Chapter 48
All eyes turn to me, heavy as silver manacles.
Servants lean forward, breath bated; healers clutch their amulets; even Mathew’s grip on my waist tightens.
I meet their stares calmly, the pad of my thumb tracing the mating mark Mathew left on my neck.
This scene has played in my mind for moon.
If I refuse, Alex dies–but Luna will brand me a murderer and doom Mathew’s family.
If I agree, I become a breeding slave again, my body a vessel for a cursed Alpha’s
survival.
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“Very well,” I say, my voice clear as a bell.
“I’ll do as you ask!”
Luna gasps, tears streaming down her face.
“Thank the gods-”
“Wait.” I raise a hand.
My gaze locks onto Alex’s fading form.
“But there are conditions. First: Alex will sign a blood oath renouncing all claims to me, now and forever.”
“Second: Mathew and I will leave unharmed, with full rights to our pack. And third…”
A smile tugs at my lips.
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“If Alex survives, he’ll spend the rest of his days in the wolfsbane fields.”
The room is dead silent, save for Alex’s ragged breaths.
Luna stares at me, mouth agape, as if seeing me for the first time.
“Agreed,” she whispers, her voice trembling. “Anything–just save him.”
I nod, stepping away from Mathew’s embrace.
My voice is a soft murmur.
“If there’s a way to save the prince, I’d never turn my back,” I say, letting my lashes flutter as if overcome. “But-”
“Name your price!”
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“Land? Titles? I’ll give you the eastern territories!”
Her gaze snaps to Sadina, who flinches against Alex’s bedside.
“You’ll be his one true mate, Luna snarls, spittle flying.
“That whelp in Sadina’s belly? It’ll be ripped from her womb and placed at your breast. It will know no mother but you.”
Sadina’s howl of horror shakes the rafters.
She clings to Alex’s limp wrist, her nails breaking against his skin.
“No! Please, Luna–Alex, tell her! I’m carrying your heir! I’l—”
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But Alex’s golden eyes are fixed on me, unblinking.
His chest rattles with each breath, yet a faint growl rumbles in his throat when Sadina touches him.
He’s like a starving wolf, fixated on the only prey that can ease his hunger–me.
I let my lips quiver, forcing a tremor into my voice.
“Your Majesty, I… I don’t want territory or titles.”
I trace the mating mark Mathew left on my neck, feigning hesitation.
“I only ask that… that Beta Mathew be allowed to witness the bonding. To ensure no harm comes to me.”
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Luna’s nostrils flare, but she nods frantically.
“Anything! Just get to Alex before his heart stops!”
Sadina collapses onto Alex’s chest, sobbing.
“I’m useless… a barren she–wolf…”
“If only I had Lia’s womb…”
Alex’s hand twitches, reaching for me.
And as I step closer, letting my scent- honeysuckle laced with a hint of wolfsbane- wash over him.
The air freezes as my words land, each
syllable shattering Luna’s hope like ice under a warhammer.
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“Ah, but the fertile curse only blooms once.”
I trace the curve of my belly, feigning shyness as Mathew’s scent–strong and protective–wraps around me.
“When I saved Beta Mathew, my womb’s magic… well, it seems to have bound to his life–force instead.”
A delicate pause, then I add: “I carry his pup now. My days as a living amulet are over”
HELL
Luna collapses onto the obsidian floor, her crown rolling into a pool of Alex’s blood.
“No… impossible!”
She stares at my wrist. “Your village–there must be others! Servants! Search her packs
”
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“Good luck.”
“The Goddess gifts such wombs sparingly. The other girls in my village? They can bear pups, but not heal a cursed wolf’s decay.” I step closer to Alex’s deathbed, his ragged breathing the only sound in the stunned silence.
“Wait.”
I lift a finger.
“I recall an old text in the library. It spoke of a substitute: the blood of a once–fertile wolf, mixed with moonroot and silver thyme.”
Before anyone can react, I slash my wrist.
Blood–rich, scarlet, and faintly glowing- drips into the obsidian bowl a healer thrusts forward.
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The scent is intoxicating, making Alex’s nostrils flare even in his coma.
Luna snatches the bowl, her eyes wild.
“This will work? You swear it?”
I offer a sad smile, pressing a cloth to my wound.
“It should buy him a few moons. But be warned“-my voice drops to a growl“this is a one–time brew. Drain me again, and the magic turns toxic. His next breath would be his last.”
As a healer feeds the blood to Alex, his body twitches.
Luna watches, hypnotized, as the life–thread she thought lost begins to strengthen.
9/9
His
floads
then a heal
Luna’s shriek
“It worked! The g
Her eyes are wild with
“My sweet girl–after all A
the way he mocked y
threw your remes into the saved him.”
+ 5 Points
Alex’s
