Chapter 50 The Luna Mark

Chapter 50 The Luna Mark
Arya’s POV

Silence settled over the palace, but it wasn’t peaceful. It felt like the kind of quiet before a storm—the kind that makes the walls hold their breath.

After the council interrogated me, I went back to my room with shadow guards following me like ghosts. They didn’t speak, didn’t blink, didn’t look away. The Queen had handpicked them. That alone meant two things: She feared me. And she wanted control.

I shut the door and leaned against it, breathing hard.

My body still burned from the shift. Every muscle felt raw, like my skin didn’t fully belong to me anymore. I walked slowly to the mirror and lifted my shirt to look at the bruises left by the assassins.

But what I saw wasn’t a bruise. A faint silver glow pulsed beneath my skin—delicate, shaped like a small crescent moon.

My heart nearly stopped.

“No…” I whispered.

I touched it and hissed. Not from pain, but from heat. The mark felt alive, like something under my skin had awakened.

Rodrick’s last coded message flashed through my memory: If the mark appears, hide it. Do not let anyone see, not even those you trust. They will turn on you.

The room suddenly felt too small. Too bright. Too dangerous. I dropped the hem of my shirt and backed away.

The Luna Wolf. A creature that wasn’t supposed to exist. A symbol Crescent Fang would kill kingdoms for. And now the mark had appeared.

Footsteps echoed in the hallway—two sets, quiet but purposeful. The shadow guards. Always watching. Always listening.

I needed them to leave. I moved to the window and pushed it open slightly. Cold air brushed my face, clearing my thoughts.

Think, Arya. Think. I sat on the bed and pretended to be asleep.

After a few minutes, I heard one of the guards whisper, “She’s resting.”

Good. Let them believe it. I waited until their footsteps grew distant. Then a soft tapping hit my window. I froze.

Tap, tap. My blood turned cold. Slowly, I pulled the curtains aside.

Ezra crouched on the balcony ledge, eyes glittering with amusement. Behind him, the night stretched dark and quiet, the moon casting silver light over his sharp features.

“What are you doing here?” I whispered.

He smirked and lifted a folded piece of paper. “Message for you.”

I stared at him through the glass.

“I’m not opening the window.”

“Then I’ll just stand here all night,” he said lightly. “The Queen already thinks you’re suspicious. Imagine what she’ll say if she finds me sitting outside your room.”

My jaw tightened. Damn him. I cracked the window open an inch. Ezra slipped the paper inside, along with his voice—low and deadly calm.

“They know, Arya.”

My fingers stopped. “Know what?”

“That something awakened during the attack.”

My hand curled into a fist around the paper. “The council saw nothing.”

Ezra’s eyes flicked to my hip.

“It’s glowing, isn’t it?”

I sucked in a breath. He knew. Of course he knew. If anyone could smell a lie or a secret—it was Ezra.

“Show me,” he murmured.

“No,” I snapped.

Ezra leaned closer to the window. “You don’t understand what you are.”

“I understand enough to know I have to hide it.”

He smiled faintly. “Wise. Crescent Fang will come the moment they confirm the their mark exists. You are the key they’ve been searching for.”

I swallowed hard. “Leave.”

Ezra hesitated a moment, studying me with unusual seriousness.

“Read the message,” he whispered. “And be careful who you trust.”

Then he was gone, disappearing across the rooftops like a shadow. I sat on the bed, hands shaking, and unfolded the small paper.

Rodrick’s handwriting.

Arya, the mark is reacting because you shifted. You must hide it. Do not let the Queen, the council, or Kyle see it. Valen is close. Be ready to run.

My stomach twisted. Run? Leave Kyle? Leave everything?

A soft knock hit my door. I snapped the paper shut.

“Arya?” Kyle’s voice. “It’s me.”

My heart pounded. Not now. But he pushed the door open before I could answer.

Kyle stepped inside, his face tight with worry. “The guards said you were sleeping, but…Arya, what’s wrong?”

Everything was wrong, but I forced myself to stay calm. “Nothing.”

He didn’t buy it.

He walked slowly toward me, eyes scanning my face. “You look terrified.”

“I’m just tired,” I said softly.

“No.” He shook his head. “You’re hiding something.”

I turned away, but he gently caught my arm. His touch froze me. His eyes softened, lowering to where my shirt had ridden up slightly from the movement.

“Arya,” he whispered. “Is that…light?”

Panic shot through my chest.

I yanked my shirt down and stepped back fast. “Kyle, don’t.”

“Don’t what?” His voice cracked. “Don’t worry? Don’t care? Or don’t find out the truth?”

My throat tightened. “You don’t understand.”

“Then make me understand,” he said, desperate now. “Please.”

I closed my eyes, fighting the urge to tell him everything, to let him hold me, to let myself believe in something safe. But I couldn’t.

If he saw the mark, the council would see it too. And then I’d be dragged into Crescent Fang’s hands before sunrise.

“I can’t,” I whispered.

Kyle flinched like I’d hit him.

“Why?” His voice was barely audible. “Do you think I would betray you?”

“No,” I breathed. “I think you would die for me. And I’m not letting that happen.”

For a moment, neither of us spoke.

Kyle’s jaw tightened, hurt settling in his eyes. “So you’re shutting me out again.”

“I’m protecting you.”

He shook his head slowly. “It doesn’t feel like protection.”

Silence. Heavy. Suffocating.

A distant horn sounded outside—one long, low note. A warning horn.

Kyle immediately stepped toward the window. “More patrols. The Queen is increasing the perimeter.”

Or preparing for something worse.

He turned back to me. “Arya… whatever this is, whatever you’re hiding—”

I stiffened. Kyle stepped closer.

“—you don’t have to face it alone.”

My chest ached painfully. I wanted to believe him. I wanted to tell him everything. I wanted to reach for him.

But the mark pulsed under my skin, warm and bright. A reminder. A warning.

Kyle reached out, fingers brushing my cheek. “Talk to me.”

I stepped back before he touched the mark through my shirt. His hand dropped. His expression fell with it.
A soft knock hit the door—one of the Queen’s shadow guards.

“Prince Kyle, the council requests your presence.”

Kyle’s voice hardened. “Not now.”

“It is urgent.”

Kyle’s eyes lingered on mine.

“Arya… this isn’t over.”

Then he left the room, and the door clicked shut behind him.

I sank onto the bed, clutching Rodrick’s warning in my hand as the mark glowed softly beneath my skin.

The storm wasn’t coming. It was already here.