The Alpha King's Contracted Luna by Nelson Claudia

Chapter 43

-Grayson’s POV-

I saw red.

Everything blurred together as my rage took over. Two men fell lifeless before me, meant to guard the operation but th were nothing more than obstacles in my way. Their blood splattered across the floor, yet it did nothing to quench the a boiling in my veins.

The red burned brighter when I walked in and saw her. Ava. Tied to a chair, unharmed–physically, at least–but my we didn’t care. He wanted blood. And not just theirs.

Ricardo.

Even with those men dead and the fool that had tried to sell her off dead, even with Ava safe in a hotel room right now, 1 wolf clawed at me, unsatisfied. My body screamed for rest, but I wouldn’t allow it. Not until Ricardo Sylvester paid. I’d already set things–in motion. He would suffer, and I’d be there to watch him bleed.

“No one touches what’s mine!

That sentence kept playing on a loop in my head. But she wasn’t mine. Not really. Ava Pierce wasn’t mine.

The night had fallen, casting a dim glow across the city. I stood by the window, staring at nothing, trying to calm the beas inside me. I was close to losing control, something I prided myself on keeping. But with Ava… everything felt like it was slipping.

“I’m sorry.”

Her voice cut through the silence like a whisper, but it hit me hard. My shoulders stiffened, but I didn’t turn. I didn’t want i look at her. I was mad–at myself, at her, at everything. Luca hadn’t suffered enough, not for what he had done. Not for wh he would’ve done if I hadn’t been there.

Control

1 lived for control, thrived on it. But it was slipping, evading me more and more each day. Especially around her.

“I was stupid,” she continued, her voice small, barely above a whisper. “I was really stupid. I shouldn’t have followed a complete stranger. I wasn’t thinking… I just wanted a little air of freedom”

Her words dug into me, twisting the knife in my gut. I finally tumed my head, my eyes locking onto hers. The anger was

there, simmering just beneath the surface, and I made sure she could see it. She had her knees pulled up to her chest, those eyes of hers shifting between colors like they always did when she was anxious or scared.

Good.

I needed her to feel the weight of her mistake. I needed her to understand the gravity of what had almost happened.

She sighed, breaking the silence as she pushed herself off the bed. “I want to take a shower. Please is there anything for me

to wear?”

“Do you know what would’ve happened I hadn’t found you in time?” My voice

I wasn’t done.

dead. Or sold off to a man named Ricardo Sylvester, she whispered,

Chapter 43

clenched my

and the weight of what could have happened still hung

The

the silence like a blade. “There are men out there- dangerous men. Worse than you can imagine. You were lucky today. If I hadn’t found you, Ricardo would’ve had you trust me when I say, you don’t want to know what he does to the women he

but I didn’t stop. I

today. If you’re going to be my wife, Ava, it makes you a target. Everyone who wants to get t will go through you. You think you can handle that?” I didn’t wait for her to answer. “You can’t.

smarter.”

not saying a word. Just… accepting it. She knew she’d made a mistake. I could see the regret written a her face, but I wasn’t going to

sighed. “You can go shower. There’ll be clothes waiting for

come out.”

didn’t say anything, just nodded and walked towards the bathroom. The door clicked shut behind her, and I

sent up. I wanted her comfortable, at least. As I wai for a response, I ordered food–something decent, and several kinds of

life was tied to mine in a way she probably didn’t even fully understand yet. But that didn’t change

w she was now a part of. She thought she wanted freedom, but what she didn’t realize was that

touches what’s

that included her–whether she realized it or

there, staring out the window once again, trying to ignore the nagging feeling in my chest. She wasn’t supposed to matter this much. I

But I did.

made everything more dangerous–for both

padded through the room, a slight hesitation in her movement when she noticed the food already on display. Her gaze flickered over the table, then to me before she moved again, walking over to the clothes I’d laic out for her. She muttered a quick “thanks” under her breath before disappearing back

to say. I turned to the platter and served myself, sitting down as I cut into the food. The momentary comfort of eating settled over me, but my mind was elsewhere, churning,

The way I tore his hand off, the sound of his screams a part of me expected her to see

hadn’t. Not yet,

to the bed, curling her body into the blankets

watched her, the silence stretching

Dec

Chapter 43

aren’t going to eat?” I asked, my voice breaking through the