The Luna Trials by Marissa Gilbert

Five in total.

Five bears who hurt him the most when he was a prisoner in Bjorn’s castle. Five bears who were going to die by his hand.

Well, three now since two were already off the list.

And boy, did Aspen enjoy killing them. Such scum did not deserve to live.

The Northern Lycan Kingdom wasn’t just a country. People here had honour. They had rules they’d followed for generations.

No one, absolutely no one, was to harm a man who was already down and couldn’t defend himself. No one was to humiliate prisoners of war. No one was to take another Northerner’s dignity. What was done to him was done for fun, and he swore that everyone who participated in his torture would pay.

Not only that, but those five bears made a spectacle out of him, torturing him for days while laughing about the death of Aspen’s king and family. They laughed at what Bjorn was going to do with his queen as well. Then they mocked him about his mate, promising to f*ck her on his behalf since she preferred bears anyway.

No, he couldn’t find it in himself to forgive them.

Maybe it made him a bad man, but he had no regrets.

The one whose life Aspen took just now broke his knees every hour as if he was on a clock, knowing that it was the only way to permanently injure a lycan. His friend, who carved insults on his chest with a silver knife and laughed as he watched them heal, was also already dead. Aspen left his b*ody in the woods, where he deserved to stay and rot. The same destiny would follow this one.

Aspen unclenched his jaws and let the wolf fall to his feet, a pool of blood gathering around him, soaking the grass.

He lifted his head to look at the moon, and at the same time, the familiar sweet scent hit his nostrils.

She was here. Brigit was here.

Just like the last time, she didn’t do anything to stop him. And it was annoying! After all, what kind of queen lets her men get slaughtered by an ambassador of another king?

He wanted her to get angry. He wanted her to confront him about her men.

His wolf pleaded with him, telling him their ex-mate wanted to get together. That this was her way to gain his forgiveness. Only that it wasn’t enough. It would never be enough.

Some part of him would always love her, but he knew they were over. He would never be able to trust Brigit. He would never be able to call her his.

They were perfect mates that never happened.

This was all they were now.

Aspen sensed her leaving. At first, he did not want to follow. She did the same when he challenged the first white bear. Although fights like this were frowned upon, it wasn’t necessarily illegal. Shifters fought each other all the time and died as a result. As long as it was a fair fight, it was fine. Fair being the key word.

Aspen always gave them a chance to stand up for themselves.

However, at the last minute, something inside him snapped as Brigit’s intoxicating scent enveloped him until he couldn’t breathe properly anymore, and Aspen decided to go after his ex.

It was annoying, and she had to stop this. This… whatever this was!

Brigit sensed him following her and sped up, only fuelling his desire to catch up with her more. At least in his wolf form, he could still do it.

However, his tormenter was cruel. They left the woods in a few minutes, and she rushed into the night city. It was surprisingly busy now, and Aspen had no choice but to shift into his human form and get the clothes he had hidden nearby for this exact kind of situation.

Although they were technically allies with the bears now, he still had to stay careful. Not all the bears were “reformed”. And only a few of his warriors were around at this time to back him up. So, he had to choose the safer way.

Brigit managed to disappear as if she wasn’t the one who stalked him in the first place.

The thought alone annoyed Aspen. He never looked at her at official events. And she never allowed him to see her outside of those. At least, not alone.

But she followed him both times he was hunting his enemies. Which led him to believe she knew everything about his little revenge quest. And also… she knew where the remaining three bears were. She had to.

She must have hidden them because he couldn’t find anything about their whereabouts. Not even from their “friends” he fought and killed. The three bears disappeared one by one, and no one ever saw them again.

There couldn’t be any other explanation. Brigit had to be hiding them somewhere, protecting them from his wrath.

And today, he was going to confront her about it.

Enough was enough. She was going to give him… answers!

Aspen knew very well where the Bear Queen of Nova Oberon would go. There was only one place she could hide from him. It wasn’t her bedroom. It wasn’t her office. He could reach those because his room was in the same wing. Brigit wouldn’t go there now that she tried to avoid him.

The Throne Room.

This was where he couldn’t go because it was always heavily guarded. This was where she would be hiding from him now.

Little did she know that he had a surprise for her.

***

Brigit passed her guards with a stern, disinterested look as she strolled into her throne room. Sadly, this was the only safe place she could think of.

closed the massive doors behind her back and leaned against them, unbuttoning her fur coat, letting it fall to her feet. It was obstructing her

good deed did not go unpunished, and she

was it still so

each other. Shouldn’t the pain

took you a while to get here!” The familiar voice made her flinch and

lump in her throat, taking a few

possibly have

the darkness with familiar warm light, and a part of her felt as if she was home for the

wipe that feeling from her heart and soul. She wasn’t home. Not with him. Her home would never

he angled his head at her, his face lazily leaning over his fist, elbow resting on the throne’s armrest. Right

doing here?” she mumbled, hating the weakness in her

and her heart skipped a beat. Was he going to acknowledge that they were mates once? “Queen,” Aspen finished coldly, breaking her

back. “Well, I am here

was sitting on and slowly descended the stairs. His cane wasn’t with him, and it took him a while as he was still limping after the injuries

him or be impatient. Instead, she watched him with the respect he deserved and didn’t let a single muscle on her

least he was alive. She couldn’t forget how it felt to lose

sister was now serving the Northern Lycan Queen. That life would be safer, better. She wished there was a different way to obtain it, but it

her neck, and he pushed her

it was just a scare tactic. He wasn’t hurting her even though she deserved it. She deserved whatever he was going to do with her, and she was surprised he didn’t

are they?” he demanded, and she

three missing bears. Brigit figured he was

with him, something she had been

dangerously close to her neck, hot breath

me, Aspen?” she dared him, meeting his glare. He was

and everything inside her exploded with the desire to have him

their breaths tangling in a fight for dominance as his thumb brushed over

in her thin

Aspen’s voice broke to his own surprise. Just remembering how they beat him into a pulp in between the hourly knee-breakings

that was why Brigit didn’t choose him… because she did

he let go of her. All this wasn’t the best of ideas, and he distanced himself

handle when Brigit broke her

are dead!” she said, voice

clenched tighter around

muttered without sparing her a

insisted. “I–

needed a moment to process

“they ate your porridge

the Bear Queen confessed, tears stinging her eyes as she tried to blink

back then,” Aspen scoffed, piercing her heart with the

she did

mate for me.” The words hang in the air between

him to laugh at her or to say something hurtful. Gods knew she deserved it, and he had his

But Aspen stayed silent.

with him for the first time in a while. He needed to know this. She knew very

I took care of- It was the same as you killed the others ,” she admitted, “just a different place. I took them to the top of the icy

her for the first time and tried to assess how serious she

third one…

white shiny locks fall forward onto her chest. “He was the first. I found him on the battlefield right after I was blessed. I knew him too well to miss him. Bjorn’s minion! He always had the dirtiest tricks up his sleeve. Your

her, turning to face her, just inches away from

cheeks. “You can hate me all your life, but you can’t prohibit me from caring! I love you, Aspen! Okay?

had just done, what she

know if she stood like that before him for eternity or if it were mere seconds, but she was afraid to move, afraid to

Why couldn’t they both have been smarter? Why was life so unfair to them? Why did

her closer, slamming his lips into hers. His tongue immediately

greedy to feel his hot skin. It was just as

release her flesh underneath it and groaned in delight

her n*pples with his mouth, rolling it with his

shuddered in his arms. It felt so good, so right… She did not expect to ever feel this way again, so she wanted

up and down, eliciting a growl from him. The sound

right now for all your guards to hear,” he told her, and she licked her lips, which made him bare her canines at her. She wouldn’t mind

hoping that she didn’t sound too desperate. She was afraid

my Queen,” he slid his hand in the slit of

his queen, he had to stop calling her that. She would literally give a

she was afraid

parted. He didn’t just

her roughly and scooped her up, her

worried if it was painful for him but when she heard his next words,

you

a whole flight of stairs, and he was holding her. He had no cane, no support. Just his Northern

eyes met, the world around them spun and in the

What?” Brigit couldn’t find

walk so much anymore,” Aspen smirked, taking a seat and shifting her on his lap so her back was against

it far away. The thought of one of her advisors finding her

against her back and his fingers dipped between her thighs before bringing them to his lips, tasting

“Through–” she panted, “–space?”

explained why King Kai wasn’t afraid to send his injured best friend to the bear kingdom. Aspen was one of the changed ones!

it made Brigit feel a

chest. If anyone walked in right now, they would witness the show of their lives. A queen