Rise Of The Fallen Luna

Chapter 9

••• Reinald’s POV •••

“s**t,” I muttered as her body swayed.

She collapsed so fast, I barely had time to move—but I did. I caught her just before she hit the cold marble floor, cradling her against my chest.

“Luna!” Annisa’s voice cracked as she dropped to her knees beside us, tears already falling. “Luna!”

Kyle crouched next to me, his hands quick and steady, checking her pulse and breathing. “She’s alright,” he said, relief softening the sharp edge of his voice. “She just fainted from shock.”

I didn’t even realize I’d been holding my breath until it left me in a shudder.

Fuck. I should’ve stopped her from coming here. I should’ve known this would happen.

My grip on her tightened. She felt far too light in my arms, too pale, too still.

“We need to get her out of here,” I growled. “Now. She shouldn’t be in this place. Not after what happened here.”

The word ‘cursed’ stuck on the tip of my tongue. I didn’t want to call her home that—but by the Goddess, seeing her like this made it hard not to.

I rose to my feet, still holding her carefully, but Kyle stepped in my way.

What the f**k?

“Move,” I growled, my voice low and rough.

He didn’t budge. Instead, he stood even taller, his stance squared and calm. “She told me through the mindlink—while you were on the way here—not to stop her. Told me not to interfere, no matter what happened. She said she needed to face this place.”

I froze. “She told you that?”

He nodded solemnly. “She said… she has to be strong. That this pack has to become her home again. And if she runs from it now, she won’t be able to live here in a few days.”

His words sank in like a cold slap. My grip on her tightened just a fraction more.

Every instinct in me screamed to carry her out of this cursed house, to take her as far away from the shadows that haunted these halls as I could. But maybe… maybe that wasn’t what she needed.

Maybe what she needed wasn’t someone to protect her from the fire—but someone who would hold her hand while she walked through it.

I gritted my teeth. “So what the hell do we do now? We’re not leaving her here on the floor until she wakes up.”

Annisa, still hiccuping, spoke through her tears. “We could… take her to her old room. Let her rest there. It’s quiet and safe.”

Her room…

Of course. I hadn’t thought about it. I rarely came here during our childhood—most of our time was spent in my pack, where she blended in like she belonged.

I nodded sharply. “Lead the way.”

Annisa turned toward the grand staircase, and I followed her with Leicia still unconscious in my arms. Her body was warm but felt too light. My heart clenched at the sight of her pale face, her lashes resting softly against her cheeks. The woman who once stood so tall—confident, commanding—now looked breakable.

And yet… even now, her scent was unmistakably her. A bit richer than I remembered, a little sharper maybe, but it still reached deep into my chest, unsettling everything I thought I’d buried.

I remembered visiting Kathreena earlier today, trying to gather whatever scraps of Leicia’s life I could. She had been vague—only said that Leicia performed her duties as the Whitemaw Tails Pack’s Luna well.

Annisa stopped in front of a double door and opened them quietly. The room inside made me pause.

It was simple—but undeniable hers. There were no cosmetics or glittering gowns thrown around like in most she-wolves’ rooms. Instead, shelves lined with thick books filled the space, many of them similar to the tactical and leadership volumes I’d seen in her father’s office.

Even asleep, she was still her father’s daughter.

I walked in slowly and laid her down on the bed with care. Annisa moved in instantly, fussing over her, gently covering her with a light blanket, brushing hair away from her face like she was the most precious thing in the world.

She was.

I took a step back, reluctant, but ready to stay by her side until she woke.

Then Kyle’s voice broke the silence. “Alpha Prince, if I might talk to you outside?”

I hesitated.

I didn’t want to leave her. I wanted to be here when her eyes opened. To be the first face she saw. But Annisa was there, holding her hand.

And Kyle’s face… it wasn’t calm anymore. Something was bothering him.

I gave him a short nod.

He turned to Aniisa and said, “There’s a bottle of water in my backpack. Give it to her when she wakes up, alright?”

Annisa nodded without looking away from her Luna.

We stepped into the hallway, and Kyle shut the door behind us with a soft click.

I turned to face him, narrowing my eyes. “Is she really okay?”

My voice came out rougher than I meant it to.

His gaze snapped back to focus as if my words had yanked him from some darker place. “Yes. She’s stable. I just… I need to tell you what happened that day and maybe a way to help her for now.”

Relief washed over me—but it was short-lived.

“I was going to ask you the same thing,” I muttered. “What actually happened that day when she… found them? Everyone keeps saying you were the one who brought her out, but no one knows the details.”

Kyle let out a long, ragged breath. His eyes lost focus again, staring past me at nothing in particular.

“I was in the Blue Moon Pack, treating the heir after a training accident,” he said quietly. “Annisa mindlinked me. She said… everyone was dead. I didn’t believe her at first. I was too focused on treating my patient. But when I tried to reach any of the pack members, I realized—all the links had snapped. Broken.”

He paused, jaw clenching. “I rushed over. But the scene—s**t, Alpha Prince, it was a m******e. Not just bodies. It was the way they were arranged. Cold. Deliberate. And in the corner of the main hall…”

His voice faltered.

He looked at me.

“I saw Leicia. She was cradling her mother’s head in her arms. Screaming like her soul had been ripped out. Annisa was sobbing beside her, begging her to let go. But Leicia didn’t hear a damn thing.”

A wave of nausea rolled through me. I could see it. Her face. Her scream. The blood.

“She shifted,” Kyle continued, his voice lower now. “Belle came out and snarled at me. Guarded the… head. Wouldn’t let anyone near. I tried to reason with her. I begged her to let go. She lunged at me. Bit through my shoulder.”

My eyes widened. “Shit.”

“I had to tranquilize her. Even then, it wasn’t easy. But I managed to get her out. Took her straight to your brother’s pack. She slept for three days straight. When she woke up, she just… stared. No words. No tears. Like the soul in her had died too.”

I ran a hand down my face. I wanted to punch a wall. Or myself.

I should’ve been there. I should’ve come back sooner. Her father, her brothers, her mother, her people—I failed them. But I wouldn’t fail her. Not this time.

“What happened after?” I asked tightly.

Kyle shrugged. “We held the funerals. And then… she returned to her Luna duties at the Whitemaw Tails Pack.”

I exhaled slowly. “Was she treated well?”

That bitter laugh again. “She was treated like dirt. Emma and Hilda used her for everything. Even had her tending to Hilda night and day, and she still got sneered at. She was their personal healer, nurse, maid, and walking wallet.”

A low growl rumbled from deep in my chest, vibrating through my bones.

Kyle ignored it. “But she endured it. Never once asked for pity. And she never cried.”

I blinked. “Never?”

He shook his head. “Not once. Not since the massacre.”

Silence stretched between us.

Goddammit! She’d been bleeding inside all this time, and I didn’t even know. I thought she was healing. I thought… she was okay. But she was just surviving.

Then Kyle said, “That might be why she fainted just now. It’s too much. It’s all buried so deep inside her that it’s turning against her.”

I swallowed hard. “How do we fix it?”

“You can’t fix it,” he said softly. “But maybe… you can help her cry. You’re the only one who can reach her like that. Not as an Alpha. Not as a Prince. But as Reinald. The person she’d known since childhood.”

I stared at the closed door.

Could I do that?

Would she even let me close enough?

But I knew the answer already.

“I’ll try,” I murmured. “I’ll do whatever it takes.”

We both turned toward the bedroom as one.

Kyle glanced at me. “She’s awake.”

I gave a single nod and stepped toward the door—this time, not as a prince. Just as the boy who used to make her laugh. I couldn’t save her family. But maybe, just maybe… I can help her save herself.