Chapter 47: Retaliating
Chapter 47: Retaliating
(Celeste’s POV)
“You told me to respect you as brother once,” Lucas growled, his voice fierce despite the pain
etched in his movements.
He pushed past his personal guard, limping into the room, every step betraying the torment of Marcus’s silver chain punishment.
Yet, even with his injuries, his posture screamed defiance, his wolf radiating aggression. He didn’t falter, didn’t stop, as though his sheer force of will alone held him upright.
“But you’ve done nothing to deserve that respect, Celeste,” he snapped, his golden eyes burning with a flame that I once might have mistaken for fierce protectiveness. But not
anymore.
I stayed still, refusing to flinch under his glare. My wolf, scarred and weary as she was,
remained quiet. She didn’t bow to Lucas’s anger.
“You’ve got some nerve coming here like this, Brother,” I said, my tone sharp and biting.
The word felt foreign, wrong on my tongue, yet mocking him with it loosened something bitter inside me. “The Alpha King’s punishment wasn’t enough for you?”
My eyes flicked deliberately to the blood seeping through the bandages on his hand, a traitorous stain that revealed how badly he was pushing himself. “What punishment are you
hoping for today?”
His wolf bristled visibly, a raw snarl trembling on his lips. But despite the anger in his eyes, there was a flicker of hesitation in his step, as though his wounds might pull him down at any
moment. And yet, Lucas never backed down.
“You think this is a game, don’t you?” he sneered, his words landing like thunder in the already
tense room.
His fists clenched tightly at his sides, white–knuckled with frustration. “You’re retaliating because I disciplined you at the Sacred Moon Temple? Is that why you’re tormenting Luna
Victoria now?”
“Disciplined me?” I laughed bitterly, the sound rolling out without joy. My arms ached as the silver scars burned sharply beneath my shirt, a painful reminder of his so–called “discipline.”
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+5 Points
Chapter 47: Retaliating
“You think beating your sister“-I spat the word mockingly-“with a silver–infused staff
constitutes discipline? Enlighten me, Lucas. What sacred wolf sense told you I’m tormenting
anyone?”
His breathing quickened, fury pouring from him as his golden eyes gleamed with barely
controlled rage. Before he could launch another accusation, Victoria’s sharp voice cut through
the air like a blade.
“Enough!” she snapped, stepping forward with a presence that demanded attention.
Her sharp green eyes darted between Lucas and me, assessing the tension that electrified the room. “Lucas, your wounds haven’t healed yet! Why aren’t you resting?”
Her voice hummed with worry, though it carried no edge of anger. Her wolf whimpered softly behind the words, the maternal tone softening the scene just slightly.
Lucas stiffened at her reprimand but didn’t answer right away. His golden eyes darted toward the floor, his pride hesitant to let her see even a flicker of his weakness. And yet, his injuries betrayed him in every step, every breath he took.
Victoria’s gaze sharpened further as she spotted the blood staining his bandages.
Her lips parted gently in concern, and her tone dropped to one of sheer exasperation. “You’re bleeding again,” she murmured, stepping closer to him. “What exactly did you do to yourself
this time?”
“I’m fine, Luna,” Lucas replied tersely, brushing off her concern with a stiffness that bordered on rude. His wolf, however, surged uneasily beneath the surface, a tremor of guilt faintly coloring his frustration.
“Fine?” I interjected coldly, my voice cutting sharply through the heavy air. I stepped closer, my chin tilting upward in defiance. “No wolf is fine when walking around bleeding like this. What did you do, Lucas? Did you hurt yourself trying to craft another pointless gift? Some peace offering for a relationship beyond repair?”
His head snapped toward me violently, his injured body swaying briefly under the weight of his frustration and wounds. “It’s all because of a certain cursed wolf!” His growl ripped through
the room, raw venom coating every syllable.
The insult hit like a slap. I felt my wolf twitch weakly within me, scarred and battered, but even she couldn’t ignore the sting of the slur. In wolf culture, to call someone “cursed” was to deem them a bringer of misfortune, someone meant to wreck instead of build.
My lips curled into a bitter smirk, the urge to lash back overwhelming me. “Cursed wolf,” I
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+8 Points
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Chapter 47: Retaliating
repeated slowly, the words tasting vile even as I spoke them.
My violet eyes, narrowed and burning, locked onto his golden ones. “And I suppose you think calling me that will somehow make up for your cowardice at the Moon Temple?”
Lucas’s snarl tore through the room again, his wolf howling uneasily behind his fury. But
before either of us could escalate, Victoria stepped forward with a sharp, almost scolding
sigh.
“Lucas, how can you speak to your sister like that?” she asked, her tone pained and gentle, her
gaze softening as she put herself between us. Her wolf whined, seeking to temper the
aggression in the room with calming energy.
I let out a soft, bitter laugh at her words, crossing my arms tightly over my chest. My
silver–scarred wolf curled inward defensively, though I refused to let it show.
“Indeed, Future Alpha,” I said mockingly, my voice coldly even. “How could you possibly speak
to Scarlett that way? Is this how you defend your Luna?”
Scarlett whimpered softly from her spot by Victoria’s side, her emerald eyes shimmering with
well–rehearsed tears.
She clung to Victoria with trembling hands, as though physically shrinking beneath the weight
of her supposed pain.
“Why, Lucas?” she whispered, her voice breaking delicately. “Why would you say such a thing?
Her wolf’s distress radiated outward, and Lucas’s entire demeanor changed in an instant. His
own wolf flinched at her words, his posture stiffening protectively.
The fire in his golden eyes faltered, panic setting in as he realized how his words had sounded
to her.
“I… I meant her!” he barked, pointing sharply in my direction, his eyes burning with frustration.
“Not you, Scarlett. Never you.”
I smirked at his unraveling control, my bitter satisfaction bubbling quietly beneath the surface.
But his fury reignited moments later as his golden eyes locked onto mine once again. The
tension between us burned hotter, his grip on his wolf slipping further as his voice rose with
unchecked emotion.
“You refuse to acknowledge me as your brother,” he snarled, his tone trembling with the fury of
someone who couldn’t decide whether to lash out with words or claws. “And I’ve come to
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+B Points
Chapter 47: Retaliating
terms with that, Celeste. But what about Luna Victoria?”
His words startled me slightly. A faint flicker of guilt stirred in my chest, but I refused to let it
linger.
He pressed further, his voice now desperate, raw. “Her wolf nursed yours through countless moon fevers when you were a pup. She dedicated herself to caring for you through every cry, every sickness. Do you not recognize that anymore? Do you not see who she is?”
Victoria’s breath hitched audibly beside Scarlett, her green eyes glistening faintly as though
Lucas’s sentiment had reached her.
But I stood unmoved. My wolf snarled faintly beneath the surface, scarred but resolute. My
lips twisted into a cold smile, my violet eyes gleaming with a cruelty borne of necessity.
“Future Alpha,” I said softly, the venom in my voice carefully measured. “You dare to lecture
me on loyalty? On respect?”
He flinched, just slightly, but his wolf still raged within him.
“You wield silver weapons against your own blood,” I continued, stepping closer with deliberate calmness. “And then you claim no responsibility for the scars you leave behind. You break me, Lucas. Over and over again. And still, you call me ungrateful?”
His face darkened, his golden eyes filling with frustration he couldn’t contain. His wolf howled
uneasily, the weight of my words pressing against him like stones.
But I had nothing else to give him. No reconciliation. No forgiveness.
Only silence.
