The Luna Trials by Marissa Gilbert Read Online
Chapter 49
Petra screamed, but Savannah didn’t hear her. She was holding Kai in her hands and looking for a pulse that wasn’t there.
It wasn’t there!
She checked his wrists and neck, but she couldn’t find it. She tried listening to his heart with her lycan hearing, but something was wrong because she didn’t hear anything.
It had to be wrong! Obviously, he had to have a heartbeat’ This.. this couldn’t be happening! It couldn’t end like this! She loved him, and he loved her They were supposed to have their whole life together He was supposed to place his mark on her in a few minutes, and she was ready She was finally ready to be loved and to trust again.
Because of him… Because he helped her heal. Because thanks to him she now knew what real love was And it was so much more than just this physical attraction This couldn’t be it for them!
The priestess not far from them fell to her knees and started chanting some kind of an old northern prayer. Savvy didn’t mind. She was praying for a miracle too now.
Rannon!
Riannon would know what to do. The Moon Goddess blessed her sister-in-law! The divine power would protect her and help them save everyone else.
It wasn’t ending like that!
Savvy turned her head to look at where her brother sat and saw him breathing heavily and holding his pregnant wife in his arms. The table before them was overturned Gideon probably knocked it off to see his little sister while still trying to save his mate.
Pregnant. Riannon was pregnant! She couldn’t be dying! She couldn’t be dead! But she looked so pale and lifeless now.
Petra screamed louder, and Savannah’s eyes locked with her brother’s as he tore the upper b*ttons of his shirt. His eyes glowed golden, the colour of their family lycans. He was trying to shift, but something was stopping him. Riannon was lying breathless in his arms, and Savvy shook her head.
It couldn’t be Elene made sure everything was triple-checked for tonight All food and wine were tasted before they were sent here. The omegas had their backgrounds checked, especially after she reported the one with a note from Bjorn Only the people Kai trusted were protecting them today They took all precautions necessary.
Savvy sniffed the wine just in case because it was an old habit All royals did it She was sure that Kai and Gideon did it too. She had seen it so many times it didn’t even arouse suspicions in anyone Just a normal thing to do.
So why? How? What went wrong? Who did this? And how could she undo it? How did they end up here? So many questions and thoughts streamed through her brain she felt dizzy.
Savannah looked at a pale omega with the tray in her hands. The one who brought them the wine Both goblets were still there and Athena roared inside of her.
“Get her!” The she-wolf snarled, and Savannah let her have control, charging at the wide-eyed girl and pinning her to the
“Why did you do it?” She growled loudly “I d didn’t the omega stuttered “I swear”
The Lycan Princess unclenched her fingers and kneeled next to the broken glasses She picked up the pieces and smelled then again.
Nothing’
Not wasting line, the moved to the table next to her Celia was still lying face down. Inga on the floor next to her Savvy took the glasses and sulled
Nothing’
One by one, the checked all the glasses on that table and then smashed the last one on the wall The cameraman barely managed to dodge the shards
The cameraman! She noticed him for the first time. He was still conscious
“We have nothing to do with this!” Claude, who stood right next to him, lifted his hands in the air to demonstrate his good intentions Chloe did the same behind his back.
“We are not a part of the ceremony! We didn’t drink the wine!” She tried to explain to the Princess at once to avoid any kind of confusion.
Savannah wasn’t sure if she could trust the words of the two TV presenters. Of course, everyone would insist they were innocent, but were they really?
Claude and Chloe were the last ones to enter the room before Kai and her It was unlikely they had time to meddle with the drinks as they simply couldn’t touch the wine. If it was the wine at all. Why wasn’t there any scent?
“Lyn!” Petra wept. trying to wake up her mentor gently Kyle was still on top of her on the table, as if he tried to protect her with his body.
The realisation that Kyle was dead too made Savvy’s body shudder uncontrollably A sound escaped her throat as she looked around her li was neither a scream nor a sob It was something in between something that signalled that she was irreparably broken from the inside She had just lost everyone she loved in one day.
Shattered, Savvy returned to Kai and lifted him so that his head was on her knees, brushing her fingers over his cheek that was getting colder.
*This is all a dream,” she whispered, shaking her head in disbelief “A bad dream! Come back to me!”
But not a single muscle on his face flinched, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t hear the heartbeat she used to listen to before falling asleep every day Kai’s heart wasn’t beating.
“Savvy!” Gideon’s voice was so weak, but she lifted her eyes full of tears to look at her brother. He was still clenching Riannon but tried to concentrate his gaze on his little sister He tried to say something, but at this point he had trouble forming words.
“Get someone to help!” Savannah shouted at the film crew when she realized that Gideon could still be helped *Run,” her big brother mouthed, and she remembered that Kai had said the same thing
Claude rushed for the main doors, but they swung open right before his nose, and he barely managed to avoid the contact.
Savannah felt him before she saw him. The nauseating scent of mint reached her nostrils, and the physical pull started bothering her again, biting at her from the inside.
Zack Morgan entered the room as if he was the King already, his men tactically circled the whole room from different angles Petra screamed again, but one of the huge bears yanked her and roared at her.
A bear He came together with the bears!
Gideon tried to get up, but a silver spear was placed at his neck by a different warrior. Savvy’s l!ps parted when she looked at the spear They had the identical one back at home.
Not that this was important now.
“Savannah Zack dared to make a sad face when he stared at her, his brows furrowed as if he was really sorry for her. For what he did to her.
Savvy clenched Kai tighter, just to feel him one last time. She couldn’t know if there would ever be an opportunity for it again “it hurts me to see you like this, but you didn’t leave me a choice”
The Western Princess ignored him and bent down to kiss the man she really loved. Kai’s l!ps were getting cold too, and one single tear rolled down her cheek, landing on his lashes She hoped that something would click in the universe, some kind of ancient spell would be awoken, and he would open his eyes and look at her. If this happened, she would be ready to fight the whole world here and now For him and for everyone else
I couldn’t end like this.
Look at all this mess night now, if you think about it you would understand that it’s the Moon Goddess herself making things right’ Zack went on, stepping closer. She needed him to make just a few more steps “We are mates, and she personally chose us for each other I know I made mistakes, but so did you”
Savannah looked at him for the first time, carefully placing Kai’s head back on the ground.
“The Moon Goddess’ She chuckled darkly and met her mate’s gaze with defiance “Sometimes I think that she wanted to punish me by mating us in the first place I wonder what for! What did I do to be cursed by you?!”
“Don’t be like that,” Zack took another step “I couldn’t save your brother, but I came to save you The North has fallen, but you and I can come back to the West together. We can start things fresh! I will mark you and, little by little, we will restore the country together I swear to you, you will never regret it.
She spat the words out, and he clenched his l!ps. “What a nice plan you have! But why do you think that your new master will allow us to leave?”
“I have no master. Just a partner who-”
Savannah laughed She let all her anger and frustration out with this loud resounding laughter Tears formed in her eyes because this was funny indeed.
“Moron!” Sheran her palm over her face and found the strength to stand up “You are just his little d*um*b pawn and nothing more! Nothing has changed! You are still worthless on your own’ Delusional as ever! Where are your people Zack? Where were they last time when he ordered you to have s*e*x with other women, and you obeyed in an instant? What other services were you performing during your stay in the North?*
“Savvy, enough!” He growled, wishing for her to stop as he noticed smirks on the bears” faces “Come to me, and I will take you to safety i was barely able to negotiate to let you live.
*The Moon Goddess is so cruel,” Savannah shook her head and took the last necessary step herself “To mate me with the likes of you It’s probably the biggest insult in my life!”
“Watch your tongue!” Zack had had enough of this He was crazy about this woman, but it wasn’t the first time she had humiliated him like this, and he wasn’t going to tolerate it This dynamic wasn’t working for him and he knew he would have to teach her back from the start.
“Or what?!* The Princess was so close to him now that her intoxicating bluebell scent enveloped him If they were alone, he would have dragged her to bed where she belonged and done all the things he had dreamed of doing for the past few months.
Or I will have to teach you respect even if I don’t want to do it. Don’t make me Savannah Morgan warned her and she placed a hand on his chest, making him shudder from the contact He hadn’t had a chance to touch her for so long and it was everything he craved He needed it on a physical level because nothing else in this world felt so good The separation from her wasn’t easy on him in fact, it was getting harder and harder every day.
Savannah would forgive him one day she would understand why he did all this, and she would accept it Over time, he would make her forget about this day He would give her so many pups that she would have no time to think about it all He was born to make her happy and she was born to do the same for him
*Zack” she whispered, “We haven’t been so close for so long”
“I know.” A smile curled his l!ps involuntarily and he leaned forward so that their foreheads touched “I love you so much, Savvy.
“For that, you would need a heart,” Savannah lifted her chin so that they were looking into each other’s eyes and then she pierced his chest with her sharp royal lycan claws and wrapped her fingers around his beating heart.
His eyes widened from shock and pain Zack couldn’t move. One inch in the wrong direction and he would be dead “Savvy, please * He begged but saw no pity in her eyes His mate looked at him as if he meant nothing to her. “We could still.
“Say that we could be happy together, and I will K*ll you faster!” she promised, and he knew that she was telling the truth because her claws grazed dangerously around his beating heart.
If she got her hand out now and he was lucky, then maybe there was still a chance for him to survive Maybe…
But the Princess’s eyes were cold and dark. He had never seen her like this Not when she rejected him over and over again, not even when she tried to K*ll him last time He had never seen so much hatred in her before today.
“I swear,” Zack’s voice trembled, if we get out of here together, I will spend my whole life trying to make up for everything. I will make you happy again Savvy. I love you, I will find a way,”
“You love me?” She asked through tears with a bitter laugh escaping her. He didn’t love this laughter at all. “And I love Kal” she added mercilessly.
Hearing that hurt him more than her claws tearing his flesh, Until now, he was still sure that she was doing it for the show to help her kingdom He knew they were sleeping together, but once again, he a*s*sured himself that the reason behind that was political She was his mate, they had consummated the bond, and the only thing missing was his mark Savannah couldn’t love another man while she had a male.
The thought alone made him angry! He was an Alpha, after all, and did not plan to share his mate Zack bared his teeth, “You don’t mean that!”
*Oh, I do!” She nodded and wiped her eyes with a free hand “I love him more than anything in this world More than the stars and the moon, more than the sun, more than shifting and running through the forest as a wolf I love him, and I need him as I need air And you. Her voice broke, and she s*cked in a painful breath, “you took him away from me!”
Zack’s wolf growled in agony This was pain like none other because they both knew that she spoke the truth,
“You will forget him, and we…” Zack started saying, but she dug her claws, piercing his heart.
“Goddess, I hate you!” She confessed, looking straight into his face.
“I am your mate-” He tried to reason with her.
“You are a mistake!” Savannah snorted, her words laced with spite.
“Fine” he placed both his hands on the one that held his heart, trying to plead with her “Fine! I will accept your rejection! Whatever you want!”
Savannah didn’t even laugh this time. It wasn’t funny None of this was funny From the corner of her eye, she already saw that her brother Gideon wasn’t moving any longer. The warrior next to him didn’t see the point of holding the spear next to his neck anymore because he could tell that the King of the Western Lycan Kingdom was dead.
Her gaze travelled through the room, seeing the people she liked and cared about without any signs of life and then she returned her attention to the man whose heart she was holding.
“Please,” Zack tried to smile weakly “Just… let me go, and let’s talk I’ll do whatever you want, even if you still want to reject me.
She pulled his heart out so fast that he didn’t even manage to finish the sentence. The blood gushed through the hole in his chest as he stared at his own beating heart in Savannah’s hand The beautiful and strong woman was the perfect picture. She was everything he ever dreamed of and she became the last thing he saw.
“Too late!” Savvy said, void of emotions She hoped that it would bring her some kind of relief, even if just momentarily, but she was wrong Sizzling pain rippled through her as she fell to her knees next to Zack’s body and tried to catch a breath.
It seemed like every bone in her body was breaking, her skin was burning, her breathing ceased to exist. The mate bond was shredding her soul to tiny pieces, and the pain was unbearable. She didn’t have any idea how hurtful it could be Zack hurt her so many times before that she was sure she wouldn’t feel much doing this. Yet she was wrong because she couldn’t stand it any longer.
Everything mixed up in her head like a picture in a kaleidoscope, and she felt she was about to throw up.
‘There, the red two large hands wrapped around her shoulders. “We’ll find a way to mend a broken heart. Although, probably not his.”