Chapter 88: Return the Gift
Chapter 88: Return the Gift
(Celeste’s POV)
The sharp chill in the night air wrapped around me as we stood near the gleaming expanse of Moon Lake. Around me, wolves murmured, their voices low, filled with curiosity and tension as
the ceremonial group gathered.
It didn’t take long for my eyes to land on Scarlett. As always, she ensured she stood center
stage, where every gaze would naturally fall. But tonight, there was something different.
Something designed to provoke.
Her slim fingers toyed with two distinctive pendants around her neck. The first was carved
intricately with the Winter Pack’s symbol, no doubt one of Lucas’s creations. The second
caught my attention–a bold pendant etched with the Steele family’s warrior markings.
Alexander.
Despite their contrasting energies, Scarlett deliberately wore them both at once. It wasn’t
subtle.
Her emerald eyes glittered beneath the blood moon’s light as she tilted her chin, casting me a
deliberate glance. Her lips curved into the faintest of smiles–sweet, innocent, and filled with
smug satisfaction.
I forced down the flicker of annoyance rising in my chest, my face transforming into a mask of cold indifference. My silver–scarred wolf stirred but remained silent, her focus turning toward
the lake’s dark waters instead of Scarlett’s obvious attempt to unnerve us.
“Look at her,” Diana’s sharp voice broke through the murmured crowd. Her golden wolf’s biting tone shook the delicate tranquility as she gestured toward Scarlett. “She’s glowing already in
anticipation of her upcoming moon blessing ceremony. It’ll be the grandest we’ve seen in
years.”
Scarlett’s eyelashes fluttered, her cheeks coloring faintly in a show of modesty. But her gaze continued to flick over to mine, watching, waiting for my reaction.
I kept my expression perfectly neutral, letting her deliberate taunts slide off me like water. A
part of me marveled at how long she could keep this farce going.
“Oh, the moon blessing!” Diana continued with exaggerated excitement, her voice pitched
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Chapter 88: Return the Gift
higher for the growing group of onlookers. “It’s so fitting, isn’t it? Especially since it’s held on a wolf’s birth moon. What better way to celebrate Scarlett’s true place in the pack?”
Diana’s golden eyes gleamed as she paused, glancing slyly toward me to ensure her words hit their mark. But I didn’t bite.
Scarlett, ever the picture of perfection, shifted slightly, feigning nervousness. “Oh, Diana, please. Don’t make such a fuss over me.” Her fingers brushed over the pendants again, as if by accident, while her emerald gaze settled intentionally on me. “It’s just… tradition, after all.”
My wolf snarled silently in response, but I stayed still. Reflective.
My last birth moon celebration had been during my time in Moon Shadow Prison. How foolish I’d been back then, believing someone–anyone–would acknowledge it. I had waited that night, clinging to the smallest sliver of hope.
No one came.
Lucas. Alexander. The Winter Pack. They’d forgotten me the moment Scarlett returned to their lives. Every prior celebration, every sentiment, had been nothing more than a hollow pretense.
Since then, moon blessing ceremonies felt like nothing but an illusion of care. And Scarlett wearing those pendants was just another lie woven into her fabricated charm.
“Interesting,” Marcus’s smooth voice cut through the gathering, drawing everyone’s attention back to him. His violet eyes gleamed under the blood moonlight as they settled on Scarlett for a moment, before drifting lazily toward me.
“Scarlett and Celeste,” Marcus began, his tone calm but laced with razor–sharp calculation. “I do believe you both share the same birth moon, don’t you?”
The crowd stilled, their attention shifting between Scarlett and me instantly.
His question wasn’t innocent.
Every word that left Marcus’s mouth had purpose, a drive to elicit cracks he could enlarge later.
Scarlett immediately tilted her head, her gaze softening. She looked every bit the fragile, delicate sister caught in her dear lord’s musings. But I knew better; the barely–hidden gleam in her eyes betrayed her true intent.
And Marcus? His gaze stayed locked on mine, unrelenting, waiting.
“I suppose we do,” I said finally, aiming for a response that gave him nothing. My voice was as distant as the stars above.
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Chapter 88: Return the Gift
Marcus smiled faintly, but the weight of his possessive aura pressed against me as he stepped closer. “Tell me then, dear Celeste,” he continued, feigning curiosity, “what sort of ceremonial gifts would you prefer? It’s only natural such a shared celebration calls for equal recognition, no?”
My chest tightened, but I kept my composure.
“A thoughtful gesture,” I said blandly, pairing my words with a distant smile. “But unnecessary.”
The crowd murmured lightly at my response, obviously surprised. Even Scarlett faltered for a
split second, her mouth twitching faintly before she recovered her serene mask.
Through our fading bond, my wolf keenly sensed Lucas’s reaction. His russet aura bristled somewhere behind Scarlett. His frustration sparked like dry tinder meeting a flame, snapping
against my senses.
I didn’t even have to face him to feel it.
Lucas’s wolf had always been overly attuned to mine–enough to remember how I used to
anticipate moon blessings with unbridled excitement. How I’d remind them weeks in advance,
practically bouncing at the thought of gatherings spent celebrating under moonlight. Back
then, even simple time spent alongside him and Alexander had made me glow with joy.
Now? Nothing.
I sensed the shift in his wolf. Sharp. Bitter. Memories of a younger version of me clung heavy
in his mind, clashing with this colder, unrecognizable woman standing before him. His wolf
snarled in frustration, the weight of his emotions pressing against our weakened bond.
Yet there he was, still clutching something hidden in his pocket. His aura quivered faintly,
conflicted, before radiating bitter satisfaction.
Ah.
The hint of polished moon crystal reached my nose–a carving perhaps meant for me. A gift,
now withheld out of spite. His wolf growled low, deeming me unworthy of it.
Marcus laughed lightly, breaking the tense silence. His predator’s charm dripped over the
crowd as he nodded slowly, acknowledging my indifference.
“How modest of you, Lady Celeste,” he said with deliberate smoothness.
Then, with unsettling deliberation, Marcus took another step closer, his royal wolf’s aura so dense it dragged across my silver scars like fire.
“But allow me to decide what’s necessary. A gift, after all, should reflect one’s… place.”
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Chapter 88: Return the Gift
Another wave of murmurs swept the crowd, their intrigue reignited with his every word.
Before I could respond, a new voice startled the gathered wolves.
“My Lord Marcus.”
The elderly voice, though soft, carried clarity and certainty. It silenced all conversation as
Thomas Grey, the pack’s aging beta and guardian of the lakeside tavern, approached us
cautiously.
C
His weathered figure, though small, exuded a quiet dignity that demanded notice. His gray
wolf’s presence stirred faintly as he addressed the group respectfully.
“If I may, I believe I know exactly what gift Lady Celeste would prefer,” Thomas offered kindly, turning his worn gaze directly toward Marcus.
A jolt of unease struck me at his words.
The crowd’s attention shifted entirely to Thomas, their curious whispers flickering once more
through the gathering.
Diana, eager as ever, sneered sharply. “How could you possibly know what she wants?”
Thomas ignored her taunt, his calm smile unwavering as he carefully retrieved an aged
moonstone box from behind the bar.
“I’ve held this for years,” he admitted softly, extending the box with both hands toward me. “It was left behind four years ago, just before Lady Celeste’s imprisonment. I believed it was only
right to return it.”
Confusion brewed under my indifference, but I schooled my features before stepping closer.
The light of the blood moon reflected faintly off the box’s smooth surface as I accepted it
cautiously.
Inside lay a moon–blessed crystal pendant–crafted intricately with familiar pack symbols. My wolf recoiled instantly as the weight of someone else’s memories filled me.
Diana’s sharp cry pierced the stunned silence, echoing across the night.
“T–That’s the blessing crystal my brother gave her!”
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