Chapter 4

Grayson had driven Molly away because he wanted to leave me with no one to rely on. He had taken the Northern Forest trade route from me because he wanted to strip me of my last bargaining chip.

But what good would that do when he was making the very nightmare he feared come true?

I was forced to sign the transfer agreement, and the pain I had been suppressing for so long began to twist through my lower abdomen in waves.

When Grayson saw how pale I was, a flicker of concern crossed his eyes. He walked over and pulled me into his arms, his tone softening.

"Perhaps this is for the best. You won't have to worry about all those tedious cross-border affairs anymore. Once we have our pup, you can devote yourself entirely to taking care of them."

But our pup was already gone.

My eyelashes trembled, yet I managed to swallow back my sobs.

"Okay."

The arm Grayson had wrapped around my waist tightened, as though he feared I might disappear the very next second.

"Come with me to the Full Moon Gathering tonight," he said.

I shook my head and gently freed myself from his embrace. "I'm not feeling well, so I'll skip it. Let Avery go in my place."

Grayson frowned, and his voice grew sterner. "You're the Luna of this pack. How can you possibly skip it? Haven't you carried this tantrum on long enough?"

In the end, he still thought I was merely throwing a tantrum.

Beside us, Avery suddenly let out a few soft sobs.

"If Luna Clara isn't going, then I won't go either. Otherwise, everyone will think I forced her out and stole the spotlight from her."

Grayson turned to her and said in a low voice, "I won't let anyone say that about you. Clara, you must attend tonight's gathering."

At this point, I had no choice but to acquiesce.

…

This year's Full Moon Gathering was being held in the open-air plaza of our pack, the Bloodmoon pack. It was one of the few grand annual gatherings shared by the werewolf packs, so every pack would send representatives to attend.

Grayson stood beside me while Avery held onto his other arm with a warm, composed smile.

I no longer had the energy to care, since the pain in my lower abdomen had been growing steadily worse.

While Grayson wasn't paying attention, I slipped toward the edge of the crowd and leaned against a lamppost to ease the discomfort.

"Clara?"

A deep male voice sounded beside me.

Andrew Ebonhowl had approached at some point without my noticing. He was the Alpha of the Frostfang pack, and the very werewolf I had asked to help arrange my travel permit.

His gaze fell on my face, and his expression tightened slightly.

"Everything's been taken care of with your travel permit. You look terribly pale. What's wrong?"

I wanted to tell him I was fine. But the moment I opened my mouth, a sharp pang in my abdomen made me stumble.

Andrew reached out to steady me by the arm.

"Clara!"

The instant he touched me, another hand suddenly clamped down on his wrist.

At some point, Grayson had appeared right in front of me.

He yanked Andrew's hand away from my arm and pulled me behind him. His expression was so dark it was frightening.

"Alpha Andrew, don't you think it's inappropriate to put your hands on Clara while you're on my pack's territory?"

Andrew frowned. "I was just helping her stay on her feet. She isn't feeling well."

"She's my Luna." Grayson's voice was ice-cold. "You don't need to concern yourself with her."

He turned toward me, his gaze fixed on my face.

"What were you talking about just now? Why was he touching you?" he asked in a voice brimming with barely restrained anger.

Fighting through the abdominal pain, I struggled to force out a few words.

"…We weren't talking about anything."

Andrew started to speak, but I gently shook my head. He hesitated, then swallowed his words.

Avery had made her way over at some point as well.

"Alpha Grayson, please don't be upset," she said softly. "While it's true that Luna Clara has been getting closer to the Frostfang pack lately, it might just be normal business dealings. Please don't read too much into it."

Grayson didn't even look at her. With his gaze still fixed on me, he asked, "Don't you have anything to explain to me?"

I was in so much pain that I could barely speak, so all I could do was shake my head.

Grayson let out a cold laugh, his grip on my wrist tightening little by little. "Very well then. Clara, as the Luna, you've behaved disgracefully. Lock her in the pack's confinement cells for two days to reflect on her actions. No one is allowed to see her without my permission."

The guards stepped forward and escorted me away.

I could barely stand from the pain. Every step felt as though I were walking across a bed of knives.

As I passed Avery, she leaned in close. A gentle smile played on her face, as though she were about to offer me some words of comfort.

"It must've hurt to lose your pup, huh? But tell me, who do you think Grayson will believe—you or me?"