Stay Here Tonight

Stay Here Tonight
Chapter 60
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Elena

The walk back to my room felt like a death march. Every step was heavy, weighed down by the certainty of what was coming. Elara had seen it all. She wouldn’t just let this go. She would twist it, package it, and deliver it to the entire pack like a poisoned gift.

Rhea stayed silent beside me, her anger a hot, palpable thing. I could almost hear her thoughts, spinning with plans for retaliation I knew I had to stop.

We reached my door. “Stay here tonight,” she said, her voice firm. “Lock the door. Don’t let anyone in but me.”

“Rhea—”

“I mean it, Elena. I don’t trust anyone right now.” Her eyes were dark with worry. “I’m going to go… take a walk. Cool off. I’ll be back to check on you later.”

I knew what “take a walk” meant. She was going to go look for Elara. “Rhea, don’t. Please. It’s what she wants.”

“I’m not going to do anything stupid,” she lied, her jaw tight. “I just need some air.” She gave my arm a squeeze and turned, stomping down the hallway with purpose in her stride.

I slipped inside the room and locked the door, leaning against it with a sigh. The room was dark and empty. Kael’s scent was still here, on the pillows, on the clothes in his closet. It made my chest ache. I missed him. I missed the version of him who would have held me after a scare like that, not the cold, distant Alpha who would probably see Lucian’s rescue as confirmation of his fears.

I slid down to the floor, pulling my knees to my chest just like I had in the library. The adrenaline from the rogue attack was fading, leaving me shaky and exhausted. I must have dozed off there, because the next thing I knew, a sharp, raised voice from outside jerked me awake.

“…disgusting! How dare you even suggest that!”

It was Rhea. And she sounded furious.

My heart leapt into my throat. I scrambled to my feet and unlocked the door, peering out into the hallway.

The commotion was coming from the main landing at the top of the grand staircase. A small crowd was already gathering—a few warriors coming off shift, a couple of housekeepers, their faces curious and alarmed.

And in the center of it all were Rhea and Elara.

Rhea was standing toe-to-toe with Elara, her finger pointed in my sister’s face. Her whole body was trembling with rage.

Elara, in contrast, looked calm. She had a small, condescending smile on her face, which only seemed to infuriate Rhea more.

“I’m not suggesting anything,” Elara said, her voice carrying easily in the hushed hallway. She sounded so reasonable, so innocent. “I’m merely repeating what others saw. It’s my duty, as a loyal pack member, to report concerning behavior to the proper channels.”

“Concerning behavior?” Rhea spat, her voice rising to a shout. “You lying snake! You’re trying to destroy her! You’ve been trying to destroy her since we were kids!”

“This isn’t about childhood squabbles, Rhea,” Elara said, her tone shifting to one of pity. “This is about the stability of the pack. It’s about the Alpha’s legacy. If the Luna is… distracted… it’s a problem for everyone.”

The word “distracted” was loaded. Everyone knew what she meant.

“She is not distracted!” Rhea roared. “You’re planting these ideas! You’re the one causing the problems!”

“Me?” Elara placed a hand on her chest, her eyes widening in fake surprise. “I’m just concerned. We all saw how quickly Beta Lucian came to her aid today. How… personal it seemed. It’s natural for people to talk.”

That was it. That was the match to the fuse.

Rhea snapped.

With a snarl that was more wolf than human, she shoved Elara hard. “You shut your mouth!”

Elara stumbled back with a dramatic cry, bumping into the hallway table and sending a vase of flowers crashing to the floor. The sound of shattering ceramic was like a gunshot.

Gasps erupted from the growing crowd.

“Rhea, no!” I cried, rushing forward.

But it was too late. The scene was perfect. Rhea, wild-eyed and violent. Elara, the victim, pressed against the wall looking frightened and wronged.

“She attacked me!” Elara whimpered, her voice shaking with expertly feigned fear. “Just for voicing my concerns! Is this what our pack has come to? Violence against those who speak the truth?”

“Truth? You wouldn’t know the truth if it bit you!” Rhea lunged for her again.

I got between them just in time, grabbing Rhea around the waist and holding her back. She was strong, fueled by pure fury. “Rhea, stop! Stop it! You’re playing right into her hands!”

“Let me go! I’m going to rip her lying tongue out!” Rhea struggled against me, her eyes glowing faintly with her wolf’s anger.

The crowd was murmuring now, their faces a mix of shock and judgment. I saw it in their eyes. They saw a unstable best friend defending a possibly unfaithful Luna. They saw exactly what Elara wanted them to see.

I was humiliated. Trapped. Forced to choose between my best friend who was defending me, and the need to de-escalate the situation my sister had engineered. If I sided with Rhea, I looked complicit in the violence. If I told her to stand down, I was betraying her loyalty.

“Rhea, please,” I begged, my voice breaking. “Just stop. Walk away.”

She finally stilled in my arms, her chest heaving. She looked at me, her expression a mix of hurt and betrayal. “You’re defending her?”

“No! I’m trying to save you from yourself!” I whispered fiercely.

Elara straightened her clothes, that smug little smile back on her face now that Rhea was contained. “Thank you, Elena. It seems at least one of you has some sense of decorum.”

I wanted to slap the smile off her face, but I focused on Rhea instead. “Go to your room please.”

Rhea yanked herself out of my grasp. She gave Elara one last, searing look of pure hatred, then turned and stormed off down the hall, shoving past a few gawking pack members.

The crowd began to disperse slowly, casting nervous glances back at me and Elara. The silence they left behind was heavy and accusing.

Elara brushed a piece of invisible dust from her sleeve. “Well, that was certainly dramatic. It’s a shame she can’t control her temper. It really doesn’t reflect well on you, sister.”

I turned to her, my own anger rising, cold and sharp now. “You better watch your tongue.”

She just smiled wider. “Or what, Elena? What will you do?”

She turned and walked away, her heels clicking confidently on the hardwood floor.

I stood there alone in the wreckage of the hallway, surrounded by shattered glass and spilled water from the broken vase.

The sound of heavy, hurried footsteps came from the end of the hall. It was Kael.
Kael rounded the corner, his face like thunder. His eyes took in the scene—the broken vase, the water on the floor, me standing alone in the middle of it looking utterly defeated.

“What happened?” he demanded, his voice a low growl. “I heard there was a fight.”

Of course he had. News traveled fast.

I opened my mouth to explain, to tell him about Elara’s provocation, about Rhea defending me. But the look in his eyes stopped me. It wasn’t a look of concern, it was impatience. It was the look of an Alpha dealing with yet another problem caused by his troublesome mate.

The words died in my throat. What was the point?

“Nothing,” I said, my voice hollow. “It was nothing.”

I didn’t wait for his response. I turned and walked back to my room, leaving him standing there in the mess. I locked the door behind me and slid down to the floor once more, pulling my knees to my chest.