Chapter 91 The Price of Power
LIRA POV
I woke to agony. Every nerve ending screamed as Aria worked to extract the silver from my bloodstream. Moonfire burned through my veins, fighting the poison.
"Hold still." Aria's voice was strained. "Almost got it."
"How long was I out?" I gasped through clenched teeth.
"Three hours." Kael's voice came from beside the bed. "Aria's been working non-stop to stabilize you."
Three hours, i had twenty-one left to solidify my claim.
"Status report." I forced myself to focus despite the pain. "What's happening?"
"Nothing good." Thomas entered, carrying documents. "Eldric's supporters are spreading rumors. Claiming you cheated, that the fight was rigged."
"I beat him fairly." I tried to sit up but failed. "They saw it."
"They saw what they wanted to see." He set the documents on the bedside table. "But that's not our biggest problem."
"What's bigger than half the pack refusing to accept me?" I asked.
"These." He opened the first document. "Eldric's correspondence with allied packs. He promised them territory, resources, favorable trade agreements all in exchange for supporting his coup."
"How did you get these?" Kael leaned forward.
"Raided his quarters while everyone was distracted." Thomas's expression was grim. "Found a whole cache of incriminating evidence."
"Good." I finally managed to sit up. "We'll use it to discredit him."
"It's not that simple." Thomas opened another letter. "Look at this one. From Alpha Thane Redclaw."
I read quickly, my stomach sinking with each word.
"Your proposed alliance is acceptable. Once the Moonblood is eliminated, Bloodmoon Pack will support your claim to Silvermoon territories. We'll provide the berserker poison as discussed. Ensure no witnesses survive."
"He wasn't just planning to kill me." I looked up. "He was planning to take Silvermoon."
"And he had help doing it." Thomas pulled out more letters. "Ironwood Pack, Bloodmoon Pack, and Shadowridge Pack. All conspiring with him."
"Three major packs." Kael's voice was tight. "That's enough to start a territorial war."
"It gets worse." Aria finally finished her work, pulling back. "The silver you were stabbed with? It's not standard silver it’s cursed."
"Cursed how?" I asked, though I wasn't sure I wanted to know.
"Blood magic." Her expression was disgusted. "Someone—probably one of those allied packs—used dark magic to make silver that's specifically lethal to Moonblood wolves."
"So Eldric didn't just plan to kill me." I processed this. "He planned to make it look like I was weak, that Moonblood power couldn't protect me."
"Exactly." She cleaned her instruments. "If I hadn't gotten it out fast, you'd be dead. And every wolf would believe Moonblood Luna couldn't even survive a simple challenge."
The implications were staggering. This wasn't just about Darkfang leadership. This was about eliminating the Moonblood line entirely.
"Where's Eldric now?" I swung my legs off the bed, ignoring the protests from my body.
"Holding cell." Thomas answered. "Under guard, waiting for your judgment."
"My judgment." The words felt heavy. "What are my options?"
"Execution for treason." Kael said bluntly. "He conspired to murder his Luna, allied with enemy packs, and used illegal weapons. Death is justified."
"Or exile." Aria offered. "Strip him of rank and send him away. Less brutal, but risky because he could come back."
"Or imprisonment." Thomas added. "Keep him contained where we can watch him."
I stood, testing my legs but they barely held. "I need to see him." I moved toward the door. "Now."
"Lira, you just survived silver poisoning." Aria blocked my path. "You need rest"
"I need answers." I pushed past her gently. "And I need to decide if I'm the kind of alpha who kills defeated enemies or shows mercy."
"This isn't about mercy." Kael followed. "This is about justice."
"Justice and mercy aren't opposites." I headed down the corridor. "My mother believed that, maybe I should too."
The holding cells were underground, cold and damp. Eldric sat in the largest one, his burns bandaged but still visible.
He looked up when I approached. "Come to gloat?"
"Come to understand." I stopped outside his cell. "Why? You had position, respect, a future. Why throw it away for this?"
"Because I was tired of being second." His voice was bitter. "Second to Kael. Second to his father always the loyal follower, never the leader."
"So you allied with murderers." I gestured at the letters Thomas carried. "Planned to eliminate me and take Silvermoon."
"Silvermoon should have been mine." He stood, moving to the bars. "My father served Magnus loyally, we deserved that territory as payment."
"Payment for helping massacre my family?" Rage burned through me. "For destroying an entire pack?"
"Your family was weak." He spat. "The Moonblood line was dying anyway we just accelerated the inevitable."
"My mother was Luna of Silvermoon.My father was her alpha. They were murdered by cowards who feared their power."
"They were murdered by pragmatists." Eldric corrected. "Who saw a dying bloodline clinging to ancient glory. Better to end it cleanly than watch it fade."
"Except it didn't end." I moved closer. "I survived and now I'm everything you feared."
"You're nothing." But his eyes showed fear. "A girl playing alpha. The pack will tear you apart."
"Maybe or maybe I'll prove you wrong. Prove that Moonblood strength isn't weakness, that female alphas can lead."
"By killing me?" He laughed. "That would prove my point. That you're just another violent wolf playing with power."
"Who said anything about killing you?" I stepped back. "I'm giving you a choice."
"What choice?" Suspicion crossed his face.
"Full confession." I pulled out the letters. "You tell the pack everything. Your conspiracy, your allies, your plans. Make it public and official."
"And then?" He asked warily.
"And then I exile you." I said simply. "You leave Darkfang territory. Never return, you live out your life somewhere else."
"That's it?" He didn't believe me. "No execution? No torture?"
"No." I met his eyes steadily. "Because I'm not the monster you think I am and I won't become one to prove I'm strong."
"The pack will see it as weakness." He warned. "They'll think you can't make hard decisions."
"Or they'll see it as mercy." I countered. "As a Luna who values life over vengeance."
"Mercy is for the weak." Eldric moved closer to the bars. "You'll learn that when they challenge you, when they come for your position because they smell blood."
"Then I'll handle those challenges." I turned to leave. "But I won't start my leadership with unnecessary death."
"Lira." Kael caught my arm. "This is a mistake, he is too dangerous to let live."
"Maybe." I pulled free gently. "But killing him makes me just like the alphas who murdered my parents. And I won't become that."
"Noble." Eldric's voice dripped sarcasm. "But stupid i will be back, little Luna. And next time, I'll bring more than poison."
"If you come back to these territories, I'll kill you myself." I looked back at him. "That's not a threat. That's a promise, you get one chance at exile use it wisely."
I walked away, leaving him in the cell.
Thomas followed, along with Kael and Aria.
"You're really going to exile him?" Thomas asked. "Not execute?"
"I'm really going to exile him." I confirmed. "After he confesses everything publicly."
"The pack won't like it." Kael warned. "They'll want blood."
"The pack will accept my decision." I kept walking. "Because I'm alpha now and this is how I lead."
"By showing mercy to traitors?" His voice was careful,
"By showing I'm different." I stopped, turning to face them all. "Different from Magnus, from Eldric. Different from every alpha who chose violence first."
"That's admirable." Aria said gently. "But Eldric's right about one thing. Some wolves will see it as weakness."