บททั้งหมดของ Rejected Luna of the Mafia Alpha: บทที่ 21 - บทที่ 30

The stairs led down into darkness that smelled like earth and old magic.I followed Mara carefully, my injured leg protesting each step. The music from above faded to a dull thrum, replaced by something else—voices. Low conversations. The clink of glasses. The rustle of movement.We emerged into a space that made the club above look tame by comparison.This was a basement—or several basements connected by archways and corridors. The lighting was dim, coming from sources I couldn't identify. Candles, maybe. Or something that just looked like candles but burned with unnatural steadiness.The space was divided into sections. Some held tables where groups played cards or dice with stakes that made my stomach clench—money, yes, but also things that glittered with power. Magical objects. Favors. Things I didn't have names for.Other sections held cages. Empty, thankfully, but their purpose was obvious. Fighting rings. Places where disputes were settled through violence instead of words.And

The fighting lasted exactly ninety seconds.I watched from the second-floor railing as Dante's security engaged the Silvercrest guards with brutal efficiency. No shifting. No claws. Just trained violence that ended with all three pack warriors on the floor, subdued and bleeding.The club's patrons barely reacted. A few paused their conversations to watch. Most just continued their business like pack wolves getting beaten unconscious was routine entertainment.Maybe it was, in Inferno.Dante descended the stairs with measured calm, his footsteps echoing in the sudden quiet. The music had stopped. Every eye was on him now—wolf, vampire, witch, creature. Everyone waiting to see what the Mafia Alpha would do.My father stood near the bar, flanked by Dante's security. His expression was carefully neutral, but I saw the calculation in his eyes. The assessment of odds. The consideration of whether to fight or submit.He chose submission.Smart.Dante stopped in front of the unconscious guard

The attackers hesitated.Just for a second. Just long enough for Dante's wolves to finish positioning themselves between the entrance and the fleeing patrons.Then the fighting started.It was nothing like the brief scuffle with the Silvercrest guards. This was coordinated assault. Professional. The attackers moved like military operatives, using cover and suppressing fire to advance through the club.Silver bullets tore through furniture. Spelled chains whipped through the air, seeking supernatural targets. Smoke grenades created chaos and confusion.These were not pack wolves.These were mercenaries. Rogues for hire. The kind of wolves who would attack a Mafia Alpha's stronghold for the right price.The bounty on me must be substantial."Stay behind me," Dante ordered, his voice carrying over the chaos.I pressed against the wall, watching as his security engaged the attackers. The fighting was brutal—claws and teeth and weapons mixing in ways that left blood spreading across the fl

I wanted to say no.Wanted to tell Dante to send them away. To refuse the meeting. To keep me hidden and safe behind his walls and his power.But hiding wouldn't solve anything.Silvercrest would keep coming. Keep hunting. Keep escalating until either I was dead or they were satisfied I posed no threat.And I was tired of running."I will face them," I said.Dante studied me carefully. "You understand this could be a trap? They could be using diplomatic protocol as cover for an ambush?""Yes.""And you still want to meet them?""I need to." My hands clenched into fists. "I need to look Adrian in the eye and show him I survived. That his rejection didn't break me. That I am becoming something he should fear.""Revenge is a poor motivator," Dante observed."Good thing that is not my only motivation." I met his gaze. "I want them to see what they created. What their cruelty and lies produced. I want them to understand that suppressing me my entire life did not make me weak—it just delaye

The training intensified after the manifestation.Dante pushed me harder than before. Longer sessions. More complex exercises. Testing the limits of my new strength and the fragility of my control."Again," he commanded as I struggled to lift a weight that should have been impossible for my frame. "Control the power. Don't let it control you."My muscles screamed. My wolf growled inside me, wanting to surge forward and make this easy. But I forced myself to use only the strength I could consciously control.The weight lifted. Slowly. Shakily. But lifted."Better," Dante said. "But not good enough. In combat, you will not have time to think through every movement. Control needs to be instinctive. Automatic. Again."We had been at this for six hours. My body was past exhaustion into some numb state where pain became background noise.But I kept going.Because the alternative was losing control. Becoming the monster Silvercrest claimed I would be. Proving everyone right who said Silvermo