Chapter 16: This Family Owes you nothing
Chapter 16: This Family Owes you nothing
(Celeste’s POV)
Eleanor’s frail hands rested lightly over mine as I sat beside her bed. The soft, golden glow from the lamp beside us illuminated her kind, weathered face.
Her wolf stirred faintly within her, weak but still stubbornly protective. She tilted her head
toward me, her voice gentle but insistent.
“Celeste, child, Alexander… Have you really decided there’s no future between you two?” she
asked, her golden eyes holding traces of hope that immediately made my heart twinge.
I exhaled softly, steadying myself before answering. “Grandmother, Alexander is Scarlett’s
intended mate now,” I said, keeping my voice calm yet firm.
Her wolf whined softly, her displeasure rippling faintly through the space between us.
“But before Scarlett returned, you two had everything,” Eleanor protested lightly. “You were
betrothed. He cared for you. He still cares for you, I see it in his eyes.”
Those words sent sharp pangs through my chest, and my wolf shifted uncomfortably beneath
my skin. I ignored the ache, straightening slightly.
“That was years ago,” I said, pausing before leaning slightly closer to her side. “And if he cared for me in the way you think, he wouldn’t have stood back when Luna ended our engagement.”
My voice softened, my gaze steady. “He’s Scarlett’s now.”
Eleanor frowned but didn’t argue immediately.
She patted my bandaged hands gently, lowering her gaze in thought. “And yet, why did he bring healing stones for you yesterday?” she murmured, her tone inquisitive yet hopeful.
The soft concern in her question made guilt twist in my chest.
“He gave them to me to pass on to Scarlett,” I explained, keeping my tone light but
unwavering.
I leaned closer to her, resting my cheek briefly against her frail shoulder. “Please, Grandmother, let it go. That dream… it died years ago. My only wish now is to stay by your side.”
Her wolf whimpered faintly, but I felt her relax slightly against me. For a moment, the sadness in her eyes softened, and she rested her hand lightly over mine again.
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“You’ve always had such strength,” she said quietly. “I only wish the pack could see it as I do.”
I didn’t respond, choosing instead to sit quietly as her wolf nuzzled faintly beneath her fragile
form.
My wolf curled instinctively around hers, holding onto this moment of peace, however fleeting.
As the evening deepened, moonrise drew near, and with it came the tension I had anticipated
throughout the day.
I walked alongside Eleanor as we made our way to the pack house’s main hall for the family’s
official welcome dinner–a tradition that I had once cherished.
Now, the thought of stepping into that room made my stomach churn.
Eleanor leaned against my arm, her presence and warmth grounding me.
As we entered the hall, I took in the familiar structure–the long dining table, the glowing
chandeliers above, the rich wooden paneling that held so many memories.
Alpha James and Luna Victoria stood near the head of the table, their wolves calm yet
attentive.
They turned toward us, welcoming Eleanor with genuine smiles as they guided her to the head
seat of honor.
My eyes lingered on Scarlett, who sat comfortably beside Luna Victoria–the place that had once been mine. Her wolf whimpered softly, her posture delicate as always.
And then I saw it.
The last vacant seat.
It was placed between Lucas and Scarlett.
My wolf stirred uneasily, instinctively urging me to avoid that battlefront. But Eleanor’s hopeful
smile and the way she leaned into her seat made me push my hesitation aside.
I couldn’t disappoint her–not tonight, not when her heart still clung to the idea of a united
family.
Swallowing the growing knot in my throat, I walked to the empty seat and sat between them
without a word.
The tension pressed against my chest like a heavy stone, suffocating yet familiar.
The meal began quietly enough. Eleanor and Alpha James discussed pack matters casually,
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occasionally drawing Luna Victoria into the conversation.
Scarlett, meanwhile, let out faint whimpers every so often, her wolf curling beside her in
apparent weakness.
Each sound drew concerned glances from Luna and Alpha James, their natural protectiveness
flaring.
I ate in silence, my wolf too tired to engage, my mind carefully distant from the warmth
surrounding the conversation.
Lucas said nothing to me, and I returned the favor, keeping whatever strained peace existed
intact.
But that fragile peace shattered when Alpha James turned to Lucas. His growl was low,
almost imperceptible to the others at the table, but it carried a weight that immediately stilled
Lucas’s movements.
“Offer her something,” Alpha James ordered, his voice laced with unspoken command.
Lucas’s jaw tensed, but he obeyed. He reached toward the platter of moon–blessed meat–a
dish I had once loved, back when I’d been a different person–and placed some in my bowl.
“I remember you used to love this cut,” he said gruffly, his words holding an edge of something
I couldn’t decipher.
The gesture startled me momentarily, though my expression remained locked in polite
neutrality. His gaze flickered toward mine briefly, but I quickly averted my eyes.
Eleanor sat taller, her wolf perking up faintly at the display. Luna Victoria’s gaze softened
slightly as she glanced between Lucas and me.
Even Alpha James seemed to relax marginally, his wolf observing quietly.
But my stomach twisted painfully, and my wolf recoiled from the gesture as though it burned.
I couldn’t eat it.
Not because the food itself repelled me, but because the underlying message of reconciliation.
it carried felt hollow. Forced.
Instead of touching it, I shifted my attention to the other dishes on the table, quietly avoiding
the moon–blessed meat altogether.
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Lucas stiffen. His golden eyes flicked toward my bowl
once, twice, before realization struck him.
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The untouched meat stared back at him mockingly.
His wolf bristled visibly, the tension in his frame sharp enough to cut through steel. But he
remained silent–for now.
As the meal drew on, Eleanor excused herself, her wolf clearly weary from the evening’s
energy.
I rose instinctively, moving to follow her.
But she caught my hand gently, her golden eyes full of unspoken hope.
“Stay, my dear,” she urged softly, her tone warm yet faintly pleading. “Spend time with your
family.”
My wolf whimpered faintly at her words, torn between her wishes and the overwhelming
tension that clung to every breath in the room.
But I obeyed.
Nodding once, I returned to my seat, silently watching as she was escorted out by one of the
healers.
The moment she left, the atmosphere in the room shifted.
“Why didn’t you eat it?” Lucas’s voice tore through the quiet, sharp and accusing.
My gaze flicked toward him, finding his green eyes burning with frustration. His wolf snarled
faintly beneath his skin, barely restrained.
Before I could respond, he yanked my bowl away, placing it harshly at the table’s center for all
to see.
Luna Victoria’s eyes darted between us, her wolf whining softly in an attempt to diffuse the
escalating tension. “Lucas, calm down,” she murmured, her voice careful.
Alpha James, however, remained silent, his wolf watching intently as though waiting for
something.
Lucas pressed forward, his voice rising slightly as he snarled, “What’s wrong with it? Is it not
good enough for you? Wasn’t that your favorite?”
His tone cracked slightly, anger bleeding into something rawer.
I inhaled quietly, forcing my voice to stay calm. “I wasn’t hungry for it.”
My words only seemed to stoke the fire further.
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Alpha James finally spoke, his voice cold and authoritative, each word cutting through the air
like a blade.
“Celeste,” he began slowly, his piercing gaze locking onto mine.
“You spent fourteen years in this pack. Fourteen years under our protection. With our privileges. With Lucas’s devotion.”
Each sentence dripped with sharp purpose, weighing heavier against me with each passing
moment.
“And then,” he continued, his voice eerily controlled, “you spent four years suffering in Moon
Shadow Prison.”
Tension coiled sharp and tight within me, but I didn’t flinch.
“Four years of punishment,” Alpha James said firmly, “balanced against fourteen years of
care.”
His words mirrored Lucas’s from earlier, tearing through the walls I had so carefully built. My
wolf sank lower, curling into itself as though shielding me from his dominance.
Luna Victoria’s wolf whined in distress, though she said nothing.
Scarlett’s head remained lowered, her form quiet and still.
“Have you not been given enough?” Alpha James demanded, his wolf pressing down on me
insistently.
“Eleanor’s love. Victoria’s tears. Scarlett’s apologies. Even Lucas’s…” He tilted his head, his eyes glinting. “…misguided attempts to bridge the divide.”
I lowered my gaze, my silence stretching long enough to fan the flames of his anger.
The table rattled as Alpha James stood abruptly, his wolf’s aura slamming against the room’s
walls.
“This family owes you nothing,” he declared sharply.
I clenched my fists beneath the table, forcing my expression neutral even as the invisible weight bore down heavily.
“If you’re so unhappy, you’re free to leave,” he said, his tone final, carrying the crushing authority of an Alpha’s command.
Lucas placed the bowl of untouched meat at the table’s center, his wolf radiating cold
satisfaction.
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“The evidence of her ingratitude,” he said bitterly.
Luna Victoria’s gaze wavered, her wolf whining faintly as disappointment colored her
expression.
“You heard him,” Lucas said coldly, leaning ever so slightly closer. “You’re free to leave,
Celeste. You have no right to pack protection anymore.”
