Chapter 73

Chapter 73

Evelyn’s POV

The fortress always breathed like a beast in my ears. Its stone walls were lungs, pulling in whispers and exhaling suspicion. No matter how softly I walked, no matter how carefully I carried myself, I could feel eyes tracking me, ears straining to catch what should have been private. Being Luna was supposed to be a crown of honor, but on my head it felt more like a collar.

“Luna,” one of the omegas murmured as she bowed. Her voice trembled just enough to betray the lie of respect.

I inclined my head, face calm, steps measured, though inside I wanted to snatch the word from her lips and demand what she truly meant when she spoke it. Every time they said Luna, it sounded like an accusation. I was Kael’s Luna. His mate. His chosen. The woman who belonged at his side no matter how violently his shadows stretched over me.

And yet, I was also something else. Something that burned hotter in my veins than even the bond itself.

The power I wasn’t supposed to touch.

The gift that wasn’t a gift at all, but a curse I could never explain.

I carried it like contraband under my skin, hidden behind smiles, hidden beneath the title they used as both reverence and mockery.

When I turned a corner, I caught the tail end of a conversation.

“she doesn’t act like a Luna at all.

“Hush, she’ll hear—”

I stopped, spine stiffening. My heart pounded against my ribs like a trapped animal. I wanted to shout, to let the weight of my rank fall on them, but the words wouldn’t come. Because they were right. I wasn’t acting like the Luna they expected. A Luna was supposed to be a vision of grace, a perfect complement to her Alpha, a figurehead for loyalty. Instead, I was a woman hiding scraps of forbidden magic in the shadows, sneaking out to test a power I couldn’t name.

I forced my feet to move again. If I lingered, they would know I had heard. And if I let them see my hurt, it would only feed the rumors.

The hall opened into the courtyard. The night air hit my face like cool water, the moon a pale eye staring down, silent and merciless. I tipped my chin up, letting its light wash me. For just a moment, I let the mask slip.

“Moon Goddess,” I whispered. “Why me?”

There was no answer. There never was.

I pressed my palms together to hide their tremor, but my skin buzzed as if alive. The power stirred again, restless, begging me to use it. Every time I suppressed it, it grew louder, like a child screaming for attention. I was afraid of what would happen if I lost control in front of them. What Kael would do if he found out.

Kael. The name curled around my mind like smoke. The bond throbbed, faint but undeniable, tugging me toward him even though he was far from the fortress tonight. He had left on a hunt, or so they said, but I could feel his presence like a phantom hand clamped on my throat. Alpha. Mate. Husband. The man who made me Luna whether I wanted to wear the title or not.

And I had whispered his name last night. In my sleep, maybe. Or maybe when the power surged, when it was too much to carry alone. I didn’t even know anymore. But I remembered the warmth of it, the way his name had slipped from my lips as if confessing to the shadows.

Kael… forgive me. I can’t stop.

What if he had felt it? What he knew?

The bond could be cruel that way, betraying me even when I kept silent.

“Luna Evelyn.”

I stiffened, turning toward the voice. A guard stood at the archway, head bowed, though his eyes flicked up too quickly. Watching me, weighing me.

“Yes?” My voice was calm, practiced.

“The kitchens have prepared your evening meal. Shall I escort you?”

It was an innocent offer, but my stomach knotted. Escort. Guard. Always eyes, always ears.

“That won’t be necessary,” I said. “I know the way.”

He hesitated, then bowed again. “As you wish, Luna.”

As I walked past him, I caught the faintest curve of his mouth. A smirk, or maybe I imagined it. My paranoia had grown roots inside me, twisting around my thoughts.

The dining hall was nearly empty when I entered. A plate sat at the head of the table, steaming. The omegas had already withdrawn, leaving silence and too much space. I sat, hands folded in my lap, staring at the food. Venison, roasted vegetables, wine. Fit for a Luna. Fit for a queen. But every bite tasted of ash when I forced it down.

Because I remembered what it meant to sit here with Kael.

The way he filled the room with his presence, his voice deep and commanding, his hand heavy on the table between us. He never asked if I enjoyed the meal. He never needed to. He devoured everything  food, silence, my gaze as if it all belonged to him.

And the bond agreed.

That was the worst of it. No matter how much fear he laced into my veins, no matter how much the fortress whispered against me, the bond whispered louder: You are his. He is yours. Luna of his pack. Mate of his blood.

I set the fork down before I could choke on it.

The walls felt closer tonight. The ceiling lower. I couldn’t breathe.

I rose, the chair scraping, and slipped out the side door, down the narrow corridor that led to the abandoned chapel. It was a place no one went anymore, not since Kael had outlawed the rites of the Moon Goddess. The air there always smelled of dust and abandonment, but it was the only place I could be sure I was alone.

The wooden door groaned when I pushed it open. Inside, the moonlight poured through the broken windows, spilling across cracked stone floors and the remnants of an altar. I walked to the center and knelt, pressing my palms flat against the cold surface.

The power leapt to life instantly. My skin glowed faintly, a shimmer beneath the surface, veins lit with starlight.I bit my lip to keep from crying out.

It felt like fire and water, rage and mercy, life and death all at once. It wanted to burst free, to stretch beyond me, to pour into the world. But I couldn’t let it. Not here, not now. Not when Kael’s shadow still loomed over everything.

“Please,” I whispered. “Just let me breathe.”

The bond pulsed suddenly, violently, as if in answer. Kael.

I gasped, clutching my chest. He was far away, but I felt him. A surge of anger, hot and sharp. His wolf stirred, a predator prowling. And beneath it a flash of something else. Hunger. Need.

Had he felt me? Had he sensed the power crackling under my skin?

The bond tethered us, and it had betrayed me before. It could betray me again.

I pressed my forehead to the cold stone. Tears burned at the corners of my eyes.

I was the Luna. His Luna. But I was also something else. Something I could never confess.

If he came back tonight if he looked at me too closely…

The fortress walls would not be enough to save me.