Chapter 40 The Alpha's Rage
LIRA POV
The door to my room slammed shut behind me. I leaned against it, chest heaving, trying to breathe through the pain radiating from the bond.
Kael had chosen her. In front of everyone, he'd chosen to humiliate me rather than defend me.
Let me out. Selwyn paced frantically inside my mind. We need to fight. We need to.
"We need to think." I pushed away from the door, wincing as my torn shoulder protested.
The wound wasn't deep, but it burned. Mira's claws had silver residue on them, clever bitch . She'd come prepared to hurt me properly.
I stumbled to the washbasin, splashing cold water on my face. Blood and wine stained my dress. My hair had come loose from its braid, wild and tangled. I looked like what I was—a feral thing who'd lost control.
Exactly what Kael expected from me.
"Damn him." I gripped the basin's edge until my knuckles ached. "Damn them both."
A soft knock interrupted my spiral. I tensed, expecting Thomas or another guard coming to ensure my imprisonment.
"Lira?" Ryn's voice, quiet and careful. "It's me."
I opened the door a crack. He slipped inside carrying a healer's kit, his expression tight with worry.
"You're not supposed to be here." I moved back to let him enter. "Kael said no visitors."
"Kael can fuck himself." Ryn set down the kit, examining my shoulder with gentle hands. "This needs treatment, sit."
I obeyed, too exhausted to argue. He cleaned the wound with practiced efficiency, his touch far kinder than I deserved.
"She baited you perfectly," he said after a long silence. "Mira's been planning this for days."
"I should have walked away." I say. "I should have been stronger."
"You're human." He applied salve that stung and soothed simultaneously. "Even Lunas have breaking points."
"Kael doesn't think so." I watched Ryn work, grateful for his steady presence. "He looks at me and sees weakness. A burden he's forced to bear because of the mate bond."
"He looks at you and sees everything he's afraid of." Ryn met my eyes, his own shadowed with old pain. "Fear makes people cruel, Lira, you know that better than anyone."
I did know. I'd spent twenty years watching Elder Garrick's fear drive him to torture an innocent child.
"What happened after I left?" My voice came out smaller than intended.
Ryn's jaw tightened. "Mira milked her injury for all it was worth. Claimed you attacked her unprovoked out of jealousy and insecurity."
"And the pack believed her?"
"Some did while some didn't." He bandaged my shoulder with carefully intensity. "Thomas tried to speak for you, but Kael shut him down. Said you needed to learn consequences."
The bond pulsed with something I couldn't quite name. Regret, maybe or just residual anger.
"He's still in the feast hall?" The question slipped out before I could stop it.
"Last I saw." Ryn's expression turned carefully neutral. "Mira was... very attentive to him."
My stomach twisted. "I don't want to know."
"Then I won't tell you." He packed up the healer's kit. "But Lira? Whatever you're feeling through that bond? Kael's feeling it too. Every bit of your pain, your anger, your betrayal—he's drowning in it."
"Good." The word came out harsh. "He deserves to drown."
"Maybe." Ryn moved toward the door, then paused. "Or maybe he's punishing himself as much as you. The Alpha who can't protect his mate from his own cruelty."
He left before I could respond.
I paced my room like a caged animal, the bond pulling and burning in equal measure. Every instinct screamed to find Kael, to force him to acknowledge what was between us.
Please, Selwyn whimpered. It hurts. The separation hurts.
"I know." I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to contain the ache. "But we're not crawling back to him."
Hours passed. The feast noise gradually faded as pack members retired to their dens. Through the window, I watched the moon climb higher, felt its pull on my blood.
Then the bond flared hot. I gasped, doubling over as sensation flooded through me. Kael's rage, sharp and overwhelming. His wolf was fighting for dominance, furious and territorial.
Something had happened.
The door burst open. Kael filled the doorway, his eyes glowing with wolf-light, his entire body vibrating with barely contained violence.
"What did you do?" His voice was more growl than words.
I straightened slowly, every muscle tensing. "I've been locked in here for hours, what are you talking about?"
"Mira." He stalked toward me in anger. "She collapsed during the feast, there was poison in her wine."
My breath caught. "And you think I"
"Who else?" He grabbed my arms, his grip bruising. "You threatened her. Attacked her in front of witnesses."
"I slapped her!" I tried to pull away, but his hold was strong. "I didn't poison her wine, you paranoid bastard!"
His eyes searched mine, looking for deception. The bond thrummed between us, wild and chaotic.
"She's accusing you." His voice dropped lower, more dangerous. "Claiming you used your Moonblood magic to curse her drink."
"That's ridiculous." I shoved at his chest, anger replacing fear. "I've been here the entire time. How could I possibly."
"You tell me." He released me suddenly, stepping back. "Because half the pack believes her. They're calling for your trial."
The words hit me like a punch. "Trial?"
"Elder Selene invoked ancient law." Kael's expression was cold. "Any Luna accused of poisoning a pack member must face judgment. If found guilty..."
He didn't finish, but he didn't need to. I knew the punishment for poisoning—death by silver.
"This is insane." I turned away, trying to think through the panic. "Mira set this up. She provoked me, then poisoned herself to frame me."
"Why would she do that?"
"Because she wants me gone!" I spun back to face him. "Because she's in love with you and I'm in her way!"
"Mira wouldn't"
"Wouldn't what? Risk her life to destroy her rival?" I laughed, bitterly. "You really don't see it, do you? How desperate she is for your attention?"
Kael's jaw worked. "Even if that's true, the accusation stands. The pack demands justice."
"So you're just going to let them execute me?" My voice cracked. "Your mate?"
"I'm trying to protect you!" His control finally snapped, the words exploding between us. "If I show favoritism, if I defend you without proof, they'll say the mate bond has made me weak. They'll challenge my authority."
"So save your authority." I moved closer, getting in his face despite the danger. "Let them kill me, at least then you'll be free of this burden."
He flinched like I'd struck him. "Don't."
"Don't what? State the obvious?" Tears burned behind my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. "You've wanted me gone since the moment you marked me as least now you'll get your wish."
"That's not" He reached for me.
I jerked back. "Don't touch me."
The bond screamed at the rejection. Kael's hand dropped, his expression raw with something that looked almost like pain.
"The trial is tomorrow at dawn." His voice had gone flat, emotionless. "Elder Selene will preside, you will be given a chance to defend yourself."
"How generous." I crossed to the window, staring out at the moon. "And when I'm found guilty?"
"You won't be." But he didn't sound convinced.
"Because you'll save me?" I didn't turn around. "The same way you saved me tonight when Mira humiliated me in front of the pack?"
"I did what I had to do." His words came out careful, measured. "You lost control. You attacked her."
"She called me useful!" I whirled on him. "She bragged about fucking you, then sat there touching you while you let her. What did you expect me to do?"
"Act like a Luna!" His alpha command rolled through the room. "Control your emotions. Rise above petty jealousy"
"It's not petty when she's actively trying to destroy me!" My own power flared,"And it's not jealousy when my mate won't even defend me from his ex-lover!"
Kael's expression shuttered completely. "Mira and I were never"
"Don't lie to me." I moved closer, close enough to see his pupils dilate. "I can feel it through the bond. Every time she touches you, every memory that flickers through your mind, you fucked her. Multiple times."
His silence was confirmation enough.
"So at least have the courage to admit it." My voice dropped to a whisper. "Don't insult me by pretending she means nothing."
"She doesn't." He grabbed my face, forcing me to meet his eyes. "Not the way you think."
"Then explain it to me." I held his gaze, refusing to back down. "Make me understand why you let her disrespect me. Why you punished me instead of her."
His thumb traced my cheekbone, the gesture at odds with his harsh expression. "Because if I'd defended you, if I'd shown weakness for my mate, every alpha in the territory would see it as vulnerability. They'd challenge me, and then where would you be?"
"So this is protection?" I jerked away from his touch. "Humiliation and imprisonment?"
"Yes." The word came out raw. "Because a strong alpha keeps his mate safe. Even if she hates him for it."
"I don't hate you." The admission slipped out before I could stop it. "I hate that you won't trust me. Won't let me stand beside you instead of behind you."
Something flickered in his eyes—want, need, regret. Then it was gone, locked away behind walls I couldn't breach.
"Get some rest." He moved toward the door. "Tomorrow will be difficult."
"Kael." I stopped him with his name. "If they find me guilty..."
He turned back, his expression cold. "They won't."
"But if they do"
"They won't." His voice held absolute certainty. "Because I won't allow it."
He left before I could respond, the door closing with quiet finality.
I sank onto the bed, shaking. The bond pulsed with his determination, his fear, his rage at a situation spiraling beyond his control.
Through the window, I watched storm clouds gather over the moon, dark and ominous.