Alle Kapitel von The Stolen Luna: Kapitel 1 – Kapitel 10

The next day, I went to the Elder Council to dissolve the bond.The clerk flipped through the bond registry for a long moment before he looked up at me as if he'd seen a ghost."This bond... doesn't actually need to be dissolved."I froze. "What do you mean?"He turned the registry around, pushed it toward me, and pointed to a blank spot at the bottom."Lu... A bond doesn't take effect until its record is sealed, and the one who took down the lantern has to seal it himself. Alpha Gideon filed the registration papers back then, but he never came back to seal it. Strictly speaking, this marriage... isn't valid."He'd almost called me Luna, then swallowed the word.Behind him, an apprentice scribe muttered, "I remember the day he filed it. He said something about not wanting anyone else's name on the bond record."Someone else's name?I stood there, my blood running cold.At our bonding ceremony, he'd held my hand tight and wouldn't let go."We're going to be together forever." He'd looke

Every eye in the place landed on me.I froze and stared at Silas. We'd grown up together. Even after I learned that he'd stayed away from my lantern because he liked Phoebe, I didn't blame him.And now, to protect Phoebe, he was making me take the fall?"Tell me, Priest Silas, what exactly is my sin? Which of Blackthorn's laws did I break?"Silas kept his eyes lowered, his voice flat. "The Moon Goddess's decree cannot be revealed. To atone, you must complete the penance walk barefoot around the pack's territory."I was so angry I almost laughed. I was about to say more when Gideon grabbed my wrist. His palm was burning hot and his grip was firm, but his fingertips gently stroked my skin, careful to avoid the burn.His tone hardened. "Evelyn, you were born in Mistbrook Valley. You know the Moon Goddess's priest is never wrong when he delivers a decree."Gideon's face was cold.But through the mind-link, his voice brushed my thoughts. Don't be mad. When you get back, you can punish me ho

Gideon reached for her through the mind-link, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't sense where she was.Too far...Gideon took a deep breath, forced down the panic rising in his chest, and sent for Heath.Before long, Heath arrived, stopped before him with his hands at his sides, and bowed.Gideon stared hard at him. "Where did the Luna go?"Heath's voice was calm. "I don't know.""You don't know?" Gideon's voice rose, his anger about to boil over. "You're Blackthorn's Beta. You control who comes and goes in this pack! You stayed by her side all day during the penance walk, so how can you not know?"Heath was quiet for a moment before he slowly raised his head.His eyes were a little red, but his voice stayed steady. "I don't know. She only asked me to give the Alpha a message."Gideon's heart lurched. He had a bad feeling about this.Heath spoke slowly and clearly. "The bond record was never sealed, so the marriage was never valid."Whatever was between her and the Alpha ends

After seven days at sea, the boat finally docked at Tidehaven.When I got off, my legs were still a little wobbly. A week of rough seas had scrambled my sense of balance.But here, nobody would ever call me "Luna" again.Tidehaven was a neutral city. It didn't belong to any pack. There were no Alphas here, no Elder Council, no one who could drag me back with a single word about the Moon Goddess's decree.That was why I'd picked it.Being far away was just a bonus.I used the cards Heath had given me to withdraw cash and got a job at a perfume shop. With a werewolf's sharp sense of smell, I learned to identify scents and blend them.Humans had to lean in close and sniff over and over. I only had to twitch my nose to know whether a bag of pepper had gotten damp, or whether a jar of cloves had been mixed with stale stock.I'd never been so proud of anything in my life, and I was walking on air.Soon, I created my first perfume. I called it Oblivion.But day after day I sat in the shop wit

After the baby was born, I headed north with Dane, my child in my arms.He introduced me to buyers at several high-end department stores and put me in touch with a senior official on the committee in charge of gifts for visiting dignitaries.My perfume business grew from a tiny shop in Tidehaven into a brand whose name appeared on signs across three city blocks.With its light, elegant, long-lasting scent, one of my perfumes was chosen as an official gift for visiting dignitaries and received royal approval.I was no longer a she-wolf who had to cling to someone to survive.I had my own brand, my own team, and my own bookkeeper.I sent money to my parents every month.Letters took much longer to reach Mistbrook Valley. A trusted pack member had to carry every message by hand. It took two full months to get a reply.My father said everything at home was fine. My mother told me to take care of myself. She also mentioned that Phoebe had miscarried after Silas forced a bowl of wolfsbane br