The Alpha King's Contracted Luna by Nelson Claudia

Chapter 238

-Ava’s POV

Dylan was a bastard.

I knew it the moment I felt the mating bond with him, and I still don’t understand how the hell that even happened. Even without my wolf, I had been sure it was him. I knew he was a bastard on the day of our mating ceremony, and every single day since then, he has done nothing but prove it over and over again.

And today?

Today, he outdid himself.

I called him. I hadn’t even gotten a single word out before he cut me off with a voice as cold as death itself, “You found your way to hell. Stay there.”

Then he hung up.

Stupid, stupid Dylan.

Well, so much for trying to rat Crystal out and hoping Dylan would have enough sense left to pull her out of whatever mess she was tangled in. He was a lost cause.

“So, I take it that didn’t go well,” Isabella muttered, still scrolling through her phone, her expression blank.

I huffed, shoving my own phone into my pocket. “He’s an idiot. And he still remains one.”

The gates ahead creaked open, and our car rolled forward smoothly. The estate was quiet, too quiet for my liking. I was the first to step out the moment we came to a stop, inhaling deeply. The air was thick, humid, like the sky was seconds away from splitting open with a storm.

Rickon, my father, and Maria would be arriving soon. Grayson and my mother–if they hadn’t killed each other yet–were supposed to be meeting us back here after tracking down the High Priestess. Once everyone was together, we’d finally sit down and discuss… everything.

Ricardo had suggested a feast for the occasion.

A feast.

The thought of it had struck me as odd when he first mentioned it, but now… now it felt like something else. A last meal before the battlefield.

A final send–off.

I exhaled sharply and started walking toward the house. My mind was already racing through everything we had to handle, every piece of the puzzle that still wasn’t fitting-

Then it hit me.

A sudden, sharp, blinding pain ripped through my body, white–hot and searing. My knees buckled. A cry tore from my throat before I could stop it and the world tilted but before I could fall, a hand grabbed my arm.

“Lilian!” Isabella’s voice was sharp, panicked. “What the hell–are you okay?”

I could barely hear her.

The pain—it wasn’t normal. It wasn’t just pain. It was something else. It burned, not on my skin, not in my bones, but inside

1/5

Chapter 238

me, coiling through every nerve like fire, like my own body was turning against me.

I sucked in a sharp breath, shaking my head, “I’m fine.” I forced out. “I don’t know what just happened”

Liar.

what this was, but

.

step forward, willing myself to ignore it, to shake it

84%

just stumble. I fell. My knees slammed into the pavement, and the pain flared so violently that my vision blurred. My entire body convulsed, every muscle tightening, locking, as if something was

beside me. “Lilian–what the hell is

was suffocating, like I was being crushed from

face, her grip firm, forcing me to focus on her. Her eyes, usually unreadable, were wide with panic. “What’s happening to you?”

tried to speak, but the words wouldn’t come. My fingers dug into the pavement, my breath coming in short,

happening to

didn’t know what, but I could feel it–something inside

at the security team.

hands reaching for their weapons. That was when the

out.

the air

Then another.

And another.

I was still

“What the fuck-”

past the haze, past the way the world tilted around me and

They were slaughtering the men Grayson had hired to protect me. What the hell was seriously happening right

near me, blood pooling across

voice

tried. I

But the pain–fuck.

her strength, for something to push

2/5

Feb

Chapter 238

was happening

My cars were ringing, my body still wracked with the unbearable

low, eyes darting around. “Why the hell are Ricardo’s men shooting at Grayson’s guards?!”

had no answer.

of this made sense. If Ricardo’s men were the ones attacking, shouldn’t we be trying to get back to his house instead of running straight into the crossfire? But before I could say it, another body dropped near us with a sickening thud, and the hot, metallic scent of blood

face. “We need to move. Now.”

to push through the agony still gripping me. “If Ricardo’s

a fucking war zone happening right now, and you want to waltz over to

round of shots rang out, closer this time. She was right. I wasn’t thinking clearly. The pain

area. “Inside is safer than standing out here waiting to get

of the house. My legs were unsteady,

bodies hitting the ground. One of Grayson’s guards was still standing. returning fire,

slamming them shut behind us. She locked it immediately before turning to me, breathing hard. “Okay, what

my chest rising

“Bullshit.”

“Isabella-”

dropped like someone yanked the fucking floor out from under you, you looked like you were about to

་་