Rise of the Rejected Luna - Chapter 191

Chapter 191: _ Bloody Coward
Sir Elijah repeated his words, shocking me once more.

“I will not take part in this nonsensical ritual.” He said, crossing his arms over his chest.

His stance showed how serious he was with his words.

Kaene’s eyes flashed with raw anger. “What makes you think you have a choice?”

“Oh, I have a choice, dearest Alpha. It’s my life.” He spat out in fury.

“You should know your place while speaking to me, Elijah.” Kaene roared.

His veins pulsing with rage, he looked like a predator ready to pounce on his prey any moment.

I had never seen Kaene like this, not even when he found out about my betrayal. I knew he was frustrated from this situation too, but Sir Elijah just had to be the victim of his burning rage.

The atmosphere was tense as they glared at each other waiting for the other to back down first.

Anyone else would have cowered from Kaene’s imposing aura, but Sir Elijah stood tall. Perhaps knowing he could lose his life gave him some confidence.

His confidence was commendable but it annoyed me greatly. He stood up to his alpha rather than the witches who made these rules.

How foolish was he?

I glanced at everyone trying to see if anyone agreed with Sir Elijah’s point of view.

Sir Alan wore a confused look, like he didn’t understand the language we were conversing in. I almost laughed at how ugly his face looked, but now wasn’t the time.

Negan’s expression was grim, and his eyes were filled with frustration.

I understood him.

He was just recovering from the wound inflicted by the creature they created in their space, and now he was forced to face a life-and-death situation again.

A situation that didn’t give him a choice.

I didn’t understand Lycan Davos’ expression. It was hard to tell if he was in support of Sir Elijah or not.

Finally, Sir Elijah heaved a sigh, lowering his head. He wouldn’t dare challenge his Alpha.

“Why should we risk our souls when we came here seeking help?”

A muscle in Kaene’s jaw twitched, but before he could respond, I spoke up. I was tired of the back and forth, plus I really wanted to shut Sir Elijah up.

“Sir Elijah, do you think I want to do this?”

My voice was sharper than I intended, but I didn’t care.

“If you only think about yourself, then you shouldn’t be here in the first place.”

I glared at him, waiting for his comeback.

He stiffened as if he didn’t expect me to call out his obvious selfishness.

“It doesn’t matter what we want, the only choice we have is to face this willingly or go home empty-handed.” Kaene added, his tone cold.

“They might force us into it.” Negan muttered. His voice already lost the playful tone I knew.

A cold realization hit me. Of course, they could force us.

They made our wolves hard to reach knowing they were our weapon, our voice. They could force their rules on us because they were in power.

Sir Elijah scoffed. “So, are we just going to accept this? Accept death?”

My stomach twisted at his words. I shivered at the mention of death, a dangerous reality we had to face tonight.

He had a point. We shouldn’t fold our arms and accept defeat.

But what if we all made it? No one thought of a positive outcome.

“We don’t know what could happen if we refuse. We could be walking into something worse, so it’s best to just comply.” Negan said.

Worse? Worse than willingly handing our minds over to witches who see us as nothing more than tools to manipulate?

Sir Elijah continued his attack of words, “You really trust them with your soul?”

“Of course, I don’t trust them.” Kaene snapped.

“But I trust my ability to fight back.”

His voice was filled with a strong determination, like a commander giving his soldiers motivation for a war.

His piercing gaze locked onto Sir Elijah as he spoke, “And I thought I could trust you to stand beside me, no matter what.”

His tone was laced with a hint of disappointment.

Sir Elijah flinched slightly, “I do stand with you. But this? It’s a death sentence.”

His words filled me with anger.

He had a big mouth and a perfect response to every word said. What was wrong with him? Did he have to be so selfish?

“Then what do you suggest we do?” I half-yelled, frustration kicking in.

Fight? A bad idea, we had no wolves.

Run? To where exactly? We came here in a portal and we hoped the ancient ones would get us back home.

Sir Elijah’s jaw clenched.

“Answer me,” I pressed, stepping closer until I was right in front of his face.

He stayed silent.

That’s what I thought, he had nothing to say.

Bloody coward.

He turned his gaze to the others “And all of you are just going along with this?”

Everyone remained quiet.

He rubbed a hand down his face, looking at me, then at the others. “Fine. But if I die, I’m haunting all of you.”

A small chuckle echoed through the group, and the tension lifted slightly. At least everyone was on the same page.

“Let me make one thing clear, I came here with five strong soldiers. I’m not leaving without you all, so find a way to wake up.” Kaene’s voice rang out once more, giving the group the much-needed morale.

Whatever awaited us in that ritual, we had no choice but to face it.

And survive.

One by one, they turned away, walking back to their rooms in silence.

I watched them leave, knowing we had just agreed to put our lives in danger.

In the hands of these diabolical witches.

Kaene’s warm hand found mine, breaking me out of my thoughts as he intertwined his fingers with mine.

I turned to him.

He was watching me, his gaze softer than before. This time, his eyes were filled with love and a hint of sadness.

“I don’t like this,” I said, my voice quieter now that we were alone.

“Neither do I,” he muttered.

I let out a shaky breath. “What if we don’t wake up?”

His fingers tightened around mine. “We will.”

There was a strong conviction in his tone, so much certainty that for a moment, I believed him.

I looked up at him, at the man who had once been my greatest enemy and was now the only thing making me forget my worries.

“We always survive, don’t we?” he said, his lips quirking into a smirk.

I managed a laugh.

“Barely.” I said.

It was my first laugh since we got here.

His free hand came up to my face, tucking a lock of hair behind my ear.

“We’ll get through this, Phoebe.” He said, his voice was softer now, more intimate.

“You and me. Like always.” I nodded, I couldn’t find the right words to say, afraid that if I spoke, my voice would crack.

Tears welled up in my eyes. I felt scared, what if I never get to see him again?

Then, he leaned in.

His lips brushed against mine softly, as if savoring the moment before deepening into something sweet and comforting at the same time.

I melted into him, into the warmth of his body and made a silent vow that no matter what happened tonight, I would fight to find him again.

When we finally pulled apart, his forehead rested against mine.

Planting a kiss on my lips once more, he whispered.

“No matter what you see in that dream, don’t let it break you.”

I swallowed hard, forcing myself to speak. “Same goes for you.”

He gave a small nod, pressing one last lingering kiss to my forehead before stepping back.

The moment ended too soon, I wished it wouldn’t. I wanted to be in his suite, trying out his perfumes while I figured what to wear.

I didn’t want to be trapped by witches.

We only had a few hours left before the ritual began.

Before we faced our nightmares.

And no matter how much I wanted to believe in Kaene’s words, I wasn’t sure if love alone could save us.