Chapter 7 SIX

[NYRA'S POV]

Growing up, I always heard people whisper about the Dark Moon prophecy. I really didn't believe it until the night the stars bled and my mother passed away right before my eyes. Until I was branded by an invisible force with the crescent mark on my shoulder.

Even then I didn't understand what it meant. Melyn just warned me to keep it hidden, always.

Then two months ago, I overheard my uncle, Jackson talking with his beta about how they are going to lock me up on the next full moon so they could use me to acquire something called the Lunar Crystal.

I have no idea what it is but I know one thing for sure. Whatever it is, I'm not letting them use me to get to it.

“Nyra." The sound of my name on Keiran's lips has me turning my attention to him. He is leaning against a shelf, shirt half unbuttoned, and arms folded.

His dark brown hair which had been perfectly styled yesterday as well as this morning is now messy, like he ran his fingers through it a hundred times.

His steel blue eyes stare at me with an intensity that makes me clench my thighs and causes Lyric to whimper with need.

Is it illegal for a man to look this good? If it isn't then it definitely should be.

“I'm going to ask you some questions, Love," he begins, stepping away from the shelf and moving towards me. “And I want you to answer me honestly. Are we clear?"

I nod.

“Good." He stops by the table and opens a book. “Before the last eclipse, did you ever notice something unusual about you?"

Something unusual….

I rake through my brain trying to think of anything my five year old self would have noticed.

Nothing.

“I don't remember anything unusual," I tell him. “I was like every other normal kid with a loving family."

“I see," he nods slowly. “So, you first experienced the unusual occurrence during the last eclipse?"

I shake my head. “No unusual occurrences. Well, that's if you don't count my mother begging the goddess to spare me, and this mark suddenly appearing on my shoulder."

“Did it hurt?"

“Like a bitch."

He chuckles. " Guess I thought wrong about you when Riven first brought you here .”

I scowl. “What did you think? That I was weak because I passed out? You're crazy…”

In a flash, he is standing right in front of me, his hands wrapping around my throat. " You will watch your mouth when speaking to your Alpha.”

I know I shouldn't provoke him. Not when there's an important issue to address. But I can't help myself. The heat inside me flares up and I can't help but rub my thighs, in an attempt to ease the burning sensation in my pussy.

The fact that he is standing so close doesn't help much. His scent wafts into the air, invading my nostrils and settling in my unconscious. Lyric whimpers and I groan.

“Just do it," she urges, but I ignore her

" Or what, Alpha?” I find myself saying.

His thumb gently caresses my pulse point and the heat between my legs intensifies. It's horrifying and thrilling at the same time.

“You don't want to find out, Cara mia.” His tone is a warning to stop whatever I was thinking of doing.

But I've never been good at listening to warnings so I tilt my head and ask; “What if I want to find out?"

I shouldn't be doing this. I shouldn't be providing him when he looks like he's seconds away from ripping my dress to pieces and fucking my brains out on his desk. Not when he looks at me like a man who's been starved for ages and suddenly offered food.

I should probably turn around and bolt out the door without looking back.

But I don't. My mind tells me to run away, but my legs refuse to comply.

He bends over and places his lips next to my ear, his hands never leaving my throat. “You shouldn't test a man's patience, Cara mia." His breath is warm against my earlobe, and I can't resist the urge to rub my thighs together. " Especially not one who's dreamt of ripping every inch of clothes off your body and fucking you senseless.”

His words created images in my head, only helping to heighten my arousal.

Great.

He let go of my throat and stepped away, hands sliding into his pocket. My wolf and I mourn the loss of his warmth.

“So as I was saying," he continued, returning his attention to the book on the desk. “Have you ever come across a word known as the Lunar Crystal?” I nod. " And have you heard of the curse of the Dark Moon?”

I shake my head. I wasn't one to believe in prophecies and folktales. I paid no heed to conversation going down that path. Even after mother died that night, I shut down every conversation having anything to do with the prophecy.

Talking about it just helped bring back the fact that I watched her die

" Years ago, the Moon goddess created two kinds of wolves. The light wolves and the shadow wolves. The light wolves were more stronger during the day, while the shadow wolves at night. They were supposed to leave peacefully, together, with each one protecting the other when they were strongest but…” he trailed off

“But what?" I pressed, my curiosity getting the better of me.

“The light wolves wanted to be the ones with the supreme power. They tried to find the magic source of the shadow wolves and take their magic. The shadow wolves, not willing to give up their magic, fought the light wolves."

“The ancient war," I mutter. He nods eyes bright with surprise. I laugh. “Don't look so surprised. My dad told me about the war. He said they made the goddess angry so she cursed them."

He nods, clearly impressed. “Guess you are not dumb afterall."

I scoff, he cares less. “The goddess punished them. Every century, the moon goes completely dark. It's light vanishes, and the stars lose their light. On that night, bonds that should have been for love become a source of suffering. Wolves feel their skin on fire, Alpha or rogue alike.”

“So thousands of generations have been suffering for the sins of a bunch of dudes whose bones have probably been dug up for some scientific experiment?" He nods, but doesn't say anything. " So…she didn't say how to put an end to the curse?"

“Pained by the fact that she had created such vile monsters who killed each other, the goddess shattered her heart into four fragments and hid them in separate places. If the fragments can be found and the crystal activated, before the next rising of the Dark Moon then we all have a chance at surviving. If not…”

I don't need him to tell me what will happen if not.

But I don't still can't understand how any of that has to do with me, with the mark pulsing on my back like it has a life of its own

He turns to me with a blank expression. "And you, Cara mia, are the only person capable of doing that."