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.

massive doors behind her back and leaned against them, unbuttoning her fur coat, letting it fall to her feet. It was obstructing her from breathing. She was always a mess after she

certain that Aspen noticed her. Her little good deed did not go unpunished, and she bit her

still so painful after all

mutually rejected each other. Shouldn’t the pain have subsided

to get here!” The familiar voice made her flinch and snap her head in

taking a few steps forward. Surely, it wasn’t

shifted, he couldn’t possibly have gotten here

familiar warm light, and a part of her felt as

wasn’t home. Not with him.

his fist, elbow resting on the throne’s armrest. Right now, he was the one who looked like a

weakness in her voice. She did not want him to see

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

and straightened her back. “Well,

with

the respect he deserved and didn’t let

alive. She couldn’t forget how it felt to lose him, Savannah’s words echoing in her memory. She would never

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

her neck, and he pushed her against the door, making her gasp

wasn’t hurting her even though she deserved it. She deserved whatever he was

demanded, and she instantly knew

Brigit figured he

physical contact with him, something she had been craving for a while. Even if it was like this. So, she decided to add fuel to his fire. “I don’t know

neck, hot breath prickling

Aspen?” she dared him, meeting his glare. He was so handsome, her ex-mate. The

with a growl, and everything inside her exploded with the desire to have

brushed over

breathtaking tonight in her thin silver

Just remembering how they beat him into a pulp in between the

didn’t choose him… because she did not deem him

thought crawled back into his mind, and he let go of her. All this wasn’t the best of ideas, and he distanced himself from her, wishing to leave and

on the handle when

she said, voice confident. “All three of

clenched tighter

lying,” he muttered without

am not!” Brigit insisted. “I– I killed

a moment

he chuckled darkly, “they ate your porridge and sat

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

already weren’t mates back then,” Aspen scoffed, piercing her heart with the sharpest

that she did

for me.” The words

something hurtful. Gods

But Aspen stayed silent.

for the first time in a while. He needed to know this.

different place. I took them to the top of the icy bear cliff and challenged them one by one.

time and tried to assess how serious she was about this. Not a

third one…

“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 knees… I found out that it was his

would you care?” he stormed at her, turning to face

retorted, tears finally streaming freely down her cheeks. “You can hate me all your life, but you can’t prohibit me from caring! I love you, Aspen! Okay?

froze, realising what she 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

it was a rhetorical question. Why didn’t she come to him? Why couldn’t they both have been smarter? Why was life so unfair to them? Why did the gods

Brigit didn’t get to finish her response as Aspen grasped her neck again and pulled her closer, slamming his lips into hers. His tongue immediately

his shirt off, greedy to feel his hot skin. It was just as she

to release her flesh

doors and leaned down to capture one of her n*pples with his mouth, rolling it with his tongue while tugging the other one

loud moan escaped Brigit, her whole b*ody shuddered in his arms. It felt so good, so right… She did not expect to ever feel this way again, so she wanted to use this moment

and down,

can f*ck you against this door right now for all your guards to hear,” he told her, and she licked her lips, which made him bare her canines at

then!” Brigit said, hoping that she didn’t sound too desperate. She was afraid

his hand in the slit of her dress and cupped her warm s.ex, making

saying that. She wasn’t his queen, he had to stop calling her that. She would literally give a kingdom for him

he stopped touching her and she was afraid she just ruined

lips parted. He didn’t just

her legs

it was painful for him but when she

you on

whole flight of stairs, and he was holding her. He had no

when his arms closed around her and their eyes met, the world around them spun and in the next second they found

Brigit

seat and shifting her on his lap so her back was against his chest. “I

lacy underwear off her, throwing it far away. The thought of

Aspen’s tongue traced the curve of her neck. His hardness pressed against her back and his fingers dipped between her thighs before bringing them to his lips, tasting

“Through–” she panted, “–space?”

Aspen was one of the changed

made Brigit

caressed her sensitive bundle of nerves as she arched her back, leaning into his chest. If anyone walked in right now, they would witness the show of their lives.