Page 84 of Alpha's Revenge Luna
My laughter fades as I lean back in my chair.“He’s too scared to clean his own house, afraid of what he might find,” I muse aloud.The council thinks they can intimidate me?They’d be signing their own death warrants.
“What do you want to do?”Kyrio’s question pulls me back.
“We’ll visit Alpha Farren’s old pack and speak with the morgue attendant.”
Kyrio nods.
“We’ll leave at dusk.”
“Elder Eric said there’s been weird activity reported at Emery’s old pack.We need to check that out, too.”
I sigh heavily.We never got our men’s bodies back, so I am not too eager to revisit and I can tell Kyrio isn’t, either.
Kyrio’s gaze sharpens.“Speaking of Emery, how is she holding up?”
I let out a sigh.“She’s fine.I’ll have her join me at pack training after breakfast.Give her some visibility.”
There’s a pause, then Kyrio hesitates.I can practically hear his internal debate.“Out with it!”I snap, already impatient.
“The women...They’ve been giving Tara a hard time for befriending Luna Emery,” he finally admits.
“She told you that?”
Kyrio shakes his head.“No, but I can tell, she’s been off.”
My fingers clench into fists.“I will deal with it!”I growl.The pack needs to learn their place, and quickly.
Kyrio nods, relief evident in his posture.“I thought you should know, Alpha.It’s causing unrest.I think the women are bullying Tara.”
“Anything else?”I ask, already dreading more bad news.
Kyrio nods again, more firmly this time.“I’ll have everything ready to leave for Farren’s at four.And Elder Eric expects your call.”
“Good,” I say, picking up the phone.“Let’s get this over with.”
As the dial tone beeps, Kyrio slips out, leaving me to my task.“Elder Eric?”I speak into the receiver, my voice deceptively calm.“You wanted to talk?”
Chapter 29
As I sit in the dining hall next to Tara.My stomach twistsin hunger, but it’s overshadowed by coiling anxiety as I reach for a piece of toast, only for the server to whisk it away from my grasp.The bacon floats in front of me, fat and greasy, and the smell is enough to make my mouth water.Yet, I rather leave, feeling the tension rise in the room.
Tara’s voice rises in defense: “Madeline, she needs to eat.She hasn’t eaten in days.”Tara’s voice is a mix of anger and concern, but it’s no match for Madeline’s growling retort.
“You would really stand up for the traitor?She got our pack members killed,” Madeline sneers at us, her words like venom.
I shake my head, too tired to argue and feeling defeated.“It’s fine, Tara.Just take me to Dion’s office,” I mutter, desperate to escape the hostility that hangs in the air like a thick fog.Tara’s concern is palpable as she insists I eat, but the servers’ refusal is clear—they’d rather see me starve.
“You need to eat,” she insists softly, but I can only shake my head, my voice barely above a murmur.“The Alpha ordered me.”
Madeline’s hostility only escalates as Tara reaches for some bacon, and again the tray is pulled away.“Seriously, what are you trying to do?Starve her to death?”Tara’s frustration is evident.
“We could only hope,” comes Madeline’s cruel response, and that’s when the chaos breaks out.Tara reaches for another tray when a scuffle between Tara and Madeline erupts like a sudden storm, and I can only watch, heart pounding, as my one ally in this place is berated and pushed for her loyalty to me.Chairs scrape, voices rise, and I’m suddenly on my feet, heart racing, as another woman grabs Tara’s hair.
I pull Tara away, my own voice shaking with fear and urgency.“It’s fine, Tara, just take me to Dion’s office,” I repeat, but Dion’s order holds us back.We’re trapped until I eat something, anything.
When Tara finally manages to snag a cheese cube, she holds it out to me with a trembling hand.“Come on, eat that,” she urges, insisting I eat it so she can leave.I oblige, swallowing not only the food but also the guilt and shame that come with it.
As we walk toward Dion’s office, Tara’s apologies are a bitter reminder of how far I’ve fallen in the eyes of the pack.“I’m sorry, Emery, I am,” she says, her voice heavy with emotion.
