Claimed By Vengeance

Chapter Three

Confused was an understatement. My tongue remained stuck to the roof of my mouth as I watch the old lady disappear out of the living area.

What just happened?

I shook my head and headed to the kitchen. I grabbed an apple and bit into it but paused halfway when I heard my wolf whine.

Mate. She cried out.

“Now’s not the time”, I said to myself, thankful to be alone in the kitchen. My wolf had become really restless as the days passed, especially after my encounter with Moonstone. She was never like this, not even around Kol.

As if orchestrated by the universe, Kol walked in looking exhausted. He put up a finger before I even opened my mouth to speak. “Let me have a glass of water first, the journey was long.”

“Okay”, I laughed. “I was only going to ask how you were doing.”

“Well”, he smiled at gulping down an entire glass of water. “I’m in dire need of a bath and famished but aside that, I’d say the mission was successful.”

“Tell me about the latter so you can hurry to your wife”, I teased.

He narrowed his eyes at me playfully, “Mason as we assumed has planned a war. Good news is, he plans to strike on a full moon when his wolf will be strongest but we also know that would also be an advantage to you.”

I nodded along. If Mason thought attacking on a full moon would be disadvantageous to me then he was totally wrong. I’d killed thousands at a go during full moons.

“What else, Kol? Tell me everything”

Kol was silent for a beat and then he said, “If he wins the war, he plans to enslave every single member of this pack.”

My expression hardened at the revelation; the welfare of the people was on my head now.

“When exactly does he plan to attack?”

“The next full moon.”

Shit. That wasn’t enough time. Judging by Kol’s expression he knew that too.

“Don’t fret, Phoenix. We can borrow one of your father’s war strategies,” Kol assured me. “You should find one in the basement of his library. Let me know what you come up with.”

“I will”, I responded absent mindedly, already thinking of a thousand and one ways to avoid defeat.

“Phoenix”, Kol called, startling me. He stood in the doorway. “We cannot lose this war. You’re capable of pulling us through this.”

Kol’s words stayed with me even after he had left. There was no backing out now, I thought to myself walking out of the kitchen and up towards the library.

“You do not belong here, Luna.”

The crazy lady’s voice echoed throughout the library. My head instantly snapped back to see if someone was behind me or my mind was playing games with me. It was the latter. It definitely had to be.

The shelves were full of ancient war strategies but when my eyes fell on the one with the symbol of the phoenix on it, an evil smile spread across my face.

“You are trespassing into forbidden territory, Moonstone”, my voice rang loud and clear. I was at the frontline, leading my men at the warfront. Initially, Kol had suggested we ambushed them but I wanted to play fair. If Moonstone was surprised, he did well by not showing it.

“All this will end if you had over your title to me, Phoenix”, Moonstone smirked. I wasn’t surprised he had done a little digging about me. “No one has to get hurt.”

“I would rather die than chose defeat, you murderer!”

This time I could tell he was a taken aback by my accusation. “You heard me right Moonstone. You killed my father and his beta, your life must be exchanged to atone for your sins.”

“Enough talking, Phoenix”, Kol said from behind. “Let’s strike them while we still can.”

I nodded and to Moonstone I said, “Enough talking, show me what you’ve got, Alpha Moonstone. Charge!”

Sparks flew across the dark night sky, as swords clashed against each other. Grunts and war cries filled the atmosphere.

“Uphold the dignity of the Moonstone Pack!”, Mason Moonstone roared slicing the skin of some of my men with his sword. “Spare no one! They all must die!”

The moon became my both an ally and an enemy, her radiance caused a significant increase in my strength yet it made Mason even stronger.

Kol was doing a great job taking down the defense from the rear but Mason still charged on aggressively. His sword tore through my men adeptly till he appeared before me.

“We meet again, Phoenix? Any last words before you die?”, his smile was pure evil.

Mate. My wolf cried, scratching at the surface. Not now, I said to her in my head.

Mason lowered his sword, narrowing his eyes at me. “This cannot be. You are my mate.”

“Shut up, Moonstone”, I charged at him. He missed my sword by the hair and cursed.

“It is you”, Mason lunged and grabbed me in one swift move. He pinned me to the tree. “There’s no denying , Phoenix. I see it in your eyes. My wolf wants you.”

For some reason, his words calmed the storm raging within me. It soothed my wolf so much I didn’t put up any resistance. I could see my men dying from where he had pinned me in the shadows, but the pull of the mate bond was too strong.

“You’re the enemy; I have to kill you”, he leaned closer to inhale my scent. “But your presence calms my wolf’s restlessness.”

“Let go of me, Moonstone”, I managed to let out. He let go of me instantly and did what I least expected him to.

He shifted into his wolf and disappeared into the darkness. Stupid mate bond. My wolf couldn’t resist him, so with one last glance at the battlefield I let her take control.

And went searching for my mate.