Chapter twenty-three

“Can we go to the festival tomorrow night?” I asked Lucian as we lay in the bed after our very exotic shower session.

He was staring at the ceiling but didn’t answer me. His eyes were clouded, and I could tell something was bothering him.

Frowning, I sat up and crossed my legs in one of my shirts.

“Lucian?” I whispered.

It was like I wasn’t even there.

I reached out to touch him and he turned around onto his side, so he was facing me.

What?

“mate is feeling very sad,” my wolf spoke up. It was the first time in a while I’d heard from her.

“Why’s he sad?” I asked her and I saw his aura through her eyes. Blue and red haze surrounded him in a bubble.

“His wolf is very angry at the other wolves who invaded the pack lands. Mate is sad. Mate is scared that he can’t protect you.”

“Of course, he can protect me. Have you seen his wolf?”

“That’s not the point. His father wants him there in the next two days and he is scared that he cannot protect you while you are there.”

Oh.

My wolf was filled with a shared anger as her mate. Whoever had invaded the pack lands made both the Alpha and Luna very angry.

“Lucian.” My voice was soft, trying not to chase him off.

“Tessa. I don’t really want to talk right now.” His voice was sharp and cold, hitting me right in the stomach.

“You need to speak to me. It’s my pack too,” I said. He snorted and continued giving me the silent treatment.

“Okay. I don’t know what the fuck’s wrong with you, but you need to understand that I am your mate and the pack's Luna.” I snapped and got off the bed.

My ears burned with anger and I pulled on some underwear and a pair of skinny jeans. I slipped a bra on under his shirt that I wore and put on my high tops.

“Where are you going?” He asked and I gave a laugh that was far from amused.

“If you must know, I’m going to the pack hall to ask if I can help with the preparations for tomorrow,” I said before stuffing the toothbrush in my mouth and scrubbing my poor teeth viciously.

When I turned around and walked towards the door, he grabbed my shoulders and spun me around.

“Don’t you ever turn your back on me,” he said, and his eyes turned a golden yellow. His Dragon/Wolf eyes.

I pushed his hands off from me and I took a step closer to him, my breasts just about touching his bare chest.

“You cannot tell me what to do. I am your mate and your pack’s Luna. Not one of your playthings. The day you realize that, tell me.” I said in a low and dangerous tone.

He stared at me with such an intense look that if I weren’t so angry with him, I’d have melted.

I stared back at him with the same intensity as my wolf twitched, aching to come out.

Just then, in the middle of our staring moment, the door flew open and both my and Lucian’s heads snapped to the door.

“WHAT!” We yelled in unison and Nate took a cautious step back, looking back and forth between the two of us.

“It’s Natalie.” He said out of breath.

Me and Lucian looked at each other and Lucian huffed.

“Give me a min to get some clothes on,” he said in a low voice.

I took a step outside and I could still feel the anger swimming in my veins.

Nate opening his mouth and I stopped him.

“Don’t even ask,” I said.

A few min later, Lucian stepped out in jeans and a sweater that showed off his absolutely amazing muscles underneath.

We walked in utter silence to the pack’s hospital and entered the emergency ward.

We walked down a corridor filled with rooms of sick wolves.

We finally came to a room that was mint green.

Lucian’s pack doctor stood by the bedside with a clipboard and was looking and the machines that were hooked to the person in the bed.

Natalie.

Her caramel skin was pale, and her cheeks had lost their color.

I looked at Nate who went to the other side of the bed, taking Natalie's limp hand. Her eyes were closed, and her chest rose and fell at very slow speed.

“Alpha,” the doctor said and nodded lightly.

“What’s wrong with her?” I asked and the doctor looked at Nate.

“Let me give you a few minutes.” The doctor said and left, closing the door softly behind him.

I looked at Nate and he looked broken.

I sat down on the chair and looked at Nate whose eyes were tearing up.

“What’s wrong with her, Nate?” I asked softly.

“The doctor says her organs are failing. The dead baby had never made it out of her system, and the poison has spread throughout her body. She’s dying, Tessa,” he said, and I saw the tear falling as he stared at the patterns on her hospital blankets.

“How long?” I asked, and it took everything I had not to cry. This was the time that I had to be the Luna.

“The doc says that if she doesn’t have replacement organs in the next few weeks, she has only 6 months left.”

I was shaking as I tried holding it together.

Lucian put his hand on my shoulder and although he wasn’t the person I wanted to be around right now, his touch calmed my nerves.

After leaving the pack hospital, I and Lucian walked in silence.

“Are you hungry?” He asked softly and I could hear he was trying.

I nodded and hugged myself.

“Come here.” He whispered and brought me into his arms where I just broke down in a swarm of tears.

He held me tight and let me soak his shirt with my tears.

After a few minutes, I was sniffing into his chest, as he whispered softly while I held my eyes closed.

“Come, my Love, let’s go get something to eat,” he said and held me around my shoulders as we walked down towards the little pack town.