Chapter 117

Chapter 117

“To calm yourself?” Freya drawled, her lips curving in open mockery.

She glanced over her shoulder at the twins, and they laughed as well. The sound scraped against Crystal’s pride like claws on bone, but she swallowed it.

“What do you think this place is? A refugee camp?” Freya scoffed. “And what makes you think you’ll find peace here? Aren’t you a Luna? So proud of that title? Go back to your pack where they lick your feet and worship you.”

Any trace of interest Freya might have had vanished. She pivoted and walked past Crystal.

But Crystal refused to be dismissed.

“Wait,” she said quickly, stepping forward. “You once offered to collaborate with me. Think about it again.”

Freya halted mid-step.

Slowly, she turned back, “I don’t need you anymore."

Crystal lifted her chin. “I’m living proof, Freya. I’m the one who told you Winter is barren.”

“But if you plan to leak that information to Valtor,” she continued, “how will he believe you without evidence? Without proof, it will only backfire. He’ll suspect you of manipulation and you know how he slaughters those who dare deceive him.”

Rosentine and Cressida exchanged sharp glances, their eyes widening. Until Freya mentioned a 'Luna', they had assumed Crystal was nothing more than a ragged, insignificant lower wolf. 

Rosentine leaned in and whispered something into Freya’s ear.

Freya’s gaze darkened further. 

After a long moment, she finally nodded. “Very well,” she said. “But if you prove yourself useless, I’ll throw you out myself.”

Crystal exhaled.

Freya then dismissed Crystal's guard immediately. Then, she led her to the mansion Valtor had granted her. Freya also ordered the guards to allow no one entry. No one could know they were hosting a Luna from the Stoneclaw Pack here.

Crystal was given a room upstairs, the door closing firmly behind her, before Freya returned downstairs to confer with the twins.

“She’s a Luna,” Rosentine said thoughtfully. “She's such a potential ally, Freya. Once Winter is cast out of here, we can hand the rest over to her. Then it’s no longer our problem.”

“The more allies we have, the better,” Cressida added brightly, pleased by the sudden expansion of their team.

Freya rubbed the bridge of her nose, irritation creeping in. “But having more people in our plan means more risks. Not just Valtor, we’ll have Kallias to worry about too now.”

“You think Kallias Thorn still cares?” Rosentine scoffed. “If he did, would he let his Luna wander into enemy territory alone?”

Freya hesitated. “I don’t know. But it doesn’t matter. No one here can know that Crystal is staying with us. I’ll keep her locked here. If this gets out, we’ll have far bigger problems.”

And she would ensure that Crystal truly had no power left, no chance to turn against them.

\-----

Upstairs, Crystal shrugged off her cloak and collapsed onto the bed, staring up at the ceiling. Slowly, a smile spread across her lips.

Once again she had found a ladder to climb out of her problem and turn everything upside down.

“Enjoy searching for me, Kallias,” she whispered.

She knew exactly what was unfolding back in the Stoneclaw Pack. Kallias would be panicking by now. She had disappeared without a word, and the thought of his fear satisfied her.

Her thoughts drifted back to the night she lost her baby. She had been chasing Kallias when she stumbled down the stairs, the fall knocking the breath from her lungs. The pain that followed was unlike anything Crystal had ever known. When she finally became aware of herself again, blood was everywhere, soaking through her gown. 

They were too far from the Stoneclaw Pack to reach help in time, and she was forced to deliver the child herself along the way.

The baby did not survive.

He had been far too small. He should have still been growing inside her, safe and warm, not torn from her before his life had even begun.

“I won’t forgive them,” Crystal murmured, tears burning her eyes. “For making me lose you, my son. Both of them.”

Kallias had changed after that night. He buried their child within the castle's private grounds. He begged her forgiveness endlessly. But it was too late. If he hadn’t been so blinded by Winter, if he had stayed with Crystal that night, her child would still be alive.

Crystal knew Kallias would come looking for her even this far into enemy land. But neither Valtor nor Winter knew she was here, and Valtor would never allow Kallias to search freely across his territory.

Crystal knew Kallias’ nature well enough. He would declare war.

A slow smile curved her lips. “Winter hated war,” she murmured. “Then I’ll give her exactly what she fears.”

She closed her eyes.

And opened them again, “You ruined my life, Winter, and I will destroy yours, completely.”