Warrior luna Revenge

*CHAPTER 3: "THE MEETING"*

*CHAPTER 3: "THE MEETING"*

He was here.

I could smell him before I saw him.

Cedar and whiskey and lies. The scent of the man who broke me.

I was in the infirmary when Claire came running in.

"Aria," she said, breathless. "He’s here. Alpha Kade. At the gates. With an entourage."

My hands didn’t shake. They never shook when I was working.

"How many?"

"Ten. All armed. Alpha Damian is meeting them in the council room now."

"And me?"

"He said to stay here. Until he calls you."

Right. Because I was a problem to be managed.

I finished wrapping the wolf’s ankle. "Tell me when he asks for me."

Claire nodded and left.

I didn’t wait.

---

The council room was on the ground floor. Stone walls. Long table. Ironwood wolves on one side. Moonstone wolves on the other.

And at the head of the Moonstone side: Kade.

He looked worse than I remembered. Dark circles. Jaw tight. Like he hadn’t slept in days.

Good.

Damian was at the head of the table. Calm. In control. Suit jacket off. Sleeves rolled up. The scars on his forearms on full display.

A warning.

I stopped in the doorway.

All eyes turned to me.

Kade’s did last.

When they did, he went still. Like he’d been punched.

"Aria," he said.

"Alpha Kade," I replied. Formal. Cold. "To what do we owe this visit?"

Damian gestured to an empty chair beside him. "Miss Winters. Join us."

I did.

The second I sat, I could feel Kade staring. Burning a hole through the side of my head.

"Let’s get to business," Damian said. "You said this was about pack borders."

"It is," Kade said, but his eyes never left me. "And about family matters."

Damian leaned back. "Family matters are discussed between Alphas. Not in open council."

"This involves my mate and my son."

I laughed. Once. Sharp.

"Your mate?" I said. "Which one? The one you crowned yesterday, or the one you threw away?"

Someone in the back choked.

Kade’s jaw ticked. "Aria. Please. Can we talk? Alone?"

"No," Damian said before I could answer. "Anything you have to say to Miss Winters, you say here. With me present."

Kade looked at him. Really looked at him. "This is between me and her."

"No," Damian said. "It’s between an Alpha and a guest in my pack. And in my pack, we don’t ambush women."

The tension in the room could have cut glass.

I broke it. "What do you want, Kade?"

He exhaled. Ran a hand through his hair. "I want to talk. About Eli. About what happened. About—"

"You mean you want to take him back to Moonstone," I finished. "To the new Luna. To the house I built."

"To his home," Kade said.

"His home is with me," I said. "Where he’s safe. Where he’s wanted."

"He’s my son too."

"Biology doesn’t make you a father," I said. "Actions do. And your actions said you chose someone else."

Kade flinched. Like I’d hit him.

"That wasn’t— the council forced—"

"I don’t care," I cut him off. "The result is the same. You made your choice. Now live with it."

Silence.

Damian spoke into it. "Miss Winters has made her position clear. She and the boy are under Ironwood protection. They’re not going anywhere."

Kade looked at him. "You can’t keep her."

"I’m not keeping her," Damian said. "She chose to stay."

"She’s confused. She’s hurt. She doesn’t know what she’s doing."

"I know exactly what I’m doing," I said. "For the first time in 5 years."

Kade stood. "Then come home. Please. We can fix this. The council will understand. We can annul—"

"Annul what?" I asked. "The mating? Too late. The marriage? We were never married. The love? You killed that yourself."

He sat back down. Hard.

"Aria..."

"Don’t," I said. "Don’t say my name like you still have the right to."

Damian cleared his throat. "If that’s all, then this meeting is over. As for pack borders, my Beta will send you the new maps. Nothing has changed."

"It has changed," Kade said, still looking at me. "Everything has changed."

"Then deal with it," Damian said. "Council dismissed."

Ironwood wolves stood first. Moonstone followed.

Kade was the last to move.

He walked around the table to me. Stopped 3 feet away. Close enough that I could smell him.

"Aria," he said softly. So only I could hear. "I’m sorry. I was wrong. I’ve been wrong about everything. Please. Come home."

I looked up at him. The man I loved. The man who destroyed me.

"No," I said. "I’m already home."

And I walked out.

---

My hands shook once I was out of the room.

Adrenaline. Rage. Grief.

I made it to the infirmary before I fell apart.

Claire found me 10 minutes later, sitting on the floor, back against the wall.

"Hey," she said softly. "You okay?"

"No," I said. "But I will be."

She sat beside me. "He looked like hell."

"He does that."

"Did he hurt you?"

"No. He hurt me 3 days ago. Today he just reminded me why I left."

Claire nodded. "Alpha Damian is looking for you."

"Of course he is."

---

He was in his office. Door open. Waiting.

"Come in," he said when he saw me.

I did.

"Sit."

I sat.

"You did good," he said.

"I did what I had to."

"You stood your ground. Most people break in that room."

"I’m not most people."

"No," he agreed. "You’re not."

He slid a file across the desk. "Rhett sent this. Said you asked for it."

I opened it. The contracts. The proof.

"Why did you lie to him?" I asked. "About me being here?"

"Because I don’t trust him," Damian said. "And because I think you needed time."

"Time for what?"

"To decide what you want."

"I want to be left alone."

"That’s not what you said 5 minutes ago."

I looked at him. "What did I say?"

"You said you were home."

My chest tightened. "This isn’t home. This is temporary."

"Is it?" Damian stood and walked to the window. "You’ve been here 4 days and you’ve already treated 20 wolves. You’ve earned the respect of my staff. Eli likes it here."

"Eli likes anywhere with food and a bed."

"And you?"

"What about me?"

"Do you like it here?"

I didn’t answer.

Damian turned back to me. "Kade’s not going to give up. He’ll be back. With lawyers. With the council. With whatever he can use to get you back."

"I know."

"Do you want me to fight him?"

The question caught me off guard. "What?"

"If it comes to it. If he tries to take you or Eli by force. Do you want me to stop him?"

I thought about it. About Moonstone. About the last 5 years. About the woman I used to be.

"Yes," I said. "I want you to stop him."

Damian nodded. "Then consider it done."

He came around the desk and stopped in front of me. Close. Too close.

"Aria," he said. "I’m not going to lie to you. I have my own reasons for wanting you here. Ironwood needs a healer. And I..." He paused. "I respect you. The way you handled that. The way you’re handling everything."

"Don’t," I said. "Don’t make this complicated."

"I’m not," he said. "I’m just stating facts. You’re strong. You’re capable. And you deserve better than what he gave you."

I stood. "I need to go check on Eli."

"Of course."

At the door, I stopped. "Thank you. For what you did in there."

"You don’t have to thank me," he said. "It’s my job to protect my pack."

"I’m not your pack. Not yet."

"No," he agreed. "But you could be."

I left before he could say anything else.

---

That night, I couldn’t sleep.

Eli was fine. Asleep in his bed. Safe.

I was the one who wasn’t okay.

My phone buzzed. Unknown number again.

*Kade: I’m staying at the hotel in town. For as long as it takes. Please. Just talk to me.*

I deleted it.

Then another.

*Kade: He doesn’t love you. He wants to use you. I know you. I know what you need.*

Delete.

*Kade: I’ll fix this. I swear. Just give me a chance.*

I blocked the number. Again.

But he’d just get another.

The next morning, I was in the infirmary early.

By 9 AM, Damian was there.

No injuries this time.

"Walk with me," he said.

"Where?"

"The lake."

It was cold outside. We walked in silence for 10 minutes.

Finally, he spoke. "He’s leaving today."

"What?"

"Kade. His entourage. They’re packing up now."

"Why?"

"Because I told him if he didn’t leave by noon, I’d have my wolves escort him out."

"You did that for me."

"I did that for Ironwood," he said. "We don’t tolerate threats."

"Was it a threat?"

"Wasn’t it?"

I stopped walking. "Damian. Why are you doing this? Really?"

He stopped too. Looked at me. "Because you remind me of me 10 years ago. Angry. Hurt. But not broken. And because..." He hesitated. "Because I think you could be good for this pack. And I think this pack could be good for you."

"And that’s it?"

"That’s it."

"Liar," I said softly.

His mouth quirked. "Maybe."

We kept walking.

At the lake, he picked up a rock and skipped it.

"My mate died 6 years ago," he said suddenly.

I didn’t know what to say. "I’m sorry."

"Don’t be. It was a long time ago. But I remember what it’s like. To have someone take something from you and call it love."

I looked at him. Really looked at him. The scars. The gray eyes. The weight he carried.

"We’re not the same," I said.

"No," he agreed. "You’re stronger."

I almost laughed. "You don’t know me."

"I know enough," he said. "I know you walked out of a room full of wolves and didn’t cry. I know you came here with nothing but your son and started over. I know you’re the kind of woman who survives."

The wind blew through the trees.

"Damian," I said. "I’m not ready for... anything."

"I know," he said. "I’m not asking you to be."

"Then what are you asking?"

"Nothing," he said. "Just walking."

We walked back in silence.

At the pack house, he stopped me. "Dinner tonight. 7 PM. Same table."

"Do I have a choice?"

"No," he said, and smiled. "But I think you’ll come anyway."

He was right.

I did.

---

7 PM.

The dining hall was full again. But this time, the whispers were different.

"That’s her." "The one from Moonstone." "Alpha’s been spending a lot of time with her."

I ignored them. Sat beside Damian. Eli on my other side.

Halfway through dinner, a messenger came in.

Whispered in Damian’s ear.

Damian’s expression didn’t change. But his hand tightened on his glass.

"What?" I asked quietly.

"Kade sent a letter," Damian said. "To the council. Official request for mediation. To determine custody of Eli."

The room went quiet.

"And?" I asked.

"And we’ll fight it," Damian said. "But Aria... this is going to get ugly."

"I know," I said. "Let it."

Because the woman who was scared of ugly was gone.

In her place was someone else.

Someone with teeth.

Someone ready to fight.

---

*End Chapter 3*