Chapter 189: A Crumbling Facade (Celeste’s POV)
Chapter 189: A Crumbling Facade (Celeste’s POV)
I crossed my arms. “I’ve already agreed to attend for Grandmother’s sake. There’s nothing
more to discuss.”
Lucas’s jaw tightened. The mask of brotherly concern he’d worn earlier crumbled, revealing the familiar anger that had become his default expression around me.
“You’ll need to dress appropriately,” he said, his tone clipped. “Scarlett has selected—”
“I’ll choose my own clothes,” I interrupted.
His golden eyes flashed dangerously. “This isn’t a game, Celeste. These wolves come from
prestigious packs. You’ll represent the Winter Pack whether you like it or not.”
I met his gaze without flinching. “I agreed to attend. I never promised to choose anyone.”
“Grandmother is hoping-” he began.
“I know what she’s hoping for,” I cut in. “But don’t harbor high expectations. I won’t force a mating just to satisfy your agenda.”
I turned to leave, having said all I needed to, but Scarlett stepped into my path.
“Celeste,” she said, her emerald eyes wide with practiced concern. “Grandmother’s health is declining rapidly. All she wants is to see you settled with a proper mate before…”
She trailed off, letting the unspoken implication hang in the air between us.
“Don’t use Grandmother’s illness to manipulate me, Scarlett,” I replied coldly. “It’s beneath even
you.”
Scarlett’s eyes immediately filled with tears. “How can you be so heartless? I’m only thinking of Grandmother’s happiness!”
Her lip trembled perfectly–a performance worthy of applause. I’d seen this act many times
before.
“You’ve barely spoken ten words to Grandmother in the past week,” I pointed out. “Yet suddenly you’re deeply concerned about her wishes?”
Lucas stepped forward. “At least Scarlett shows proper respect to the family. She’s been nothing but kind to you since your return, while you’ve been cold and ungrateful.”
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Chapter 189: A Crumbling Facad…
I laughed bitterly. “Kind? Is that what you call drugging me with wolfsbane wine and delivering me to Kane’s quarters? Or perhaps you’re referring to her role in the Blood Moon Gathering
incident?”
Scarlett’s tears vanished instantly, replaced by a flicker of alarm.
“You’re both transparent,” I continued. “Using Grandmother’s illness to control my future. Did you think I wouldn’t notice that you’ve selected mates who would keep me firmly under your
influence?”
Lucas’s nostrils flared with indignation. “We’re trying to help you!”
“Help me?” I echoed incredulously. “Or ensure I remain tethered to this pack with no independence?”
My silver–scarred wolf surged with protective fury. “You can’t control who I care for, especially if that person happens to be from Sterling’s pack.”
It was a calculated jab–I had no particular feelings for Matthew beyond appreciation, but the
implication hit its mark.
Lucas’s face darkened with rage. He crossed the distance between us in two strides, gripping
my arm with punishing force.
“You dare defy me?” he growled, his wolf surging with dominance. “After all I’ve done to salvage your reputation? You’d throw it away for an unworthy beta?”
His fingers dug into my flesh, but I refused to show any sign of pain. Instead, I yanked my arm
free with strength that surprised him, shoving him back with my silver–scarred palms.
“Don’t touch me,” I warned, my violet eyes blazing. “Ever again.”
I marched to the table where the folder of potential mates lay and snatched it up. Flipping
through the pages, I pulled out one particular profile.
“Tell me, Lucas, which Moore brother did you intend to present to Grandmother as the ‘Alpha King’s trusted advisor’s son‘?” I asked, holding up the deliberately vague description. “Jacob Moore, the respected warrior? Or Jason Moore, known throughout the territory for his drunken
brawls and disrespect toward female wolves?”
Lucas’s eyes widened with shock. “How did you-”
“Did you think I wouldn’t recognize the omission of a first name? That I wouldn’t question why
this profile lacks the specific details included in the others?” I challenged, watching realization
dawn on his face.
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Chapter 189: A Crumbling Facad…
I tossed the paper at his feet. “You planned to present Jason to Grandmother, knowing she would only see ‘Moore‘ and assume it was Jacob, didn’t you?”
Lucas stood speechless, caught in his own deception.
Scarlett quickly stepped forward, trying to salvage the situation. “There are many other suitable candidates,” she insisted, pointing to another profile. “Like the son of the Northern Territory’s Beta. He comes from an excellent bloodline-”
“Eric Reynolds?” I interrupted, my voice rising with incredulity. “The same Eric Reynolds who nearly killed me with silver when we were children, then claimed I attacked him unprovoked?”
The memory flashed vividly in my mind–a twelve–year–old boy pressing silver against my skin while his friends laughed, the searing pain, the smell of burning flesh.
Lucas shifted uncomfortably. “He’s changed, Celeste. That was years ago-”
“He held me down and pressed silver against my arm until it burned through to the bone,” I said, my voice deceptively calm. “Then told everyone I had tried to claw him. And you want me to consider him as a mate?”
Something snapped inside me. Years of suppressed rage, of being overlooked, of enduring injustice after injustice–it all surged forward in a wave that I could no longer contain.
My hand moved before I could think, striking Lucas across the face with my silver–scarred palm. The sound echoed through the room like a c***k of lightning.
Lucas’s head jerked to the side from the impact. When he turned back, his golden eyes blazed with fury I hadn’t seen since our childhood. His hand shot up, forming a fist that hung in the air between us, trembling with barely contained violence.
For one terrible moment, I thought he would strike me. His fist hovered inches from my face, his wolf raging beneath his skin.
But then he froze.
Our eyes locked in a moment of profound recognition. In his golden gaze, I saw confusion, anger–and beneath it all, a flicker of the brother I’d once known.
My mind flooded with a memory so vivid it stole my breath. Eight–year–old Lucas, his small body planted firmly in front of mine, facing down Eric Reynolds and his friends. His child’s claws bloodied from defending me, his young voice fierce with protective fury.
“Touch my sister again,” he had snarled, “and I’ll make you regret it. I’ll protect her with my life!”
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The contrast between that loyal brother and the wolf before me now–offering me to the very person he had once defended me against–shattered the last remnants of my idealized past.
We remained suspended in that moment, his fist still raised, my eyes refusing to blink, refusing to show fear. I wouldn’t cry in front of him. Not anymore.
“Celeste, please,‘ Scarlett’s voice broke through the tension. “We’re just trying to-
She moved between us, reaching for my arm, but in her haste, she miscalculated. Her foot caught on the edge of the rug, and she stumbled backward toward the stone steps of
Eleanor’s quarters.
Her wolf whimpered dramatically as she fell, her face a perfect picture of helpless distress.
“Scarlett!” Lucas cried out, reaching for her too late.
But before she hit the steps, a powerful figure appeared in the doorway. Strong arms caught
her mid–fall, lifting her effortlessly into a protective embrace.
Alexander.
His white wolf’s aura filled the space, commanding and powerful. He cradled Scarlett against his chest, his ice–blue eyes taking in the scene–Lucas with his reddened cheek, my defensive
stance, the scattered mate profiles on the floor.
Scarlett clung to him, burying her face in his shoulder with a trembling sob that seemed
deliberately theatrical to my ears.
Alexander’s jaw tightened as he held her closer. He turned to leave, carrying Scarlett as if she
weighed nothing.
At the doorway, he paused. His gaze found mine, cold and warning.
1 froze, my heart squeezing painfully in my chest.
The look in his eyes–it was the same expression he’d worn four years ago when he stood
silently by, watching as I was led away to Moon Shadow Prison. Not interfering, not speaking
up, just observing with that same detached judgment.
And just like then, he turned away, leaving me to face the consequences alone.
