Chapter 54

Ava

The room fell into silence after I had spoken. I could feel the weight of the Elders’ incredulous gazes on me, but I didn’t back down. Instead, I looked to Chris, trying to gauge his reaction to my suggestion.

Elise cleared her throat. “Chris, this is highly atypical. Something like this is sure to bring a lot of unwanted attention to Moonstone.”

“Not to mention the risks of allowing outsiders to participate,” Fatima added, folding her arms across her chest so that the large sleeves of her robe seemed to connect into one. “Especially werewolves from the human world.”

“Indeed. Outsiders from friendly packs may be one thing, but we don’t know the motives of those from the human continent,” Claire said with a curt nod at Fatima before sliding her gaze over to me. “And no panel of judges could read their minds to figure that out.”

I held my breath and chose not to answer, waiting instead for Chris’s response. For a long time, he was silent, his jaw working as he considered everything.

Then, he merely offered the Elders a cool smile. “I agree with Ava. We’ll all serve as a panel of judges.”

“But Alpha—” Elise began, only to be cut off when Chris raised his hand.

“I’ve made up my mind,” he said calmly, shooting me a brief, warm glance before lowering his hand. “We’ll go with Ava’s idea; it’s an excellent one.”

A few disgruntled grumbles rumbled around the table, but the Elders seemed to realize there was no dissuading Chris once he had his mind made up about something. Despite their hangups, he was still the Alpha of our pack.

So, with reluctant sighs and hesitant nods, they eventually agreed—albeit begrudgingly.

Eventually, as the meeting concluded and the Elders began filing out, Degas lingered behind. He caught my arm gently, holding me back.

“A word?” he murmured, glancing over his shoulder to ensure we were alone.

I nodded, tensing slightly as he leaned in closer. “Your wisdom was commendable in there,” he said in a low voice. “But I must caution you... giving Alpha Chris ideas like this will not help our efforts in convincing him to stay here in Moonstone.”

My jaw clenched at the Elder’s words. So that was what this was about—yet another scheme to force Chris into a decision he didn’t want. I had already tried that, and I had decided that I was done with it.

Of course I wanted Chris to stay, but I wasn’t going to try any schemes to make that happen. If he was going to stay and fulfill the prophecy, then that was up to him.

Not me. And not anyone else, for that matter.

“Degas,” I said firmly but not unkindly, gently pulling my arm from his grasp. “I have decided that I will no longer be participating in any secret efforts or schemes to make Chris stay here. He knows of my wishes, and I’ve promised not to bring it up again. That means I also will not hold back my wisdom and advice for the sake of trying to make him fail at finding a new Alpha. I have faith that he will stay.”

The words tumbled from my lips with more confidence than I actually felt. In truth, I wasn’t sure at all if Chris would ultimately choose to remain in Moonstone pack. But I knew I couldn’t lie to Degas and tell him otherwise.

He regarded me with a solemn look, seemingly impressed by my boldness even as concern flickered in his eyes.

“You are brave, Ava, and you have a kind heart,” he said quietly. “But I must warn you…” He paused, glancing toward the door and licking his lips before continuing.

“The other Elders—particularly Elise—may not agree with your methods. If they perceive that you are failing in your duty as Acting Luna, they may rally to have your title removed. And any offspring you may have in the future could be barred from marrying Alphas themselves.”

I felt a lurch in my stomach at his words. The idea of having my children’s futures stripped away from them over something like this seemed so utterly archaic and cruel. Indignation flared up inside of me as I thought about how backwards it was to bar people from marrying one another based on such arbitrary things.

Straightening my shoulders, I lifted my chin defiantly.

“Then so be it,” I said, hoping my voice sounded more confident than I felt. “I cannot, in good conscience, deliberately hold Chris back from what he wishes… No matter how much I may disagree with his choices. It’s not right.”

Degas’ wizened face cracked into a sad smile. “I admire your integrity, child,” he said, reaching out to pat my arm. “Let us hope the other Elders can see reason as well.”

With that, he turned and shuffled out of the chamber, leaving me alone with my whirling thoughts. I knew I had made the right decision—and yet, a nagging part of me couldn’t shake the feeling that I had just made a grave mistake.

…

A few hours later, I found myself summoned to Chris’s office. He looked up with a warm smile as I entered, rising from his chair to greet me.

“Ava,” he said softly, gesturing to his desk where two steaming cups of coffee appeared to have just been poured, along with two chocolate biscotti sitting on a plate beside them. “Care to join me?”

I nodded and sat down opposite his desk, sipping one of the coffees. “Imported coffee from the human continent,” he said, eyeing me over his cup. “The biscotti, too. For all we have here, I have to admit that Moonstone coffee just doesn’t have the same kick.”

“I’ll say.” The coffee was rich and strong, almost chocolatey, a far cry from the coffee we produced here. Moonstone loved its tea far more than coffee. And the biscotti—well, I wouldn’t deny that the dark chocolate and sugary sweetness was delicious.

But I knew that Chris hadn’t only invited me here to have coffee. I carefully set my cup down and leaned back in my chair.

“About the meeting earlier—”

“I wanted to thank you,” he interrupted, his gaze softening. “You were… amazing earlier. I’m always proud to have you by my side.”

I felt my cheeks flush with pride at his praise. “It was nothing,” I murmured, unable to meet his gaze fully.

Chris chuckled, standing again and circling around to lean against the front of his desk. “Nothing?” he teased. “Ava, I can’t even tell you how grateful I am to have such an intelligent, level-headed Luna by my side—especially when I'm so preoccupied with handling my affairs in the human realm remotely.”

“Acting Luna,” I corrected.

Chris stopped and narrowed his eyes ever so slightly. “I consider you my Luna through and through, Ava. You don’t need to deny it. Not in private, at least.”

My heart stuttered in my chest. I thought back to that afternoon a few days ago when he had inadvertently informed Elise of his true plans to marry me—without telling her that it was me who he intended to marry, of course.

But I had told him that it was too soon. And he had understood, or so it seemed.

Before I could say anything, however, he continued.

“Which, actually, brings me to my next point.” Chris slid his hands into his pockets casually. “When we move to the human continent together, I’d be honored if you would consider serving as an advisor for me there as well—romantic relationship aside. Of course, I would compensate you generously for your efforts, even though we’ll be together.”

I felt as if the wind had been knocked out of my lungs. When we would move to the human continent? I didn’t recall agreeing to moving anywhere.

He was talking about us leaving Moonstone—leaving my home and my life behind—as though it were a foregone conclusion. And for what? So I could not only be his bride, but also his paid assistant in the human world?

“Chris, I…”