Chapter 9:.The unwanted luna
987 Words
The Council Chamber remained tense long after Isabel had left.
Seraphina sat calmly in her chair, her hands folded before her.
Lucas stood at the head of the table, his expression unreadable.
“What did you see?”
Seraphina lifted her eyes.“I told you. Nothing.”
Lucas’s gaze hardened.
“You looked at her pendant.” He stated.
“A crescent moon is hardly unusual.” She replied
“You didn’t look at it like it was unusual.”
Silence settled over the chamber.
Matron Morwen watched the exchange without speaking. High Priestess Elyra remained quiet, her fingers resting against the silver pendant around her neck.
Alpha Derek of Howlers Pack finally broke the silence.
“The matter of Lady Isabel is becoming increasingly complicated.”
Lucas looked at him.
“She has been here two days.”
“And already the palace is divided.” He complained
“That is not my concern.”
Derek leaned forward.
“It will be if the Council refuses to recognize her.”
Lucas’s expression remained cold.
“Recognize her as what?”
“Your future Luna.” Alpha Jacob of Riversong Pack spoke
Lucas’s jaw tightened. “She is not my Luna.”
Several Elders exchanged glances.
Alpha Ronan of Moonriders Pack spoke from across the table.
“The alliance was agreed upon, but marriage has not taken place.”
“That can be arranged.” Alpha Derek responded
Lucas’s eyes moved toward him. “No.”
The single word silenced the room.
Derek frowned. “You cannot continue avoiding this, Your Majesty.”
“I can.” He sneered
“The kingdom needs stability.”
“The kingdom needs a King who can make his own decisions.”
Ronan’s expression hardened as he spoke.
“And what of the people?”
Lucas looked directly at him “They will have a King.”
Derek sighed. “This is bigger than personal preference.”
Lucas’s voice remained cold.
“Do not confuse your political concerns with my personal affairs.”
No one answered.
Then Morwen spoke quietly. “There is another problem.”
Lucas turned toward her.
“Her wolf." The room fell silent.
Morwen continued.
“A Luna without a wolf has never been recorded in our history.”
“She cannot shift. She cannot form the traditional bond with the King’s wolf.”
Alpha Damon of Golden crest pack shook his head.
“The people will never accept her.” he said
Lucas’s expression didn’t change.
“That is not their decision.”
“No,” Ronan replied. “But it is yours.”
Lucas stared at him. For several seconds, neither spoke.
Then Lucas turned toward the doors.
“This discussion is over.”
He walked out without waiting for permission to be dismissed.
The doors closed behind him. Seraphina watched them.
A faint, unreadable expression crossed her face.
By then, Isabel had begun to understand exactly what it meant to be unwanted
No one had told her she wasn’t welcome.
They didn’t need to. The palace staff simply made sure she noticed.
At breakfast, her seat had not been prepared at the royal table.
When she asked a servant where she was supposed to sit, the woman hesitated before pointing toward a smaller table near the windows.
“My apologies, Lady Isabel. The royal table is reserved for members of the Crown.”
Isabel stared at her. “And what am I?”
The servant lowered her gaze.“A guest.”
Isabel said nothing, She sat down.
Kai remained standing behind her.
“You don’t have to eat here,” he murmured.
“I know.” She said
“You’re angry.”
“No.”
He raised an eyebrow.
She picked up her glass.
“I’m irritated.” She muttered
“That sounds worse.”
“It is.”
Before Kai could respond, two palace attendants passed behind them.
“I heard the Council is reconsidering the alliance.”
“Of course they are.”
“She doesn’t even have a wolf.”
“What kind of Luna can’t shift?”
Isabel’s fingers tightened around the glass.
Kai turned sharply. “Watch your tongue.”
The attendants immediately bowed.
“My apologies.” They hurried away.
Isabel exhaled. “Let them talk.”
Kai looked at her.
“You shouldn’t have to.”
She glanced toward the empty royal table. “I didn’t expect them to welcome me.”
“You’re supposed to be their future Luna.” he replied
Isabel gave a quiet laugh.
“Apparently not.”
Later that afternoon, Isabel walked through the palace gardens alone.
Kai had been called away by a royal officer, leaving her with a rare moment of peace.
She followed a stone path until she reached a secluded courtyard.
A fountain stood at its center.For a moment, she simply enjoyed the silence.Then voices reached her from behind a hedge.
“…the King cannot continue this.”
Isabel recognized the voice. Alpha Derek.
Another voice answered. “He will eventually have to accept the Council’s decision.
“And if he doesn’t?”Alpha Ronan asked
A pause.
“Then we find another way.”
Isabel’s brows drew together, She stepped closer.Before she could hear more, another voice interrupted.
“Careful.” it was Seraphina
“The walls of this palace have ears.”
Silence followed, then footsteps. Isabel quickly stepped back behind the hedge. The three figures emerged from the opposite path.
Seraphina walked between Alpha Derek and Alpha Ronan, her expression perfectly calm. She passed within several feet of Isabel.
For one brief moment, Seraphina’s eyes shifted toward the hedge.
Isabel held her breath, Seraphina continued walking.
Only when their footsteps disappeared did Isabel step out.Her heart was beating faster.She didn’t know what they had been discussing.
But she knew one thing.Whatever was happening inside Blackthorne... her arrival had something to do with it.
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