Twenty Strikes
Lena Pov
My claws began to extend before I forced them back.
'Let me out.'
'No.'
Fighting them would give Luma exactly what she wanted.
These were Bloodmoon warriors inside Shadowfang territory. If I injured one or prove stubborn, she could turn the entire situation into an attack against her father's pack.
And with Ethan already trying to remove me, I knew exactly whose side the council would take.
The warriors forced me onto my knees, pain shot through my legs. I looked toward Madam Wynne, but she didn't move, that hurt more than I expected.
Not because I had believed she cared about me, but because I was still Shadowfang's Luna. Bloodmoon warriors had forced me onto my knees inside her own home, and Ethan's mother was willing to watch.
"Luma," I said. "Tell your warriors to release me."
She smiled faintly. "Or what?"
"Or you remember that you're Alpha Felona's daughter, not Shadowfang's Luna."
Her smile disappeared.
"Lena," Madam Wynne warned.
I almost laughed. So she had found her voice after all.
Luma stepped closer. "You seem very concerned about authority for a woman whose own mate is trying to strip hers away."
The words landed exactly where she wanted them to.
I refused to show it.."Trying," I repeated.
Her expression hardened, that one word was enough. Whatever Ethan had promised her, whatever plans they had made together, I still held the title she wanted.
At least, for now.
Luma glanced toward Madam Wynne, Ethan's mother looked away. That tiny movement told Luma everything she needed to know.
No one was going to stop her. Luma turned toward her Delta. "Twenty strikes across the face."
My blood went cold. For a second, I genuinely thought I had heard incorrectly.
"Twenty?"
The Delta stepped forward.
Sera pushed against my control, furious at the humiliation of being forced onto my knees by another pack.
I wanted to fight too, but Luma was watching me closely.
Waiting.
She wanted me to shift. She wanted me to attack one of her warriors and turn what had started with me catching her wrist into something much worse.
If I lost control now, she wouldn't have to twist the story anymore. She would have four Bloodmoon warriors, her Delta and even Madam Wynne as witnesses that Shadowfang's Luna had attacked them.
I stopped struggling.
Luma wanted me frightened enough to beg her for mercy.
I wouldn't give her that either.
If she wanted to use one moment of self-defense as an excuse to humiliate me, she would have to do it while I looked her in the eye.
"Do it."
The Delta rolled up her sleeve.
Before I could prepare myself, her palm struck my face.
My head snapped sideways. Pain exploded across my cheek, followed by a burning sensation that spread toward my ear.
Sera snarled. 'Let me out.'
'No.'
'She hit us!'
'I know.'
My claws threatened to extend, but I forced them back.
Even Madam Wynne flinched.
I slowly turned my face forward. The Delta raised her hand for the second strike.
"Enough."
Her hand stopped.
I looked at Luma. She was staring down at me, her mouth pressed into a thin line. I had expected satisfaction, but she looked irritated.
Perhaps she'd expected me to cry or beg before the remaining nineteen strikes.
Instead, I remained on my knees and looked straight at her.
"I've already wasted enough of my morning," she snapped. "I'll inform Ethan to continue from where I stopped."
The warriors released my arms, and I slowly stood.
My cheek throbbed, but I refused to touch it while Luma was watching. She turned toward the entrance, and her people followed.
Madam Wynne hurried after them.
"Luma, please don't misunderstand what happened last night. Ethan was drunk. Lena bringing him upstairs didn't mean anything."
Luma didn't even turn around.
Madam Wynne waited until their vehicles disappeared before facing me.
"Useless girl."
I stared at her.
"You couldn't let her see Ethan without creating a scene?"
"She was trying to enter my bedroom."
"To see Ethan."
"My mate."
"Don't start that again. Luma came here concerned about him. You could have stepped aside and avoided this."
I almost laughed. "So I should have allowed my husband's lover into my bedroom?"
"Lower your voice."
"Why? Everyone already knows."
Her lips tightened as she glanced toward the servants. "You never know when to stop."
A Bloodmoon Delta had just struck me inside Shadowfang Pack House, yet somehow my mouth was still the biggest problem.
"She pushed me first."
"And you grabbed her wrist. She's Alpha Felona's daughter!"
"And I'm Shadowfang's Luna."
Madam Wynne went still. Then her gaze dropped to my bare wrist.
"Are you?"
The question hurt more than I expected.
"You removed your mating ring and walked around without your scent blocker, knowing His Majesty was here last night. Then Luma arrives and smells another male on you."
"I didn't sleep with Julian."
"That isn't the point."
Apparently everything Ethan did was my responsibility. He could parade Luma around Shadowfang, but removing my ring was enough to make me the disgrace.
"Do you understand what Bloodmoon means to this family?" Madam Wynne demanded. "I spent twenty years waiting for a pack like Bloodmoon to notice the Yanceys. Alpha Felona's support makes my son the equal of anyone who ever looked down on us."
"So that's why you're willing to let his daughter humiliate me?"
Her expression shifted briefly before hardening again.
"Next time, if Luma wants to see Ethan, you let her. Stop embarrassing this Shadowfang bloodline because you're jealous."
Jealous?
I lowered my gaze before my answer created another problem.
Madam Wynne complained for several more minutes before returning to her quarters, muttering about the headache I'd given her.
Only then did Amelia hurry toward me.
"Luna!" Her face fell when she saw my cheek. "Moon Goddess. It's already swelling."
"I'm fine."
"You're not. Please come upstairs. I'll bring ice before Alpha Ethan wakes. If he sees your face..."
"He'll probably ask whether Luma hurt her hand."
Amelia fell silent.
I touched my cheek carefully. The skin was hot beneath my fingers.
"No ice. Have a car prepared."
"Where are you going?"
I looked toward the entrance Luma had just walked through.
"To see His Majesty."
Julian was staying at a private estate on the northern side of Shadowfang territory.
Whenever he visited, the property was placed under Lycan control, and his guards secured the surrounding grounds.
Amelia had discovered that Julian usually rode after his morning meetings. I hoped today wouldn't be different.
When the car stopped near the public entrance, I told the driver to wait and continued on foot.
A scarf covered my swollen cheek. Once I was away from the guards, I removed it.
Cold air touched the tender skin.
'So we're displaying our injuries now?' Sera asked.
I ignored her.
Without my scent blocker, my natural vanilla and wild berries scent filled the air.
Sera understood immediately. 'You're using our scent.'
I continued down the trail until I reached several wooden posts and a warning sign.
PRIVATE LYCAN TERRITORY.
AUTHORIZED ACCESS ONLY.
I stopped.
Years ago, I'd stood before a similar warning at Rubis Garden. Back then, I hadn't known who Julian was.
He'd found me trespassing and asked whether I always ignored territorial warnings. I'd told him only when they kept me from the prettier parts of a garden.
Julian had remembered that encounter last night.
I looked at the sign again, then stepped across.
This time, there was nothing accidental about it.
I hadn't gone far when Sera suddenly became alert.
'He's here.'
I stopped. 'How do you know?'
She didn't answer.
Then I heard hoofbeats.
A massive black horse emerged between the trees, with Julian seated in the saddle. He wore a dark riding coat, his sleeves pushed slightly above his wrists.
His golden eyes found me immediately.
That strange pull beneath my ribs returned, and Sera went unusually still.
