know I’m marked, then you must also know he’ll come after me—that he always knows where I am,” I shot back, trying to buy time.
I needed to think of a quick, practical solution. I had to get within the limits of Eldoria territory. If I screamed and ran, they would find me easily.
“Oh, you slut, Alessio has plenty of plans for you once you get back home,” another male exhaled from behind me. “Removing that mark will be the first thing he does.”
I turned slightly, watching both of them from the corner of my eye while sidestepping, inching closer and closer to the fence of decapitated heads.
“And it’s your lucky day, because he’ll make you his wife again.”
I frowned.
“And why would he do that?” I retorted.
“You’ll find out when you ask him.”
A third wolf appeared—this one fully transformed. The beast rose before me, blocking my way, baring its fangs. Its greenish eyes, pupils dilated, were locked on me.
I swallowed hard as panic surged through my body, gnawing at my insides.
The wolf stepped silently over the dry twigs on the ground, not making a single sound. It was almost my height, its beige fur glimmering under the moonlight.
And it was terrifying. Far more terrifying than any threat from the alphas at my sides.
The closer it came, the larger it seemed to grow.
I was used to seeing transformed wolves, but never had one threatened me before. My legs began to shake, my steps unsteady. I couldn’t focus on anything except the beast in front of me.
It growled, saliva dripping from its mouth, fangs glistening.
I raised my hands as if I could stop it with my palms. As I stepped back, it advanced toward me.
“Edric will kill all of you,” I hissed.
The first male burst into laughter.
“You see that, Ethan? The bitch thinks she’s powerful just because she’s by that psychopath’s side.”
“I want to watch every second of Alessio’s hands on her,” the other one said. “It’ll be so much fun watching him break her again and again until she realizes no one will ever save her from him.”
Tears stung my eyes. I shook my head, refusing to accept such a vile, meaningless fate.
“That will never happen. Never,” I promised, unsure whether I was trying to convince them—or myself.
The stench of decay grew stronger. I almost sighed in relief. I was close to the border. Close enough for them to reach me—for me to be saved by Eldoria once more.
I kept moving, pulling my body further toward the land that would protect me.
“Alessio is eager, and so are we,” the second wolf remarked.
“Eager for what?” I shot back.
“He promised to let the bravest males touch you.”
I turned my head toward him.
“What?”
“Oh yes. Nobody wants to come near you—everyone’s terrified of true death—so he promised the bravest males could have you before the wedding.”
Disgust pulsed through me.
“And why would anyone want that?”
If they were afraid, it meant Edric’s reputation was spreading, and they had to know the odds weren’t in their favor. But why take that risk just to fuck me? I didn’t consider myself ugly, but I’d seen females far more attractive than me.
He shrugged.
“It’s not every day you get the chance to sleep with an alpha’s daughter. It’s an honor and a privilege.”
Gods, they were sick.
My father and Kellan had done an excellent job planting their poison in every male’s mind across the packs, twisting them into something as vile as themselves.
“Your lives are worth less than a fuck?” I laughed. “I’m shocked at how relevant you think you are. If Alessio wants to marry me, do you really think he’d let any other male touch me?”
“Oh, he’ll let them,” the first wolf replied.
“And how can you be so sure?”
A fleeting smile crossed his lips.