THE LUNA'S MEN

CHAPTER 2

CHAPTER TWO

THE BLACK FANG ALPHA

By the time I reached the eastern hall, I had already decided that there were several things I hated about my new life, and being summoned to meet a man who had every reason to despise me was rapidly climbing the list.

The guards opened the enormous doors as I approached, and conversation inside gradually faded until the only sound left was the soft clicking of my heels against the polished floor. I felt the attention immediately. Servants stood along the walls, several members of my father's council occupied the long table in the center of the hall, and near the windows overlooking the gardens stood a group of unfamiliar wolves dressed in black.

Black Fang.

My gaze moved over them before settling on the man standing at their center.

Kael Draven.

I recognized him immediately, although the memory of him belonged to Cecilia rather than me. There were fragments of their previous encounters buried somewhere inside my mind—his voice, his expression when she had provoked him, the way he had once caught her wrist after she attempted to slap one of his warriors. None of those memories were complete, but they were enough to tell me one thing.

Kael had never liked Cecilia.

His eyes found mine.

The change in his expression was subtle enough that I might have missed it if I hadn't been watching carefully. His shoulders became still, his golden eyes narrowed, and something instinctive moved across his face before he concealed it.

Mate.

The word didn't come from me.

It came from somewhere deeper.

My wolf.

A strange warmth spread through my chest, followed by a pull so powerful that for one humiliating second I nearly took a step toward him.

I stopped myself.

Absolutely not.

I had been in this world for less than a day, and I was already being dragged toward one of the men whose relationship with Cecilia eventually ended in bloodshed.

Kael's gaze remained on me.

I raised my chin.

If my body wanted to react like Cecilia, then Cecilia was exactly what he was going to see.

I walked toward my father without acknowledging him.

“Cecilia.”

My father's voice carried across the hall.

I stopped beside his chair.

“You're late.”

I looked at the clock on the wall.

“I wasn't aware you had given me a time.”

A few people shifted uncomfortably.

My father stared at me.

I stared back.

Somewhere inside my mind, Nora was screaming at me to apologize.

Instead, Cecilia's hand reached for the chair beside my father's and pulled it out with deliberate elegance.

“I assume this is important,” I said as I sat. “Otherwise, you wouldn't have interrupted my morning.”

My father's jaw tightened.

“It is.”

“Then get to the point.”

The words slipped out so naturally that I almost laughed.

Apparently, Cecilia had been particularly difficult.

My father turned toward the Black Fang delegation.

“Three of Alpha Draven's patrols were attacked along the eastern border over the last two weeks.”

I looked at Kael.

He was still watching me.

“And?”

His brows drew together slightly.

“And the evidence found at the scenes suggests the attackers came from Red Moon territory.”

“That doesn't mean they were Red Moon wolves.”

“No.”

The answer came from Kael.

His voice was lower than I expected, calm and controlled.

“That is why I am here.”

I studied him.

He wasn't smiling.

He wasn't trying to intimidate me either.

He simply watched.

That was exactly what I remembered about him.

Kael observed before he acted.

He wanted information before he made a decision, and unlike Lucien, he didn't hide that habit behind charm.

“Then you suspect someone is trying to start a war between our packs.”

His eyes remained on mine.

“Yes.”

“And you came here expecting my father to welcome that possibility?”

“I came because I believe the attacks are connected to something larger.”

I glanced at the documents spread across the table.

“Then show me.”

My father looked at me.

“Cecilia.”

“What?”

“This is not your investigation.”

“Then why am I here?”

He paused.

That hesitation immediately caught my attention.

Kael noticed it too.

My father finally said, “Because you know the eastern territory better than most of our scouts.”

I leaned back.

“I see.”

“You'll accompany Alpha Draven tomorrow.”

I stared at him.

“No.”

The pressure appeared instantly.

A sharp squeeze around my chest made my fingers tighten against the armrest.

I swallowed.

My father raised an eyebrow.

“No?”

I forced my expression into one of Cecilia's usual looks of annoyance.

“I mean, sending me would be unnecessary. You have trained scouts who can accompany him.”

The pressure eased.

Interesting.

I couldn't simply refuse things the way Nora would have.

The body expected Cecilia to behave differently.

So I had to phrase everything the way she would.

My father sighed.

“You're going.”

“I haven't agreed.”

“You weren't asked.”

I opened my mouth, then closed it.

Kael's mouth twitched.

I caught it.

“Something amusing?”

“No.”

“You're smiling.”

“Am I?”

His expression was perfectly serious.

I narrowed my eyes.

Cecilia apparently knew this man well enough to dislike him, because irritation rose in me with startling ease.

“You're irritating.”

“I've been called worse.”

“I imagine so.”

His gaze lingered on me.

There was something different in his eyes now.

Not affection.

Not attraction.

Suspicion.

He was comparing the woman in front of him with the Cecilia he remembered.

I knew it.

The problem was that I didn't know what he was seeing.

My father cleared his throat.

“Tomorrow. Sunrise.”

I looked at him.

“Fine.”

Kael spoke before my father could continue.

“Bring nothing unnecessary.”

I turned toward him.

“Excuse me?”

“We'll be travelling through the forest.”

“I know how to travel through a forest.”

“Do you?”

The question was simple, but something about the way he said it irritated me.

I leaned forward slightly.

“Alpha Draven, I have lived in the Red Moon territory my entire life. I assure you, I am perfectly capable of walking through trees without getting lost.”

“I didn't say you would get lost.”

“Then what exactly are you implying?”

His gaze moved over me briefly before returning to my eyes.

“You'll find out tomorrow.”

I stared at him.

He turned away.

That was somehow worse.

I wanted to throw something at him.

Instead, I sat back and crossed my arms.

This was exactly why Cecilia had disliked him.

He didn't react the way she wanted.

He didn't become angry when she challenged him, and he didn't flatter her when she expected admiration. He simply watched her, remembered everything, and waited.

That made him dangerous.

It also made him difficult to manipulate.

Which meant avoiding him was probably the safest option.

Unfortunately, my father had just arranged an entire day alone with him.

The meeting continued, but I barely listened. My attention kept returning to Kael, not because I was interested in him, but because I was trying to understand how much of Cecilia he remembered.

When the council finally began dispersing, I stood.

“I'll see you tomorrow, Father.”

I turned toward the door.

“Cecilia.”

I stopped.

Kael was behind me.

I slowly turned.

He had moved closer without me noticing.

“Sunrise,” he said.

“I heard my father.”

“I wanted to make sure you understood.”

I gave him a thin smile.

“You're remarkably fond of repeating yourself.”

His golden eyes held mine.

“And you're remarkably fond of ignoring instructions.”

“I've been told I'm difficult.”

“I remember.”

That answer made me pause.

There was history in those two words.

Not much.

But enough.

Cecilia had already challenged this man countless times before I ever opened my eyes in her body.

I stepped closer, lowering my voice.

“Then you should know by now that telling me what to do rarely produces the result you want.”

His gaze dropped briefly to my mouth before returning to my eyes.

“Perhaps I'm interested in seeing whether that's still true.”

My stomach tightened.

For a moment, I didn't know what to say.

Then Cecilia's pride took over.

I smiled.

“Don't get your hopes up.”

I walked past him.

I could feel his eyes following me all the way to the door.

Only when I entered the corridor did I allow my expression to fall.

I pressed a hand against my chest.

The bond was still there.

That strange pull toward him had not disappeared simply because I had walked away.

I hated it.

More importantly, I didn't want it.

Kael could be my fated mate. He could even become my true mate if I chose him, but I had no intention of choosing anyone.

I wanted freedom.

I wanted to live far away from the Red Moon Pack, far away from the female lead, far away from the three men who had already been written into Cecilia's downfall.

Most of all, I wanted to reject them before any of this became complicated.

That should have been simple.

Except there was one problem.

I knew how Cecilia's story ended.

She didn't die because she loved three men.

She died because she was a villainess who allowed jealousy, pride, and ambition to consume her until she dragged entire packs into her schemes.

I wasn't going to repeat her mistakes.

But if I wanted to survive, I couldn't suddenly become kind, meek, and harmless either.

The moment I tried to step outside Cecilia's nature, my body resisted.

So I would do this differently.

I would remain Cecilia.

I would let everyone believe she was still the same arrogant, sharp-tongued she-wolf they remembered.

And while they watched Cecilia, Nora would quietly find a way out.

I had almost reached my chambers when a familiar voice drifted from behind me.

“Lady Cecilia.”

I stopped.

One of my father's servants approached, holding a sealed letter.

“Another message?”

“Yes, my lady.”

I took it.

The seal was silver.

I didn't need to open it to know who had sent it.

Lucien Vale.

I stared at the letter for several seconds.

Of all the problems I could have inherited with this body, apparently I had inherited three fated mates who were already paying attention to me.

I broke the seal.

Inside was a single line.

I heard you've recovered. I wonder if you're still as troublesome as I remember.

I stared at the words.

Then, despite myself, I laughed under my breath.

Cunning bastard.

Even his letters sounded like a game.

I folded the paper and slipped it into my sleeve.

Tomorrow was Kael.

Lucien was already watching.

And somewhere beyond the Red Moon territory, Damian Veyre was undoubtedly doing whatever it was that a psychotic Alpha did when he became interested in something.

I had wanted nothing to do with any of them.

Unfortunately, they had already met Cecilia.

And now I had to convince all three that she hadn't changed at all.