The Alpha King's Contracted Luna by Nelson Claudia

Chapter 73

-Grayson'’s POV-

Ava was right.

One alpha dying might have been an unfortunate accident. Twould have been a grim coincidence. But three..

three was unmistakably a pattern, and not just any pattern, but one that poured toward an alarming threat.

Alphas were being hunted, their hearts ripped out, a grotesque signature that felt like a declaration of war

against our kind. And if more alphas fell, the entire structure of wolf society would crumble into chaos. A king, it

was my duty to keep order-a responsibility | took reluctantly but seriously.

For the last twenty minutes. I'd been on the phone with Daniel, one of the alphas | tolerated more than most,

attempting calm his nerves. He was already on edge, demanding assurances | couldn't honestly give, asking if |

would swear on my life that he was my top priority. When he pressedfor a promise | simply hung up. There

was no point in feeding his paranoia. His life was in his hands, as it always had been.

| let out a weary sigh, glancing up at the house, wondering if I'd finally get a moment of quiet when my phone

buzzed again. The irritation was immediate, but | answered. “Rickon,” | said flatly.

He didn’t wait. “Three alphas are dead,” he snapped.

“I'm aware,” | replied, my tone clipped.

“I'm an alpha too, Grayson.”

I rolled my eyes, barely containing my frustration. “Are you calling just to state the obvious

“No, I'm calling because | prefer staying alive, and if someone’s targeting alphas, we need to handle this.

Together”

1 raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. “We? Just because we're aligned doesn’t mean | have to do anything with

you, Rickon. | barely tolerate you as it is.”

“Under normal circumstances, I'd pretend that didn’t sting, but there's no tfor sarcasm. This is serious.”

“I'll handle it,” | said, my patience fraying. “And if | decide | need an alpha’s help, | can assure you it won't be

yours. You've never been capable of taking anything seriously.”

He hesitated, then his voice softened. “I know you're about to hang up, but just listen. I've grown a lot these past

few days. Maybe you haven't heard, but | found my mate.”

“I was there,” | deadpanned, unimpressed.

“I know, | just thought a reminder would make things more sentimental. You know, we're basically family now. “I

could hear the grin in his voice. He must've sensed | was about to end the call again, so he quickly added, “But |

am serious. Grayson. | lead a pack-live years without collapse. I'm trying to prove myself worthy of my mate, to

think beyond just myself. Lethelp,”

| sighed, already regretting what | was about to say. “Fine. I'm dealing with something at the moment, but I'll

send you the details later. Don’t makeregret it.”

1

Without waiting for his response, | ended the call and pushed open the front door. The house was unusually

quiet. Maria and Ava were nowhere to be found, though Ava’s faint scent lingered outside. | followed it, my steps

quickening when | caught sight of her lying unconscious on the ground, encircled by glowing symbols Maria knelt

outside the circle, whispering a low chant. | knew Maria well enough to understand that when she set up a ritual

like this, it was no trivial

matter.

“What the hell are you doing?” My voice was cold, slicing through the silence.

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Chapter 73

Maria's head snapped up, her expression uneasy as | closed the distance. “Grayson, | can explain.”

“Explain quickly. What is this spell?”

She straightened, a nervous edge to her voice, “I sent her into her subconscious, to help her connect with her

wolf. It’s it's what the wolf suggested the last tit surfaced”

“You did this without consulting me?” My voice dropped dangerously low.

“Because | knew you'd say no,” she replied defensively. “But Avayanted this. She needed answers.”

“And | would have said no for a reason,” | bit out, stepping closer to the circle. “This ends now.”

I moved toward Ava, but Maria's voice sharpened, “It's already in motion, Grayson. If you interfere now, you

could do serious damage to her.”

1 froze, studying her face. There was a flicker of something there-fear, maybe even guilt. “What did you do,

Maria? What aren’t you telling me?”

“Okay, don’t get mad-“.

“I'm already mad,” | interrupted, my tone seething. “What did you do?”

She swallowed, her voice barely a whisper. “To send her in, | had to put her in a state close to death. She has to

find her wolf before the spell wears off. If she doesn’t.”

The fury surged inside me. “You knew the risk, and yet you did it anyway?”

A sudden, strangled murmur escaped from Ava’s lips, her body jerking within the circle. | watched as she began

to shake violently, her form convulsing. | turned to Maria, my gaze deadly. “End the spell. Now.”

Fear widened her eyes. “I can’t. My chants are the only thing keeping her calm. | know you want to killright

now, and | deserve it, but please lethelp her through this.

Not waiting for my response, Maria knelt back down, resuming her chant, her voice a soft, steady rhythm. A faint

pulse of energy rippled through the air, passing over me, and Ava’s body gradually stilled.

He

I let out a breath | hadn't realized I'd been holding, relief floodingas I looked back at Maria. My voice was

hard, cold, the threat unmistakable. “If anything happens to her, Maria, | don’t care how long we've known each

other. There will be consequences. Regardless of who you are.”

Maria's eyes widened slightly, the flicker of fear there replaced quickly with something else-something that

looked like realization. Her gaze softened as she whispered, “You're in love with her, aren't you?”

The accusation strucklike a slap. “What?”

She didn’t back down, her voice gaining confidence. “I've only seen that look on your face-once before. The way

you looked just now... It was the sas when you talked about your mother, the only person you ever truly

loved.”

“That's absurd.” | scoffed, the denial sharper than | intended. “I not in love with anyone, and you'd do well to

keep that kind of talk to yourself. Focus on the spell, Maria. Bring her back You had no right to send her in there

to begin with.”

| turned to leave, to put sdistance between myself and the surge of emotions threatening to betray me.

Love? Me? The thought was ridiculous. Love was a weakness | couldn’t afford, a Lability. My life was built on

power, control-emotions only served to unravel that. Maria didn’t know what she was talking about.

But just as | was about to walk away, Ava’s body jerked violently within the circle, her face contorting in agony.

Blood

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Chapter 73

trickled down her cheek, stack against her pale skin. My heart lurched, a feeling | hadn’t known since... since her.

Since | stared at my mother on the other side of that door and there was nothing I could do to save her.

“What's happening?” My voice was strained, colder than ice, but the panic seeped through regardless.

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Maria’s own fear was visible now. She quickly resumed chanting her voice trembling. “I-I don’t know. The

calming spell... it’s not working. I've never seen this before.”

Ava began to mumble incoherently, her words swallowed by the intensity of her shaking. And then, suddenly, a

bright light crupted from the ground beneath her, so powerful it nearly pushedback. Maria shielded herself

with a spell, but | held my ground, bracing myself as the dust and light swirled arounds, fading slowly into a

chilling silence.

“No, no, no.” Maria's voice was shaking now, her face drained of color. She looked down at the candles

surrounding the circle, their flames stuffed out. Her hands shook as she clutched her chest. “The candles

shouldn't have gone out yet.. we were supposed to have more time.”

| forced myself to stay calm, even though dread was clawing its way through my chest. “Maria,” | said, barely

recognizing my own voice. “What happens when the candles go out?”

Her gaze met mine, her eyes/

“It means the spell has ended. She’s she’s out of time.”

| felt my stomach drop. | turned to Ava, forcing myself to take slow, steady steps toward her. The sight of her still

body brought back a memory I'd tried to bury-a memory of another lifeless figure, of a boy kneeling beside his

mother. whispering for her to wake up. | knelt down, my hand hovering just above her, afraid to touch, afraid of

what | might feel- or what | might not feel.

It was as if I'd been pulled back in time, to that devastating moment when everything I'd loved had been torn

away. | pressed my fingers to Ava’s neck, searching for a pulse, something, anything.

The silence was deafening, an emptiness that swallowed the air around me. | leaned down, my voice barely

above a whisper, the swords I'd spoken years ago. “I can’t hear a heartbeat.”

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