Page 67 of Luna's New Reign
“I used to send wolves to him,” Asani continues. “When they were sick, or scared, or when I couldn’t give them what they needed. Then Calista happened, and that all… stopped.”
His eyes darken slightly, and I know exactly what he’s thinking. Whatwe’reboth thinking. Calista didn’t just destroy lives—she destroyed trust. She fractured the pack so deeply that some parts of it still haven’t healed.
Asani brushes his thumb over my cheek, grounding me. “But you could help them now,” he says, his voice softer. “There’s a few people in the clinic this morning who could use your kind of touch. Mine’s… well.” He shrugs, his lips quirking up into a sheepish grin. “Let’s just say I’m not the gentlest wolf around.”
I snort despite myself, the tension breaking slightly. “No kidding.” There’s several delightful bruises all along my sidesfrom the way Asani held me last night, fucking into me like he owned me after Nepheline fell asleep.
He grins, his eyes softening before he leans in, pressing a slow, loving kiss to my lips. It’s not rushed or teasing—it’s warm and steady, like everything Asani doesn’t always let people see. When he pulls back, he murmurs against my mouth, “Come with me. Try it. If it’s not for you, we’ll figure something else out.”
I hesitate for only a moment before nodding. “Right now? Okay.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
His grin lights up the room, Asani waiting just long enough for me to take everything off the stove before he’s leading me toward the small clinic just off the kitchen. It’s temporary—Asani’s full clinic was moved into the old packhouse that would’ve belonged to Calista—but the room still gets used for emergencies. Today, though, it’s quieter.
But when I step inside, I see them.
A small group of wolves—three in total—seated against the far wall. The room smells faintly of antiseptic, but the air feels heavy, weighed down by their quiet worry.
“Take your time,” Asani murmurs to me as he leans in close, his hand brushing against the small of my back. “I’ll be here.”
I nod, taking a deep breath as I step forward, past Asani and toward the group. I don’t know what I’m expecting—anger? Frustration?—but when they look up at me, all I see isuncertainty.
One by one, I take them aside.
The first is a young Alpha—barely past twenty—who can’t stop wringing his hands as he talks about the returning magic. He tells me how it’s making his wolf restless, like he’s waiting for something to happen. I let him talk, nodding along as I coax the words from him until he finally stops, his breathing steadier, hisshoulders looser. I tell him he’s not alone. That weallfeel it and that it’s okay not to have all the answers right now.
When he leaves, he looks calmer. Hopeful, even.
The second is a mated pair, both Betas, worried about the Sapphire wolves and their intentions. I sit with them, listening as they unload their concerns about change and trust, about the scars Calista left behind. I tell them change doesn’t have to mean chaos. That Mateo and Nepheline are building somethingstronger. They leave smiling faintly, their shoulders brushing together as they step out the door.
And then there’s the last.
I freeze in place when I see her. She’s sitting quietly in the corner of the room, her hands folded tightly in her lap. She’s small—barely taller than Nepheline—but her shoulders are hunched as if she’s trying to make herself invisible. Her dark hair hangs around her face, shielding her eyes, but I catch the faint tremble in her fingers.
A Beta.
And from the scent clinging to her, one of the wolves from the pack of the Forbidden who came through the veil.
I settle into the chair across from her, close enough that she can feel my presence but far enough that she doesn’t feel trapped. “Take your time,” I say, leaning forward with my elbows resting on my knees. “I’m not in a rush.”
She doesn’t look at me, her fingers fidgeting with the hem of her worn sweater. It’s clear she’s holding back, her body hunched like she’s bracing for impact, for judgment. I stay quiet, letting the silence settle until she’s ready to fill it.
Finally, her voice breaks the stillness, soft and fragile. “I… I came here for sedatives.”
I blink, caught slightly off guard, but I don’t let it show. “Sedatives?”
She nods, her shoulders curling inward. “I thought… I thought maybe if Asani—Alpha Asani could give me something to make it stop—” Her voice cracks and she bites down on her lip so hard I swear it might bleed. “—to makemestop feeling like this, then maybe I’d be okay. Just for a little while.”
My chest tightens at the raw pain in her voice. I don’t speak right away. Instead, I let her keep going, like she needs to get it all out before she collapses under the weight of it.
“I can’t sleep,” she whispers, her gaze still fixed on her lap. “Every time I close my eyes, it’s there.He’sthere. The nightmares—they’re worse every night. I see him coming back for me. I hear him, feel him…” Her voice shakes, her breathing hitching unevenly.
“Who?” I ask gently, even though I already know.
Her dark eyes finally lift to mine and I see it—allof it. The pain. The fear. The guilt that’s eating her alive. “Silas,” she chokes out. “I was part of his pack. I didn’t want to be, but he… he took me. Stole me when the Emerald wolves were slaughtered. I was just a kid.”