The Alpha Surrogate Luna

Gloria’s POV "You really thought I loved you, Gloria?" Julian’s cold, mocking laughter echoed across the marble courtyard as guards seized my family’s ancestral military emblem right in front of my eyes. Heavy iron gauntlets clattered against the gold finish of our family crest, making a harsh sound that vibrated straight through my leather boots. Six long years of devotion, six years of supporting his political ambitions, staying up late into the night to draft his speeches, believing every sweet promise he whispered into my ear, vanished in a single fraction of a second. Every gentle word he had ever spoken to me was nothing more than a calculated lie to infiltrate our private vaults, steal our ancestral emblem, and expose our secret financial ledgers to the High Council. Nana collapsed beside me, her sobbing body trembling violently from the sudden, public humiliation as court members whispered and pointed at us from the sidelines. Her weak knees scraped against the hard marble floor, leaving faint red marks, but not a single soul in the crowd moved a finger to help us. "Julian, please," Nana gasps, her small, trembling fingers clawing at my sleeve for support. "We trusted you like a son. We opened our home to you. How could you do this to our family?" Julian did not even bother to look down at her. He casually stepped over a sharp piece of broken glass that had fallen from my father’s old oak desk, slowly adjusting his leather gloves with a relaxed smile. "House Sorensen was just a temporary stepping stone, Lady Evelyn," he said, his voice flat, cold, and devoid of any warmth. "You gave me access to the vault, but now you have no value left to offer me." "Look at me, Julian," I said, taking a firm step in front of my trembling Nana to shield her fragile body from the sneering crowd of nobles. He raised a dark eyebrow, smirking openly at my defiance. "Still trying to act proud, Gloria? Look at your surroundings. You have nothing left." "I gave you my loyalty for six full years," I told him, keeping my arms steady and locked as I held Nana up against my side. "I stood firmly by your side when the other high lords called you weak and unproven. Is this how a future leader repays a debt of six years?" "Loyalty is completely useless without real power," Julian snapped back, pointing a gloved finger toward the heavy guards holding our stolen crest. "That emblem gives me total control over the border vanguard. You were just the key to the lockbox, Gloria. Now that the door is wide open, I do not need the key anymore." "I always knew those Sorensens were hiding something corrupt," a highborn lady dressed in a red silk gown whispered loudly behind her decorative feather fan. "Look at her standing there," another young lord laughed softly, nudging the noble next to him. "She actually believed she was going to sit on the throne beside him." My jaw tightened until my teeth ached as I glared directly into Julian's eyes, refusing to let a single tear fall down my face. My throat burned with a dry heat, but I kept my chest out and my shoulders squared, refusing to break down on my knees. An elderly councilor named Malaki stepped into the center of the courtyard, slowly unrolling a thick parchment scroll that bore a heavy black wax seal. He cleared his throat loudly, and the noisy crowd fell into a tense, expectant silence. "By direct decree of the High Council," Malaki read aloud, his booming voice echoing off the tall marble pillars surrounding the courtyard, "House Sorensen is officially stripped of all military titles, ancestral properties, and noble rights. Furthermore, Gloria Sorensen and her guardian are hereby banished to the wild borderlands, effective immediately." "Immediately?" Nana cried out, her chest heaving as a harsh, painful cough wracked her thin frame. "Our clothes, our personal family keepsakes, please, let us go inside for just five minutes." "You own absolutely nothing inside this palace, former Lady Sorensen," Malaki replied coldly, rolling the parchment back up without offering her a single shred of mercy. "Guards, escort the banished women past the outer gates." Two heavily armored guards stepped forward, their iron-covered hands grabbing Nana's frail arms with rough force. "Get your hands off her!" I snapped, shoving the guard's elbow back with every ounce of physical strength left in my body. "She is sick! We can walk on our own feet!" Julian walked over slowly, leaning down until his dark eyes were only inches away from my face. "Get used to the mud in the borderlands, Gloria," he murmured, his voice dropping into a quiet whisper. "If you ever dare to show your face in this capital again, I will personally see your head put on a spike." I looked him dead in the eye with an unbroken, silent anger as I held my weeping Nana. "You stole a piece of metal, Julian," I said softly, leaning closer so that only he could hear my words. "But you are still nothing more than a coward hiding behind guards." Julian’s smile vanished instantly. His jaw clenched tight, and his hand twitched dangerously toward the handle of his dagger. He checked himself, glancing quickly around at the watching court before turning his back on us completely. "Get them out of my sight," he commanded loudly to the guards. The guards shoved us forcefully down the grand stone staircase. People from the court laughed, tossing small stones and shouting insults at our feet as we passed through their ranks. I locked my arm firmly around Nana’s waist, dragging her along while she struggled to catch her breath. As we reached the massive iron arches of the outer palace wall, dark clouds broke open, pouring heavy rain down onto the cobblestone path. The downpour soaked our dresses in seconds, chilling my skin as the massive iron gates slammed shut behind us with a loud clang. Nana stumbled on the muddy trail just outside the perimeter wall, her small hand pulling hard on my collar to stay upright. "Gloria..." she whispered, her throat rattling violently as she fought for a tiny breath of air. "My chest... it hurts so bad..." "Nana!" I shouted, dropping my posture to catch her waist before her head hit the dark mud. "Stay with me, please! Keep looking at me! We just need to walk down to the lower town!" She did not reply. All the remaining color drained from her face, turning her skin an unnatural shade of grey while her eyes rolled back into her head. I dropped directly into the deep mud, pulling her upper body onto my lap as the rain poured down on both of us. Nana’s chest suddenly heaves, her heart giving out under the crushing weight of grief, leaving me screaming for help in the cold rain as her body goes limp in my arms.