Lahat ng Kabanata ng Marked by Gold and Ruin: Kabanata 81 - Kabanata 90

(ELARA’S POV) The Luna Council had never been this quiet. Not even during the early meetings when we had first begun fighting for a place among the packs. Back then, the silence had come from uncertainty; we were building something from nothing, and most of the Lunas sitting around the table had been terrified of what that might mean for their own territories. This was different. Now, the silence came from people knowing exactly what had changed. I sat at the head of the long council table, my hands resting loosely against the polished wood as I looked around the room. Maeve sat to my right, her jaw set into a familiar, defensive line. Maren sat across from her, a stack of territorial reports open in front of her. Selene occupied the seat beside Maren, listening in stillness as one of the Lunas discussed a lingering dispute over healer supplies between two neighboring packs. On the surface, everything looked entirely normal. Papers were spread across the tabletop, and the faint

(DARIUS’ POV) The journey back to Ironridge was quieter than I expected. I sat in the back of the carriage, watching the familiar mountain roads recede behind us as we descended toward our territory. My thoughts should have been occupied with the election, the loss of a seat my family had held for generations, and the mountain of pack business waiting for my return. Instead, my mind kept drifting back to the hall. Farina’s voice still echoed through my thoughts, along with the stifling silence that had followed her accusation. I could still see Elara standing across the stone chamber, her face turned toward Farina as a single tear traced down her cheek. I had never wanted that piece of our history dragged out before hundreds of Alphas and Lunas. The matter had been settled five years ago when Elara was rejected and exiled. I had spent the years since rebuilding my life and securing Ironridge. Whatever she had become in my absence, whatever position she now held beside Ronan,

(FARINA’S POV) The heavy oak doors of the Luna Council chamber closed behind me with a quiet, final click. I kept my features smooth and unreadable as I walked down the stone corridor, my stride measured, my hands folded lightly before me. There was no sense in giving anyone the satisfaction of seeing that the morning had annoyed me. I had secured my membership, and that was all that mattered. Not welcomed. Not trusted. Accepted. Elara had made her choice carefully, with her friends standing guard beside her like watchdogs waiting for me to slip up. It was an interesting room to dissect. Maeve would fight me at every turn. Maren required solid logic before she supported any initiative. Selene, however, was the weak link. I couldn't yet guess why she had looked so unsettled during the meeting, but uncertainty always leaves a crack. Given time, it could be widened. Elara had fallen into the trap of believing her own moral high ground would shield her. Refusing my application wo

(RONAN’S POV) Two weeks after the election, I was beginning to understand that winning the Alpha Council had been the easy part. The difficult part was convincing everyone the world wouldn't collapse simply because an Ironridge Alpha wasn't steering it. My study was a disaster. Reports buried my desk, and requests piled up faster than I could open them. A dispute over a shared hunting ground had stalled for months, and two smaller packs were bickering over a river crossing. Under old leadership, these issues drifted through predictable channels. Now, I was shifting those channels, and plenty of Alphas hated being asked to explain *why* things had always been done a certain way. A soft knock interrupted my thoughts. “Come in.” Elara stepped inside holding a cup of tea, her eyes sweeping over the paper-strewn desk before locking onto mine. “Have you eaten?” I glanced at the untouched plate by the window. “Does that count?” “Only if you’ve developed the ability to sustain yoursel

(ELARA’S POV) Alpha Cedric had retired to the guest room prepared for him in Trueblood, promising to leave early the following morning. Before excusing himself for the night, he had assured me that he would search for his mother’s book as soon as he returned to his pack. He had warned me, however, that finding it might take some time. His mother had collected books and old records for most of her life, and he couldn’t remember exactly where she had kept every one of them. I had thanked him and told him there was no need to rush. But the truth was, I wanted to know what was written in those pages. Starvale. The name had followed me throughout the evening, slipping into my thoughts whenever I tried to concentrate on something else. I sat at the small table near the window in my chamber, turning the platinum pendant between my fingers. The metal felt cool against my skin, and the familiar patterns engraved along its surface caught the light whenever I tilted it. For years, I had w