The Alpha King's Contracted Luna by Nelson Claudia

Chapter 251

Chapter 251

-Grayson’s POV-

“What the hell are you doing here?”

I said the moment I pulled away but I didn’t let go. I couldn’t let go. My grip on her wrist was tight, almost desperate, my fingers pressing into her skin as if making sure she was real. Because if I did–if I loosened my hold even a fraction–I was sure she would vanish, swallowed by the mist, taken by the wind just like I almost had been.

But Ava didn’t answer right away. She just stared at me, her wide, disbelieving eyes reflecting the swirling gray of this cursed place. Her lips parted, but no sound came out, her breath shuddering, breaking apart in a way that made something inside me tighten.

And then–her voice, barely above a whisper, yet so full of emotion it knocked the air from my lungs.

“You died.”

Her free hand pressed against her mouth like she couldn’t believe the words had actually left her. Like saying them made them real all over again.

“I know,” I wanted to say. I know I did.

But I couldn’t. Because right now, it didn’t matter. What mattered was that she was here—and she shouldn’t be.

She took a shaky step closer, her entire body trembling.

“I—” She inhaled sharply, eyes darting over my face, as if trying to memorize me, as if terrified I would disappear in the next second, “I can’t believe it is actually true. That you are actually here.

Her hands suddenly reached for me, grasping at my torn shirt, my arms–anywhere, everywhere–like she was trying to ground herself in this impossible reality. Her breaths came fast and uneven, her chest rising and falling too quickly.

“Grayson, I-” Her voice broke. “I’m so sorry.”

Her face twisted in pain, her fingers tightening in the fabric of my shirt, “This is all my fault.”

Then the dam broke.

Her body wracked with sobs as she collapsed against me, gripping me like I was the only thing keeping her upright. My arms instinctively wrapped around her, holding her close as her tears soaked into my shirt.

I clenched my jaw, pressing my chin against her hair, breathing her in.

The weight of her. The warmth.

Goddess, I had thought I would never feel this again.

I swallowed against the tightness in my throat, my own emotions clawing at me from the inside.

“Ava-”

She shook her head against me, her sobs muffled but relentless. “No, Grayson–if I had just–if I hadn’t-” She hiccupped, her fingers fisting into my shirt even tighter, “You wouldn’t have died.”

exhaled sharply, my hand coming up to cradle the back of her head.

her face wet with grief. “I should

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Chapter 251

to stop her, I

B

fingers pressing into her damp skin, “Stop it.” My voice was firm, but not unkind. “I am still here. That’s what matters

breath still shaking and then–something flickered across her face. A realization.

flew to

heavy silence fell between us, thick and suffocating and then, without me even having to say a

in a breath.

over again. “I don’t know how, but I can feel it. They’re

stomach, to where her hands clutched protectively over the tiny lives growing inside her.

My children.

warmth of her, the reality of

jaw clenching as I forced myself to snap

at her face, sniffing before looking up at me, “Grayson, what was that thing?”

said darkly. “But not just any wind.” I met her gaze. “It’s what pushes people into the

the idea of

grip tightening around my arm.

was steadier now, but I could still hear the thread

then back at the mist, where the howling wind prowled like

a plan,” I

by the wind before pushing me right into it and this time, it had taken me fighting with everything I had

on my hand

kept my eyes on the swirling mist, the endless gray stretching beyond us. The wind carried whispers–hungry, insidious, waiting. Ava’s hand was tight in mine, her knuckles white. I could still feel the warmth of her skin through my fingers, a stark

was waiting for me to explain.

while.” My voice came out low, edged with something dark. “His name

do you mean ‘been here for a while“? I thought-” She hesitated, glancing around at

my grip on her hand tightening. “The wind takes them. It drags

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FA, 7 Mar

Chapter 251

and no one fights it. No one can fight

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shivered beside me, her free hand will protectively over

charp. Because he made a dext. He doesn’t get taken because he

take other

stiffened, horror dawning in her eyes,

just like him—but in the end, he pushes them in My lips curled in disgust “That’s how he stays. The wind lets him because he feeds it var rifices others to save himself and that’s exactly what he tried to do to

wind. A twisted, unnatural link that lets him stay here.

furrowed, “How?”