The Alpha King's Contracted Luna by Nelson Claudia

Chapter 209

Chapter 209

-Grayson'’s POV-

Kiss

69

The debt | owed to Luther Pierce-one | never wanted to acknowledge-had been paid, and because of that, he

would live to see another day and in a twist of fate | never could have predicted a year ago, he and | were now

allies.

Because now, we had a common enemy.

Damien Cross.

| would have never seen it coming. If someone had askedto try to pinpoint the mastermind behind the

chaos, the killings, and the destruction, Damien wouldn't have even made the list.

He had been insignificant. Unnoticed. A shadow lurking in the background.

The only reason | had ever acknowledged his existence was because of how close he had been to Ava. That

alone had been enough to makehate him, but | hadn’t thought much beyond that. | hadn't seen him as a

threat. | hadn’t considered him capable of anything beyond being an annoyance.

Little Dove, my foot

But | had to give him credit. He was good. Extremely good. He had played his insignificance well, so well that he

had managed to orchestrate everything without anyone suspecting him. He had taken calculated hits, and Liam,

who had now vanished off the face of the earth right alongside him was just one if his foot soldiers.

So while Liam had been a pawn, Damien was the mastermind.

For the last week, | had worked tirelessly to reclaim my position, to solidify my power. And while the climb back

to the top hadn't been as difficult as | had imagined, it carried an unfamiliar weight-a touch of vulnerability.

Because the entire realm knew | didn’t have my wolf.

They knew | wasn't at full strength.

But | was still King-and that wasn’t going to change. Wolf or not, | was going to find Damien and make him regret

the moment he decided to interfere in Ava’s life from the very second she was born.

Ava.

| didn’t think there would ever ca twhen just thinking her nwouldn't affect me. But | also knew-

anyone

be Ava.

But no one could be Ava Pierce.

And | had been right. She hadn't forgiven me.

Not like | had expected her to even though she had gone through all of it just to get to me. The moment she

regained consciousness after being unconscious for five days, she was gone.

could

And every night for those five days, | had sat by her bedside, watching her sleep, knowing that the moment she

woke up, | would lose her again. Knowing that when her eyes finally opened, | would see the truth-the realization

that she would never forgivefor what | had done.

But | hadn’t gone after her.

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Chapter 209

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Whatever she needed to deal with, | would let her.

Because deep down, | knew that when the tcame, | would have to beg-grovel, if necessary-to earn back

even a sliver of what | had lost.

For now, | had to focus on fixing my own shit.

“You okay?”

The voice snappedout of endless thoughts and | looked up from the company files scattered across my desk,

my eyes meeting Elaine’s as she stood at the doorway.

She was hesitant-unsure if she should step inside.

| forced a small smile. “I'm fine. Just trying to-"

“Flush Liam out?” She sighed, stepping further into the office.

I nodded. “Easier said than done.”

Things between us had changed. We hadn’t spent much ttogether, but since the vault, something had

shifted.

She wasn't just Elaine anymore. She was someone | had been trapped with, someone who had endured the

shorror | had. And that changed things. The family bond that had existed when we were little had clicked

back into place even though neither of us were sure of how to approach it now that so much had happened

between both of us.

My gaze flickered to her hand, which rested against her stomach-a subconscious act, no doubt. A mother’s

instinct to protect her child.

A child that had never existed.

“I'm really sorry, Elaine.”

Kings don’t apologize. But | had found myself saying those words more times than | cared to count.

She sank into the chair across from me, her eyes drifting downward, “I guess | can’t really be sad about a child |

never had,” she murmured, “Besides, after everything he’s done, maybe it’s better this way. It would've made

things so much harder.”

She shook her head, her expression unreadable. “I still can’t believe it.”

| said nothing. Because, honestly, | didn’t know what to say.

What could | say? That Liam had been a monster? That | would make sure he suffered for what he did? Because

he would and when | found him, it didn’t matter our history, | would make his suffering excruciatingly painful due

what he had done to Elaine.

And so, we sat there in silence, the weight of everything pressing between us.

Finally, she broke it.

“I actually cto ask if it'd be okay forto move back in here,” She said, her voice quieter now. “Monica

says | can stay as long as | want, but with her new boyfriend, | feel like I'm intruding.”

Monica.

Someone | never thought | would owe a thank you to, but somehow, | did.

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Chapter 209

She had been the one to play the concerned friend. She had gone to Ava. And that had led to Isabella selling

Kitong ho that had led to them all trying to rescue us,

So, as much as it pissedoff to admit it, | owed her a thanks and maybe even more,

And | had already thanked Rickon, despite first telling him that | didn’t appreciate his stunt,

| focused back on Elaine, nodding, “The apartment is yours. That's never going to change. If you need help

moving, 1 can make a couple of calls.”

She stared atfor a long moment,

And then-

“In sixteen years,” She murmured, “that’s the first tyou actually sound like you care”

I didn’t know what to say to that. So, once again, | said nothing,

And neither did she.

The silence stretched between us, and for a moment, | thought that was the end of the conversation.

But then-

“Have you heard from Ava?” She asked suddenly.

My jaw clenched, “No.”

She tilted her head, studying me. “And you're not going to go looking for her?”

“No.”

A pause.

Then-her lips curled into something that wasn’t quite a smirk.

“Touchy subject there, | see.”

| didn’t respond. Because | didn’t need to. We both knew the answer. Silence stretched between us, thick and

heavy, before she finally spoke again, “I guess I'll leave you to it.”

She pushed back her chair and stood up, but just as she turned to leave, | spoke, “Elaine, wait.”

She stopped, glancing back atwith a hint of curiosity in her gaze.

“Would you like to do something?”

She arched a brow, “Like what?”

| hesitated. | wasn’t sure what exactly | wanted to do-I just knew | didn’t want to sit here drowning in my

thoughts.

Then she smiled, a small, knowing smile. “Well, you do have a theater room. One that | don’t think you've ever

stepped foot

in.”

She wasn’t wrong. | had it built unconsciously, or maybe deliberately, because | knew how much she loved

watching

cartoons.

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Chapter 209

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I glanced at the papers spread out before me, the weight of responsibility pressing against my chest, but then

she cleared her throat softly.

“Or,” She said, “we could do it another time.”

| shook my head, “No. | can get back to this later.”

Her smile returned, a little softer this time, and she nodded.

| pushed back my chair and got up, walking toward the door first, Elaine falling into step beside me.

Then my phone beeped.

I pulled it out, glancing at the screen. A text from Carter and | opened it immediately: | think you'd better get

your ass to Italy.

My grip tightened around the phone as | read the next line.

She’s not just in Italy, Grayson. She’s with him.

Then a photo followed.

| paused, staring at the screen, making sure | was seeing clearly.

Ava.

Ricardo.

Together.

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