Page 59 of Marked By Moonlight
A gasp ripples through the crowd as one by one they hear my words. I was their hope, their chance at breaking the curse. And here I am publicly admitting that I was wrong. We both were. There is no way this man is my mate.
Ambrose doesn’t so much as twitch a muscle at my outburst. He still hasn’t blinked as he stares at me. He’s processing, deciding what to do next. That’s his move, I realize. He guards his emotions and thoughts until the last moment. It’s probably served him well hundreds of times before. But now, it just gives me more time for my rage to swell inside me.
“Fight me. Kill me. Get a new mate. Because I won’t help anyone who trades away innocent lives like that.”
“I’m not going to fight you,”Ambrose says like a caress in my head.
“Coward,”I fire back.
“I’m not a coward. I don’t want to hurt you.”
“You already did.”
He swallows hard, his throat bobbing. It’s the first outward sign that anything is bothering him. And then he makes a move toward me—an outstretched hand most likely to grab me and drag me back into that cell in his basement to keep me locked up until he’s seduced me into submission again.
I won’t let him lock me up. And I won’t let him get away with being the proud alpha defending his pack when he can’t even protect and defend his mate and her friend.
I duck as he reaches for me and then swing as hard as I can at his stomach. It’s like hitting a brick wall. But my hand doesn’t feel the pain, just the hardness of his body as I hit him. I know once the adrenaline wears off I’ll feel that. I most likely broke a bone.
A sharp inhale is the only reaction I get from Ambrose that he was affected by my punch.
“Fight me, you monster,” I yell, letting the entire pack hear me.
I can feel the shocked faces on me, and hear the muttering and gasps ringing all around me. I’m sure no one speaks to their alpha this way. I come from a small pack that was more family than anything, but even in that small pack, my father’s word was law. No one dared to disobey or defy him. And that’s exactly what I’m doing to Ambrose.
Low growls pierce the air, spreading through the crowd in a warning to me.
Ambrose holds up a hand, though, and the growls cease. He has absolute control over his pack. He just doesn’t have control over me.
I blink, and Ambrose is gone from the spot where I last saw him. I try to spin, sensing exactly where he went, but I’m no match for his speed. His arm wraps around my neck, yanking me to him in a hard embrace.
“I’m sorry,” he breathes against my neck.
“Sorry isn’t going to bring Kael back.” I elbow Ambrose as hard as I can, but once again, he doesn’t move. In fact, I think he tightens his grip on me.
I writhe harder in his arms, doing everything I possibly can to break free. But I could barely have a chance at fighting a human male, let alone an alpha wolf shifter. His strength is unmatchable by anyone here. He just fought off three vampires on his own. He’s probably fought countless males to keep his job as alpha.
I should stop trying to fight him. I should give up. I should surrender.
“Promise me we’ll get Kael back. Promise me you’ll do whatever it takes.”
He stills, and I swear I hear his heart stop beating. “I can’t.”
That’s all I need to hear. I whirl, breaking his hold on me. My hands fly up, intending to smack him across his face, to break any hold he thinks he has on me, both physically and emotionally. I’m not his fucking mate. I’m not his anything.
Snarls and growls and gasps ring out at once. Suddenly, there’s blood leaking down Ambrose’s face. He breathes deeply, settling himself as I watch more blood pour—blood I caused.
I narrow my eyes, not understanding how I caused such a deep gash on his cheek from my nails alone. Until I look down at my hand and nearly fall on my ass at the sight.
Claws.
I have long, sharp claws where my fingernails used to be.
I stare at them and then up at Ambrose.
His lips curl up just the tiniest bit in satisfaction. I’m one step closer to becoming a wolf shifter. One step closer to being able to complete the marking ceremony with him.
Ambrose opens his mouth to speak, and as soon as he does, the crowd grows quiet. “You, Lumi, are my mate. You are my hope. You are our hope. But you are so much more than that. You are worthy of being an alpha. You have that strength, that fire in you. Your pack at the moment may be small—only you and Kael, but you already have the instincts of an alpha to defend your pack at all costs. You are my equal.”
