Chapter 33: Chapter 33
Elara POV
I am rinsing my plate after enjoying lunch when there is a banging on my door.
Goddess, what now? What is the use of avoiding the general dining room and eating alone if people come here to bug me anyway?
It better not be a High Elder coming to check if I am pregnant yet. Or Kane and Axel to ream me out for the whole sidepiece thing with Braden.
“Helloooo,” Mindy’s voice calls from outside the door. “I’m knocking like you asked.”
“Come in,” I call, relief washing over me. Mindy, I can handle.
I leave the dishes and meet her in the living room.
“Where the hell did you disappear to yesterday and this morning?” she demands, plopping down on the couch. “I even snuck into the library myself, thinking you’d be there.”
My heart swells. Even though we were mated off, Mindy was still as loyal as ever. But then it hit me what she said, and I punched her arm.
“What the fuck?” I grunt, sitting next to her. “You could’ve gotten in huge trouble with Maxim and Monroe. I told you not to stick your neck out for me like that.”
They are sweet men, but their job is to guard Kane and Axel. They have no choice but to punish Mindy if they find her prowling around their private quarters.
“Gotta be honest, there’s not a whole lot else for me to do when the boys are on guard duty,” she shrugs. “This keeps things interesting.”
“Speaking of interesting,” she wiggles her eyebrows. “How’s that mystery boy of yours?”
“It’s not ...”
“Don’t worry about Maxim and Monroe,” she cuts me off before I can protest the question. “They won’t find out I know about your secret lover.”
“Doesn’t matter anyway,” I cannot help but laugh. “They probably already know.”
“How?” Mindy’s eyes widen.
“Kane and Axel caught us together this morning.” I wince thinking about it. “I got pissed off and told them Braden was my sidepiece.”
“I’m sorry, you what?” Mindy grabs my shoulders. “What did they do?”
“Not much,” I clear my throat, thinking about how Kane backed off ... after he threatened me. But still, he could have picked a fight and probably would have won. I am still unsure why he has not. “For a second, I was worried they were about to start the Second Great War, but other than a few chosen words, nothing happened.”
“Hmm, understandable,” Mindy replies thoughtfully. “I mean, they would’ve probably felt through the mate bond if you slept with someone.”
“I don’t know,” I wrinkle my nose. “I mean, they didn’t claim me, so ...”
“Okay, but the real question is what did Braden say?” Mindy asks animatedly.
“Besides laughing at the alphas?” I roll my eyes. “Nothing.”
“Bitch, we aren’t friends since yesterday,” she narrows her eyes. “I know there’s more to the story.”
“No, seriously,” I laugh softly. “There were ...”
A knock on the door interrupts me.
“Oh, what fresh hell is this?” I mutter, stand up and open the door.
A tall, beautiful woman stands in front of me, and I swallow nervously when I recognise her ... Luna Gabriela. Everyone knows who she is, and I have seen her before, but I have never met her.
“May we speak?” She asks graciously.
My heart beats wildly as I nod like a simpleton, trying to calculate how deep in the shit I am in right now.
“Please, come in,” I try to say confidently, but my voice is shaky.
Gabriela smiles, entering the room, and I stare in awe at her. She is so graceful, it seems like she is gliding and not walking.
“Please leave us,” Gabriela says, looking at Mindy, and she scurries away without another word.
I do not blame her. Gabriela has a commanding presence that will make anyone do anything she asks, without questioning it.
“So, you’re the girl causing all this trouble?” She looks me up and down before fixing me with a fierce glare. “You and I need to have a little talk.”
Petrified, I look at her and nod. Normally, I am quick with the comebacks, but Gabriela makes me nervous.
“Did Kane or Axel talk to you?” I ask.
I can only assume they told her about me taking over the Luna duties. At least I hope it was that, and nothing to do with Braden ...
Her stoic expression morphs into confusion, and I zip my lips. If Kane or Axel did not talk to her, then I am not about to drop either of those bombs.
“Never mind.” I wave away the question, and. “Can I get you something to drink, or ...”
“No, thank you,” she cuts me off and sits on the sofa. “Just a conversation.”
“Okay,” I swallow hard, and take a seat. “What do you want to talk about?”
“I’m going to be straight with you,” she says, folding her hands in her lap.
A wave of nausea passes over me. Oh Goddess, this is nerve-wrecking. This can be about a million things. Like, I am unfit for her sons. Or that I am an embarrassment to the Constantine pack.
“I believe Alice will be a dreadful Luna,” she blurts out, and if I were not sitting, I would have fainted.
Wait, what?
“Surely you’re not surprised to hear that.” She laughs lightly. “I take my job very seriously, and I need my successor to care for the other wolves in our pack as much as they care about themselves. And Alice is about as selfish as it gets.”
No. Way. Gabriela is not here to tell me how much she hates me; she is here to talk shit about Alice. What kind of Twilight Zone am I in right now?
“I don’t disagree,” I finally reply, after recovering from the shock. “But that’s the last thing I thought you would say.”
Gabriela looks at me intensely, and I must fight the urge to squirm in my seat.
“What do you really think of Kane and Axel?” She asks the one question I am not willing to answer honestly.
Where do I begin?
I hate that they did not even bother to hide their disappointment when we were matched. I hate that they used their power to cast me off for a she-wolf they liked better. I hate that they so easily agreed to let me go when I proposed my deal. But when we were in bed together, I really did not hate him at all.
And as pathetic as it is, I am still hoping the three of us can somehow end up back there again. But I cannot tell Gabriela any of that.
“I ... uhm, I’m not sure. Our relationship is so new,” I choose my words carefully. I know it is a weak-ass answer, and there is no way she will approve of the truth.
“That’s a very diplomatic answer,” she laughs heartily, with a mischievous twinkle in her eye. “Spoken like a true Luna.”
“Oh, but I’m not ...” I protest, but she holds up her hand, and I immediately stay quiet.
“I know everything is a mess right now,” she says, looking at me sympathetically. “I mean, with this two-mate business. And you’re off worse than any of us.”
“I ... I don’t know what to say,” I stutter. Damn, I already respect Gabriela, but now I am actually starting to like her, too.
“Maybe I should come by a bit later,” She reaches out and pats my knee. “I will bring some alcohol to make this all go down a little easier.”
“It’s never too early for booze,” I laugh sheepishly. What the hell is this? As Kane and Axel’s mother, I did not think she would be this nice.
“I’ve said that very thing myself,” Gabriela nods.
“I don’t know what the boys told you,” she says, standing up and placing a hand on my shoulder. “But as far as I’m concerned, you’re their true mate.”
