The Alpha King's Contracted Luna by Nelson Claudia

Chapter 200

Chapter 200

-Grayson’s POV-

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A tiny smile tugged at my lips as Elaine exaggerated her movements, trying to mimic some Disney princess I couldn’t even guess. She raised her hand dramatically, twirling in place and then jumped a little, shaking her head in mock frustration.

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“Come on, jumping? Frogs? Tiana,” she laughed, collapsing onto the floor opposite me. Her hair stuck to her damp forehead, her cheeks flushed from the exertion, but there was a brightness in her expression that somehow managed to keep me grounded. “You know what? I think you’re the problem. You suck at this game, Grayson. And don’t think I haven’t noticed- you refuse to take a turn.”

I didn’t reply, but the corners of my mouth twitched again. This was… easier. Sitting here with her, distracting ourselves. How long had we been doing this? Hours? Days? I didn’t know anymore. And for the first time, I didn’t care. With something else to focus on, I’d stopped counting the minutes and the ways this could end.

Elaine shifted, lying back down on the cold floor. The sweat on her skin made her slide slightly as she stretched out. I glanced at her, feeling a faint pang of guilt. We’d been trying–I had been trying–to find a way out of here. But without my wolf and without hers, we were essentially powerless. The drugs that had kept us immobile had worn off, but even with her movement restored, her connection to her wolf was still gone. We were hurt, vulnerable, and out of options.

I’d tried everything. Every damn thing. But no amount of clawing at the vault door or searching for weak spots in the walls had made a difference. Eventually, I had to accept the harsh truth: there was nothing I could do. Elaine had suggested I stop stressing and wasting energy. She’d said if this was how it ended, we might as well make the time we had left bearable.

“Like when we were kids,” she’d added with a small smile. “You remember? The imitation game.”

And I’d agreed. Because acceptance, no matter how daunting, felt lighter than the crushing weight of failure.

Elaine sighed, breaking the silence. “You know what would be epic?” She turned her head to look at me, her brown eyes bright with that spark of mischief I had forgotten she used to carry. “One of us realizing we have, like, superpowers. You know, just out of nowhere and we can bend metal.”

I frowned at her. “What?”

She rolled her eyes and sat up. “Oh, right. I forgot you became you and stopped watching cartoons. Anyway, there’s this series where people can bend the four elements–water, earth, fire, air.”

“So where does metal bending come from?”

extension thing! Like waterbenders can blood–bend, firebenders can control lightning, and airbenders can fly. But earthbenders? They’re the coolest. They can control sand, rocks, metal… even lava. There’s this

replaced with something softer, more uncertain. “What?”

I’ve seen you like this, I said before I could stop myself. The words hung in the air between us, heavy with meaning I wasn’t sure she’d

could say more, a sharp hiss filled the room. Gas. Again. Elaine sighed

of it in each time,” she muttered, brushing her hair out of her face. “Goddess, I still

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Chapter 200

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fell for

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me?” I waited until she looked at me, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. “If anyone’s to blame, it’s me. made bad choices, Elaine. For fifteen years, I lost sight of everything I used to care about. I became something I hate.” My voice

a moment before smiling again, that same sad smile that made my

that. My gaze drifted to the vault door, still locked, still impenetrable. I had no idea how to get us out of here. My eyes fell to the jacket I’d discarded

An idea.

fabric. Maybe… maybe I could

Elaine asked, watching me

something,” I muttered, not looking at her as I climbed onto a nearby crate to reach

her eyes and peeled off her shirt, leaving her in a sports bra. She tossed the shirt toward me. “Here. Use this

aware of her bare shoulders and the sweat glistening on her skin. I turned my head quickly, focusing on the vent.

be such a prude,” she said, laughing lightly. “It’s

I knew she was grown but it all just felt really weird. “I am focused,” I muttered, shoving the jacket into the vent opening and adjusting it to block the flow of gas. Elaine handed me her shirt, and I added it to the makeshift barrier. It wasn’t perfect, but the hissing sound dulled slightly.

back on the floor, brushing her hair out of her face. “So… now what?” she asked, her voice edged with tired humor.

barrier I’d created over

no real joy in it then she glanced toward the vault door, her smile fading

lie, to give her some sliver of hope, but I couldn’t.

deeper than I thought it would. I looked away, swallowing the bitter thought that crept in uninvited. She wouldve come for me. If I hadn’t pushed her

Elaine’s shirt–my last, desperate attempt to block the vent–were blasted out with a violent force. The fabric crumpled to the floor, useless. Elaine’s eyes widened, and she scrambled back against the wall. “What’s happening?”

pouring into the room, far more than before. The hissing grew louder, suffocating, and the acrid smell burned my nose and throat. Elaine coughed, pressing the sleeve of her arm against her face