Hades' Cursed Luna

Chapter 185 The Alpha V.S His Pack

Hades

Silence reigned.

Not the heavy, suffocating kind.

No, this was the cold, sharp silence of a room holding its breath—of men calculating, of power shifting beneath their feet.

And for the first time in his life, Darius miscalculated.

For the first time in his life, the great Alpha, the ruler of the Valmont's bloodline, the man who always held control—hesitated.

It was only for a fraction of a second. A flicker of shock in his otherwise impassive gaze, a minuscule widening of his pupils.

But I saw it.

I felt it.

She turned to me slowly, her lips parted, her breath shallow. As if she hadn't dared to believe I would say those words aloud. As if, for all her defiance, for all her strength, she had not thought I would stake my claim in front of the court.

And yet, here I was.

Darius recovered quickly, of course. A man like him did not stay unbalanced for long.

He exhaled, measured and even, steepling his fingers as he regarded me. But when he spoke, his voice carried something new. Not just calculation.

A warning.

"You cannot do this, Hades."

I did not react. Did not blink.

Darius tilted his head slightly, studying me, as if

"You say you want to take her home," I said, pulling his attention back to me. "That you want her to be among her own people, to heal." I tilted my head slightly, watching him, waiting for him to catch the snare before it closed around his throat. "And yet, you were willing to give her away to secure your own safety. To bind her to me with no regard for what that meant. But now that she has become more than a bargaining chip, now that she stands as Luna of the Lycans, suddenly, she must be 'safe'?"

His hands curled into fists against the table.

"Tell me, Darius," I murmured, slow and deliberate. "Did you truly come here for her? Or did you come here because you have realized that you miscalculated? That the daughter you thought you could use has become something else entirely?"

His nostrils flared. I smiled, but there was no humor in it.

"You fear what she will become," I said softly. "You fear what she already is."

Darius exhaled sharply through his nose, dragging a hand through his hair, a single crack in his otherwise composed demeanor.

"You are making a mistake," he finally said, his voice lower, rougher.

"No," I said, rising to my feet. "I am making a choice."

I looked at Ellen then, and for the first time since this meeting began, I allowed the full weight of my claim to settle.

"My Luna stays."

"She is my daughter." He countered.

"She is my wife." I returned.

"She does not know what she wants, she is young and obviously infatuated. You are holding her despite what the contract as stipulated. You are breaching the contract that is holding our sides from a wars that will end in unwarranted bloodshed, casualties and pain."

"She is not coming with you because not because I forbid it, but because, my wife--my Luna does not want to. Is it so hard to grasp the simple concept? The Luna of Obsidan will not be forced if she does not want to."

I looked at all of them, my eyes narrowing before turning to Ellen and offering my hand. "Stand up, love," I said gently.

Lyra's eyes widened.

Ellen eyes was filled with uncertainty as she put her trembling hand in my mind. I pulled her up and forward. "Tell them, your highness, what do you want?"

Ellen swallowed hard, the weight of every eye in the room pressing down on her like a physical force. I felt the slight tremor in her fingers, but she did not pull away.

Darius' gaze bore into her, demanding compliance. His presence alone had been enough to dictate her fate once before. He expected it to be enough again.

But like a fool, he had forgotten a variable and miscalculated.

Ellen lifted her chin. She was afraid but it would never be enough to hold her down. She was Red after all.

"I want to stay," she said.

It was quiet at first, barely above a breath. But the silence of the room made it thunderous.

Darius stiffened. Lyra let out a sharp breath even my guards had their eyes widened in shock. Kael was a statue where he stood.

Ellen swallowed again, her voice steadying. "I choose to stay in Obsidian Pack."