Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Lyra’s POV

Morning came by quicker than I expected. At some point last night, I honestly thought I was going to fall asleep, but I guess fate had other plans for me. Groggily, I got out of my spot in bed. Since I'd been rooted with my knees drawn to my chest all night, I wasn't surprised by the loud crack filled my room the moment I got on my feet. I think at this point, it was safe to say that I wasn't able to get a wink of sleep, all because of Xavier Blackwater.

I hated that his name did things to me, things Xander’s name never did ever since we got married. What was supposed to be a one night stand was slowly eating into the rest of my reality, and the worst part, the part of it that craved it, was gently spreading through out my system.

The moment I thought about him, my mind went back to the letter from yesterday. I'd tucked it underneath my pillow before falling asleep, and even though I had no expectations whatsoever, the last thing I thought would happen, wasn't for him to infiltrate my dreams.

It had felt so real that even if I was in a coma, I would still remember it, and in detail too. The dream had simply been a rehash of that night but with a little twist. Instead of the hotel room we'd shared, we were in my room instead, these very room baring witness to how I simply melted in Xavier's arms.

He was rough and gentle at the same time, whilst also wanting to savor me, and devour me all at once. His tongue had flicked at my core like he was a hungry man starved, and I was the only meal he was going to have in his entire lifetime. My body has reacted just as I expected, and when things were getting to its peak, I woke up.

A small thud from outside was all it took to pull me out of my thoughts. I didn't know what the sound was, but I wouldn't put it past being one of the maids making a mess instead of cleaning up.

I inhaled and exhaled a couple of times, before going to freshen up. Xander's outburst after we'd received our letters had struck something in me, an idea I didn't know why it took me this long to think of. It was as good as useless trying to talk to Xander now. All he could ee was Emily, Emily, Emily, which meant, if I wanted to reason with him, I was going to need all the help I could get, and who else would be in a better position to help than the members of the council?

My stomach churned at the thought of it. Just like the other maids and servants who looked down on me, the council members weren't left out. While out workers hid the truth behind their murmurs, the councilmen made it very clear how useless of a Luna I was, simply because I was yet to birth an heir for our beloved Alpha.

“A Luna will always be weak if she can't bear pups.” Their voices echoed in my head. “It's our law. It's our tradition, and nothing can change that.”

Call me crazy or whatever, but I could swear that at one point, they'd raised a petition that Xander could get married to whoever he wanted, or could pick another Luna, if I failed to give birth. It never came to pass, but something told me that if Xavier hadn't burden in to cause a little bit of chaos, then that rule would have been playing out by now.

The moment I was done convincing myself that I was ready for today's task, I set out to my destination. Thanks to how huge the palace was, it could easily accommodate the members of the council. They had their own quarters that included standards apartmenrs and whatsoever they would need. While I'd never gone there before, I was suddenly dreading this visit.

I chanted a prayer to the moon goddess under my lips while I walked. Right now, I needed her blessings more than ever, but I wasn't sure my prayers even got to her temple, because I bumped into one of the council members a couple of seconds later.

“Sorin.” I called out, and I didn't miss the absolute disgust on his face the moment he turned to face me. “I'm sorry if I bothered you, but I need to talk to you about…”

“I'm not interested.” His voice was gruff. “I have other important things to do thank listen to your mindless yapping….”

“It's not yapping.” Anger and frustration brewed deep in my veins, and even though I wanted nothing more than to burst, I knew it wasn't going to favor me. “This is about the fate of our pack and…”

“If you have any suggestions like you claim.” He sneered. “I would suggest you take it up with the Alpha. His words are final and don't you think this situation is a little bit out of hand? Imagine the Luna coming to speak to a mere councilman, when her husband is the Alpha? Pathetic if you ask me.”

His words hit harder than I would have liked, and there was just no way from me to hide it. I didn't miss the disgust in his eyes as his gaze raked from the top of my head to the sole of my feet. Without so much as a single word, he turned to the other direction, before stalking out.

Stunned. I was stunned, and somehow, that felt like a gross understatement to me. My eyes watered, but I forced the tears back into my sockets. I should have known this was the reaction I was going to get, so I didn't need to let it get to me. In a way, Sorin was right. I was still Luna, and if there was anyone capable of talking sense into him, then it definitely had to be me.

With my mind made up, I marched down to Xander's office, but he was nowhere to be found.

“Excuse me?” I called out to one of the guards standing at the entrance to his study. “Have you seen Xander?”

“The alpha?” I nodded. “ He left a while ago and he was looking for you. He's probably headed to your new chambers ma'am.”

Looking for me? Why would Xander be looking for me? As far as I'm concerned, I'm the last person he would want to see, so why….

No.

The rest of my thoughts came on hold as realization dawned on me.

No, no, no.

My feet moved on their own accord, and I couldn't be more grateful for that. My immediate environment blurred around me as I headed straight for my room. I wasn't sure why Xander was looking for me, but if it was for the reason I thought it was, then it was safe to say I was cooked at this point. With each step I took, I couldn't shake off the feeling that something was off somehow. The entire atmosphere felt wrong, and I hated that my stomach churned in agreement.

I'd just gotten to the base of the stairs, when I saw it. My door was wide open and unlocked. I froze in my spot immediately.

That door had been closed. I was certain of it. I'd closed it and locked it even, so how the hell was it ajar right now?

A terrible cold curled down my spine, as I retraced my steps, heart hammering in my chest. When I reached the threshold, I stopped again,long enough to hear the sound of paper. Not just any paper, but one that was crumpling.

“So this is what you call ‘nothing?’” Xander's rough voice followed suite. It was cold and icy, and I just knew it couldn't mean anything good.

Xander stood beside my bed, the letter in one hand, the wax seal broken, and my pillow tossed halfway across the floor. His hair was a mess, like he hadn’t slept,or he had woken up and come straight here in a fury.

“Xander..” I opened my mouth to speak, but no words came out, and I closed it. I was this close to trying again, when his voice cut through my thoughts.

“You lied to me.” He didn’t shout, and perhaps if he did, that would have been easier to handle. He sounded calm, but his eyes burned. “You looked me in the face and told me it was nothing.”

“It was just a letter..” my voice was tiny and barely inaudible.

“From him.” He took a step closer, holding the letter like it was poison. “An invitation. You didn’t think I’d care to know that he’s trying to lure you to Blackwater like a damn wolf in heat?”

“It’s not like that,” I flinched at his words, even though we both knew parts of it were like that. “I wasn’t going to go.”

“But you didn’t tell me.” His voice dropped lower. “You didn’t even give me the choice to know.”

“I didn’t want to make things worse.” my throat felt dry, but I didn't stop. “I was just…

“Worse than you sneaking off into enemy territory behind my back?” He laughed, bitter and humorless, and it echoed all around us.

“I haven’t done anything!” I snapped. “I was trying to figure things out on my own. I don’t trust him. But I don’t trust you either,not when you’re using Emily’s hair as your excuse to...”

“Don’t you dare,,”His jaw clenched. “ Don't you dare finish that.”

“I dare,” I hissed, stepping closer. “You’re so focused on proving you’re still in control, you don’t even realize how much power you’re handing Xavier by reacting like this. You think he sent those letters without planning exactly what we’d do with them?”

He didn’t answer,because we both knew I was right. Still, he lifted the letter one last time, holding it like it personally offended him.

“If I find out you’ve been talking to him behind my back,” his voice was low. “I’ll consider it treason.”

“Then maybe you should start preparing your punishment now,” I said quietly, so quietly I surprised even myself. “Because whether I see him or not, he’s not done with me, and you know that.”

I had no idea where I'd gotten the boldness to openly say that, but Xander didn't appreciate my fierce spirit. Instead, his face twisted with something sharp like a mix of anger, betrayal, something darker.

Without another word, he threw the letter across the room and stormed past me, shoving the door open so hard it slammed against the wall.

I stood there long after he’d gone, unable to move or think. The silence returned, but this time it didn’t feel hollow.I bent down, retrieved the letter, and held it in shaking hands.

Now he knew, and still Xander's anger had done nothing but strengthen my resolve to visit Xavier.

What was I going to do now?