The Lunar Destiny Series

Chapter 21

I was relieved to find out that one of Lolita’s wolves had driven my car to their house when she took me hostage. I didn’t need something else to worry about right now. Lio drove my car back to his house; he wanted me with him tonight and I definitely did not want to be alone.

We took a nice, hot shower together when we got back. It was comforting for the both of us. Lio held me in his arms tightly while the hot water rained down on us both. I rested my head against his chest with my eyes closed. Any other time we wouldn’t be able to resist being consumed by lust when we took showers together, but I had no desire to do anything. I had came too close to death tonight and that was enough to kill my s*x drive. I know sometimes it could have the opposite effect for people but I wasn’t one of them. I had cried for a solid ten minutes when we got in the shower. When I finally stopped, the bathroom was only filled with the sounds of the water splashing onto the tub floor.

“I almost thought I wouldn’t get to you in time…”

Lio said, breaking the silence first.

“For a moment so did I. How did you know I was in trouble?” I asked.

“Baltasar got a call from Celeste. She said you never called her and you always call when you make it home. I went to your house to see if you had gone home and just fallen asleep, but your car wasn’t there and all of your lights were off. That’s when I panicked. I called Celeste back and asked her which mall you two went to. When I got to the mall I picked up your scent mixed in with Lolita’s. I knew what had happened then. I headed to Lolita’s house right then and called the others on my way there.”

He said.

I swore the next time I saw Celeste I was going to give her the longest hug.

“This could have been avoided. I should’ve gone with you.”

He said, rubbing the side of my arm gently.

“You can’t spend all of your time watching over me Lio.”

I opened my eyes, moving out of his arms a little to look up at him.

“Who says? It’s my past that’s causing you trouble. I’m surprised you haven’t packed up and left this city because of me. I wouldn’t blame you.” He said this with so much pain in his eyes.

I shook my head.

“I know you can’t control what the women in your past will do. The only thing we can do is overcome the end results of their actions.”

Lio lowered his face closer to mine and kissed me. It was unexpected but I melted into it. He was the one to break the kiss.

“You’re a very strong woman Astraia, as strong as an alpha female. Perhaps I should stop worrying about you so much.”

I smiled up at him, not fully but enough to let him see that I was flattered. There was a lack of relief in his eyes; that little bit of sadness still lingered in them.

We got out of the shower and got settled into bed after a few more minutes. I took my usual spot next to him with my head resting on his chest. I started thinking about the new wolves and if Lio would allow them to mourn her. As evil as she might have been, I’m sure they needed closure. Lio had done the deed himself but he still cared about her. I know at least some part of him wanted to say goodbye.

“Lio, will you go to Lolita’s funeral?”

It wasn’t the best time to ask but I was curious. Considering what she had put me through I didn’t know why I cared in the first place.

“There isn’t going to be one. I wouldn’t go even if there was one, she tried to kill you.”

He said it so coldly. I frowned.

“Wait, what do you mean ‘there isn’t going to be one’? Why wouldn’t there be a funeral?”

He was suddenly very quiet.

“You don’t want to know the answer to that Astraia. There are some things better left unsaid.” He said.

I turned onto my stomach and looked up at him suspiciously.

“Lio, why can’t you be completely open with me? You’ll tell me certain things but then hide the rest. Why?”

“It’s because the rest would be too much for you to bear. Maybe one day I’ll tell you but not now, I do not think you are ready to hear the rest.” He said.

The way he said those words only left me wanting to know more. Lio was keeping something from me that he thought I couldn’t handle. From what I had seen tonight, he was probably right. Lio interrupted my thoughts when he began rubbing my back softly.

“What’s the matter?” He asked, looking down at me.

When I looked away from him without answering, he sighed.

“One day, you’ll have no worries when it comes to us. I don’t know how long it will take but I’m going to make sure of it.” As he said this, I shook my head no.

“That sounds pretty and everything but that’s impossible.” I said.

“Why is it impossible?”

“I’m with the most dangerous predator in the world and all of the women from your past want me dead. They’re just as dangerous as you are.”

Lio nodded. He seemed to understand and I was thankful he didn’t take offense.

“I may be more beast than man Astraia, but I would never hurt you. As for my ex’s, what happened tonight will never happen again.”

He said it with such certainty that I couldn’t help but smile. I wanted to believe him with all of my heart, but I knew better. Somewhere down the line one of the women in his past would try to get rid of me again, and it would be much worse.

About two weeks later, Lolita’s wolves finally came to join Lio’s pack. Without an Alpha to lead them, Kings and Queens from other wolf packs got word of Lolita’s death and wanted in on her old power base. Lio explained to me that whenever two packs join together it raises the pack’s power as a whole exponentially. Lio is a king, so he was empowered even higher with so many wolves at his command. But with all of his great power came several great pain-in-the-asses.

Unrest fell among the pack since the joining of the two clans. Some of the new wolves had bad habits from Lolita’s sadistic rule. Most, if not all of them, despised Lio as their new King but they still respected him. Well, some of them did.

I was sitting at the kitchen table with Lio talking while we ate some chocolate Oreo ice cream. It was so warm today I had to put my hair up into a high bun. I dressed as lightly as possible in a solid white tank top and some royal blue shorts with a pair of white thonged sandals. Lio was wearing a caramel brown tank top that hugged the swell of his chest and abs but not so tight it looked like a muscle shirt. He had a pair of black jean shorts on but he was barefoot. Sadly all of those beautiful black curls were pulled back into a loose ponytail, but he was still ruggedly handsome.

Naremi came running into the kitchen almost out of breath, wearing a bright orange bikini top and a matching silk bikini wrap tied around her waist. She was also barefoot. Come to think of it I never really see too many of the wolves wearing shoes when they were home. Her flame red hair fell around her shoulders in shiny waves. Lio and I looked at her concerned.

“Naremi? What’s wrong?” Lio asked.

“Some of the new wolves…The men…They’re trying to force themselves on Gleasuss’s mate! Everyone is starting to fight each other, it’s a mess!” She said frantically in between her breaths.

Lio’s calm demeanor changed drastically. He sighed and stuck his spoon into the mountain of ice cream in his bowl before he stood up from the table. I could feel that hot, prickling energy coming off of him in waves and I knew he was pissed. I had to breathe slowly so as not to get winded like I had before.

“Naremi, stay here with Astraia while I go and deal with that gang of savages…” He said walking out of the kitchen.

His body was so tense. I knew he wanted to storm out instead of walk out calmly. The sounds of his footsteps faded soon after he was out of view. I started to get up from the table but Naremi was already stepping in front of me before I could get out of my seat. She looked down at me disapprovingly.

“Just where do you think you’re going?” She asked with her eyebrow raised.

“Don’t you want to make sure Lio is alright? If some huge fight is about to go down, shouldn’t you go help him?” I asked, staring up at her with pleading eyes.

She sighed before she sat down in the chair Lio had been in.

“No. In situations like this, interfering would make our king look weak in the eyes of the new wolves as well as our own. It would only create more rebellion amongst them. Since Lio is handling them on his own, they will be less inclined to disobey him in the future.” She said.

I understood the logic behind it, but I hated the thought of seeing him hurt. I stared down at my half melted ice cream and stuck my spoon into it. It suddenly lost its delicious allure.

“Astraia? What is it?” She said in a tone that was gentler this time.

“I’m just…I’m not sure if I’ll ever get used to the way you all do things. Some of your rules and customs I understand, others I question.”

I said looking up at her.

Naremi smiled at me.

“Do you want to know more about our clan’s customs, rules, and culture?”

I nodded.

“Since you are not our King’s official mate yet, there is very little I’m allowed to tell you. When you become bound to us by marriage and the sacred mating ceremony, I can tell you everything you want to know. Okay?” She said.

“Alright, but that may not happen any time soon Naremi.” Her expression went sullen then.

“Why not?” She said, sounding disappointed.

“Because he hasn’t proposed for one, and secondly I’m not quite ready yet to be honest.”

Naremi shook her head, smiling again.

“I’ll bet that’s exactly why he hasn’t popped the question yet. He’s trying to give you time.” She said.

I never thought of that. Alright I have. It’s the reason I have been avoiding the conversations of marriage and becoming his official mate. I mentioned it once to him but I’ve been avoiding it ever since. I want to be with him, I’m just reluctant to accept everything that comes with him. I know he’s only waiting for me to give the word, but I don’t know if I want to give it.

“Are you still unsure about him? Being with him long term I mean?” She asked.

I took a moment to think about it before I answered her.

“Naremi, I haven’t known Lio a whole season yet. I don’t think I can marry him any time soon. That’s not to say I haven’t thought of it. I thought I knew someone really well once. I wasted three years with someone who really didn’t love me at all. I want to be sure what I’m getting myself into this time.” I said.

“If you still don’t know what you’re getting yourself into, then I’m afraid you never will. I know a lot of women who would give up one of their limbs to have a man like Lio. Some of those women are in our pack. I wouldn’t keep him waiting too long, little one. Remember, Lio had his heart broken badly too. You two share the same pain of betrayal.” She said, raising an eyebrow.

I looked away from her feeling deeply embarrassed. I tended to make things about me more often than I liked to admit. It was a character flaw I was trying to change.

“I like you Astraia. I think you would make a good match for our king. I even understand how you feel in all of this. I guess I just want you to see that you won’t get another chance like this. There are a lot of men in the world, good and bad. But I guarantee that none of them are like Lio.” She said. Naremi was right of course.

I was merely human. The women in Lio’s pack were more suited for him than I was. At least I thought so. My procrastination was going to make me lose a good man; I at least had to admit that much.

Naremi suddenly looked towards the doorway, she seemed to be listening.

“Naremi?” I said, looking at her curiously.

“The fighting has stopped, there’s been bloodshed.” She said, still looking towards the doorway.

“Can you smell Lio’s blood?” I asked.

She shook her head no and I let out a sigh of relief.

“Come with me Astraia.” Naremi said getting up from her seat.

“But I thought you said it was dangerous out there.” I said getting up and standing next to her.

“The danger has passed now. We can go outside.” She said heading out of the kitchen. I followed her reluctantly, hoping she was right.

When we got outside it was disturbingly quiet. No one was outside on the porch or in the yard like they usually were. I frowned slightly as I looked around.

“This doesn’t seem right. Where is everyone?”

I asked confused.

Naremi opened her mouth to answer but before she could, a door flung open at the house next door to us. Lio, Baltasar, Githinji, and Priam were each dragging young men out of the house by chains around their necks. My mouth fell open in shock when I saw that they were naked and had been beaten up pretty badly.

“Please! Take off the chain! It burns!” One of the men screamed in agony.

“Holy s**t, what is he going to do with them?” I asked.

“He will teach them humility and obedience. There are many things Lio despises; having disrespectful rapists in his pack is one of those things.” She said.

“What man would?”

She looked over at me with a serious stare that made me a little uneasy.

“Surely you’re not so naïve that you think not one man has ever allowed such behavior? Encouraged it even? There are many sick men that would allow it. Our old Alpha was like that; Lio killed him. That’s how he became king.” She said looking back at the men being dragged deeper into the woods.

I looked over at the barbaric scene to see Lio spare a glance over his shoulder at me. His eyes looked so eerie that it made me shiver. Everyone has a dark side, but I never wanted to see Lio’s. I noticed Lio and the others were wearing leather gloves. It dawned on me that they had a weakness. Whatever those chains were made out of, they hurt them. I looked back over to Naremi who seemed to be in a daze as she watched all of the other pack members flow out of the houses and follow Lio and the others into the woods.

“Naremi, what exactly are they going to do to them?” I asked hesitantly.

“He’s going to punish them of course.” She said, finally meeting my eyes again.

“Punish them how?” I asked.

“You’re about to find out…” She placed her hands behind her back and linked her fingers together.

The tone of her voice held anticipation, and I was afraid I was about to find out why.

The four men that Lio and the others had dragged into the woods had been taken to what looked like their sacred meeting ground.

An actual throne that looked to be carved from old oak trees sat high up on a hill overlooking a large, grassy space in which we stood. There were only a few trees here and they weren’t all clustered together so I assumed they had made renovations.

The four men had been tied to four large trees by their wrists; they looked as if they were hugging the trees.

Lio, Baltasar, Githinji, and Priam all stood by one of the defiant wolves with long, shining chains in their gloved hands. All of the wolves had formed a large circle around the scene. I stood next to Naremi and Kyra, somewhat in the middle.

“As you may have already noticed, those chains they’re holding are silver. Silver is extremely dangerous for our kind. We can heal from injuries sustained by silver but we heal human-slow. It won’t kill us but it will slow us down.” Naremi said, crossing her arms over her chest.

I tried to wrap my mind around the fact that they were about to beat those men with chains that could injure them severely.

“He’s...going to kill them.”

I whispered to no one in particular, but of course Naremi and Kyra heard me.

“He won’t kill them.”

Naremi said confidently.

“By the time they’re done though, they’ll wish they were dead.” Kyra said smugly.

The fact that the two of them were so nonchalant about all of this disturbed me, but I had to remember that things like this was their norm. Not mine. I looked back to Lio, wondering what he must be feeling at a time like this. I didn’t think he enjoyed having to punish his wolves so brutally. Given what they had attempted to do, maybe it was fitting.

Lio looked around at everyone with a dark glare before he spoke.

“The unforgivable acts committed today by these four men will not go unpunished. They will receive punishment here and now. Those of you who are new to the clan of Iron Claws WILL obey my word. You will abandon all of the ways of your former Queen if you want to call this land home! The ways of your former Queen will only bring you pain and death!” He shouted.

“Whip them until they beg for mercy…”

Lio said looking towards Baltasar, Githinji, and Priam.

I was surprised to see Priam taking part in this as he was the youngest of the four. I suppose when you see something wrong happening and you have the means to deal out justice, you do so.

The four of them raised their chains before slashing at the backs of the offenders. They all screamed each time the silver dragged against their skin, burning and tearing off flesh each time they pulled back. Their backs quickly became bloody strings of meat. Some of the females were screaming in horror and begging them to stop. I turned around and started to leave. The scene was too much for me to continue watching. Kyra grabbed my arm and turned me to face her.

“Don’t run away from this! You’re always complaining about not knowing enough about us. This is how we deal out justice for our people. We have our own laws. If you’re going to be the Queen to our King, you’d better get used to seeing things like this.” She said to me with eyes full of intensity.

What she said echoed through my mind, one part in particular. His Queen; I wouldn’t just become his life mate, I would become his Queen. I hadn’t thought about that at all.

The responsibilities of making tough decisions like the appropriate punishment depending on the crime. This was only one thing, one of many things that horrified me about the werewolves. I understood the severity of the men’s actions but, torture to this degree?

I’d always hear women talk about how they would do unspeakable things to a r****t if they had their way. But seeing it happen in real life and merely thinking of doing it yourself were totally different. If faced with such an opportunity, could you really stomach it?