Chapter 37 Kael Distance
Lira POV
"Careful, little Luna." His voice dropped to a dangerous growl. "Don't presume to understand what I feel."
"Then tell me I'm wrong." I held his gaze. "Tell me last night meant nothing."
For a moment, something flickered in his eyes. Longing. Regret. But then his walls slammed back up, harder than before.
"It was good sex during a blood moon. Don't read more into it." He turned back to his papers. "Now if you're finished with this emotional nonsense, I have a pack to run."
I wanted to scream. To throw something. To make him feel even a fraction of the pain tearing through me. But I'd learned something from my years in the cellar—sometimes the strongest thing you could do was walk away.
"Fine." I headed for the door. "Enjoy your paperwork, Alpha."
"Lira"
I kept walking.
The packhold felt suffocating. Everywhere I turned, wolves stared. Some with curiosity. Others with barely concealed hostility. Mira stood near the training grounds, her expression triumphant as she watched me stumble past.
She'd been right. He'd used me once again and now I was just another conquest.
I made it to the healer's sanctuary before the tears came. Aria found me there, curled up behind the medicinal herb racks, crying like the broken girl I'd been trying so hard not to be.
"Oh honey." She sat beside me, pulling me into her arms. "What happened?"
"I'm an idiot." I wiped at my face angrily. "I actually thought—after last night, I thought maybe"
"He pushed you away."
I nodded miserably. "He framed it like a biological necessity. Said I was confusing heat with real feelings."
Aria sighed. "Men are fools. Alpha men even more so."
"I felt what he felt through the bond, Aria. He does care." Fresh tears spilled over. "But he'd rather hurt me than admit it. How am I supposed to be Luna to someone who won't even acknowledge we're partners?"
"You show him what real strength looks like." She squeezed my hand. "You survived twenty years of abuse. You can survive one stubborn alpha."
A knock interrupted us. Ryn peeked around the door, his gentle face creased with concern.
"Lira? I heard—are you alright?"
"I'm fine." I stood quickly, wiping my face. "Just being dramatic."
"You're allowed to be dramatic." He hesitated. "There's a pack member who needs help. Joren Steele—from your combat trial. He collapsed during morning training."
My tears dried instantly. "Collapsed how?"
"Same as the other curse-sickness cases. Fever, hallucinations, violent tremors." Ryn's expression turned grave. "Aria's been trying, but nothing works."
I looked at Aria who shook her head helplessly. "I've tried every healing herb I know. The sickness isn't responding to conventional treatment." She said.
Something stirred in my chest. An instinct that came from somewhere ancient. The Moonblood magic in my veins recognizing a need it could fill.
"Take me to him," I said.
Joren was in the healing ward, thrashing against restraints. His skin had taken on a grayish tint, veins standing out black beneath the surface. Two warriors struggled to hold him down as he screamed words in a language I didn't recognize.
"He's been like this for hours," one warrior said. "Getting worse by the minute."
I approached the bed slowly. The moment I got close, Joren's eyes snapped to mine—glowing red for just a second.
"Moonblood," he hissed in that strange voice. "The curse hungers for you."
Then he screamed and thrashed harder.
"Get back!" Aria pulled at my arm. "He's dangerous"
"No." I shook her off, my hands already moving to his chest. "He needs help."
I didn't know what I was doing. But Selwyn did. My wolf rose within me, lending ancient knowledge my human mind had never learned. I pressed my palms against Joren's burning skin and let the power flow.
Silver light sparked from my fingertips, spreading across his body like healing fire. The dark veins began to recede, the grayish tint fading. Joren's screams softened to whimpers.
The curse-sickness fought back. I could feel it—a malevolent presence that didn't want to leave. It clawed at my mind, trying to infect me instead.
No. Selwyn's voice was fierce. This is our pack. Our territory. You have no power here.
I pushed harder, pouring more energy into the healing. Sweat beaded on my forehead. My arms trembled. But slowly, gradually, the darkness retreated.
Joren's eyes returned to normal. His breathing evened out. The black veins disappeared completely, leaving only healthy skin behind.
He blinked up at me, confused. "What... what happened?"
"You were sick." I pulled my hands back, suddenly exhausted. "But you're okay now."
The room had gone silent. Every wolf present stared at me with a mixture of awe and fear. Even Aria looked stunned.
"You healed him," she whispered. "True healing. Not herbs or medicine—actual magical healing."
Joren sat up slowly, testing his limbs. "I feel... fine. Better than fine." He looked at me with something like reverence. "Thank you, Luna."
The title made my chest tighten. Luna. Kael's mate. His biological necessity.
"Don't thank me." I turned toward the door, needing air, needing space. "Just rest."
But as I left, I heard the whispers starting. The pack members discussing what they'd witnessed. Word would spread quickly—the new Luna had new powers beyond what anyone expected.
I wondered if Kael would care. Or if he'd just add it to his list of practical reasons for keeping me around.
Ryn caught up with me in the corridor. "That was incredible, Lira."
"It was nothing." But my hands were still shaking.
"It wasn't nothing." He fell into step beside me. "You saved his life. The curse-sickness kills within days. Aria's lost two pack members to it already."
I stopped walking. "Two? She didn't tell me"
"She probably didn't want to worry you." Ryn's expression turned somber. "It's getting worse. More cases every week. The elders think it's connected to the ancient curse your mother's pack suffered."
My mother. Vera Ashborne. Dead bringing me into this world, leaving behind nothing but prophecies and danger.
"I need to learn more about this healing," I said. "If I can help others"
"Then you should." Ryn smiled. "Aria would be happy to teach you. And the pack needs this, Lira. They need to see you as more than just Kael's mate."
His words hit home. I'd been so focused on surviving the trials, on navigating the mate bond, that I'd forgotten I had my own purpose. My own power.
Maybe I didn't need Kael to validate me. Maybe I could be Luna on my own terms.
As we walked toward the sanctuary, I felt the mate bond pulse. Kael had felt my healing power through our connection. I sensed his surprise, his grudging respect, and underneath it all—his fear.
Good. Let him be afraid. Let him see that I was more than just a convenient bond.
I was done waiting for him to accept what we were. From now on, I will build my own place in this pack. Whether he liked it or not.