The Alpha's Luna in a Strange Land

CHAPTER 16 : Vampire Bane

**NATASHA'S POV**

The air around us was silent. Lord Alexander was still in vampire form, looking in the direction where the wolves were running to. From the way he was looking, I could tell he knew the Lord of the next kingdom. At this moment, I felt relieved as adrenaline began to leave my body.

It was still raining, but the rain had become lighter. The thunder had calmed and there was no more lightning. I used my hands to wipe away the mud that splashed on my face. I didn't dare move towards Lord Alexander as I knew his vampire was still in control of his mind. Instead, I moved to where my bag was lying on the ground and shouldered it. When I turned around, I saw a now-human Alexander who was also naked. I shrieked and turned around, my cheeks heating at the sight of him.

I felt an urge to turn and look at him again as the first glance wasn't enough. I knew it was my wolf trying to make me look around, but I resisted.

"But he is your mate," my internal voice said, trying to convince me to turn. But once again, I held myself back.

"You can turn around now," Lord Alexander's voice rang in my ears.

I turned around slowly and found him buttoning a shirt. I was surprised because he didn't have clothes on when he arrived here. I looked at him completely confused.

"We keep changes of clothes throughout the woods for situations like this," he said as he kept staring at me.

His gaze was heated, but not in a s****l way. It seemed like he was holding back his anger. I didn't dare say anything because I was afraid of saying something that would make him angrier. He opened his mouth to talk, but immediately closed it right after. I stood there, staring at him, still waiting for him to say something.

Hours ago, I was crying because I thought I would never be able to see him again. But now he was in front of me, and I didn't know what to say.

Suddenly, the rain started falling heavily. At this point, I could feel the cold and started shivering. Lord Alexander was still staring at me without any words. Though it was dark, I was able to see his angry face thanks to the lightning that was striking now. The thunder, on the other hand, added to the silence of the environment.

Lord Alexander was completely wet from head to toe. His black, long hair became a passing route for the rain falling on him, and his eyes were covered by his hair.

Lord Alexander's eyes shifted from my face to the bag I was carrying on my shoulder. A wave of shame washed over me. I felt like I had been caught red-handed, and guilt settled over my heart, weighing it down with its heaviness. I had been sure of my decision to run away, but when I saw the hurt on Lord Alexander's face, I knew I had been wrong. Hurting him was something I would never want to do.

"Let's get back to the kingdom now," he turned away from me and started in the direction of his territory.

I fell into step with him as we made our way back to his kingdom. We walked a few meters in awkward silence. The only sound that could be heard was the rain coming down from above and the low rumble of thunder in the distance.

I kept stealing glances his way, trying to ascertain his current emotional state. I tried my best to figure out how he was feeling, but I didn't know him very well.

"Thank you," I whispered timidly, still fearful of his next move. He grunted in response and continued walking. I struggled to keep up with his pace, taking two steps for every one he took. I wanted to ask him to slow down, but realizing that silence was the best response, I remained quiet.

Lost in keeping up with his pace, I failed to watch where I was going and suddenly tripped over a root, falling towards the forest floor. Before I could hit the mud, Alexander caught me in his arms. We stood like that for a moment, until we were jolted back to reality by the sound of thunder. He then helped me to my feet and he started walking without saying a word.

"Lord Alexander, wait," I called out to him. He turned, his face showing dissatisfaction, and I could tell something was bothering him.

"What, Natasha?" His tone conveyed annoyance, and it pained me to hear him speak to me that way.

"Are you angry with me?"

Lord Alexander chuckled, turned away, and continued walking. I ran up from behind him, grabbed his arm, and forced him to stop, standing in front of him. The rain was cold on my skin, but to Lord Alexander, it seemed as if nothing was happening. The rain continued to wash away the mud from my body, but some mud found its way into places it shouldn't be.

"Lord Alexander," I said, looking into his blood shot eyes. "I can see that you're upset."

"If you can see it in my eyes, then why are you asking such a stupid question, Natasha?" he replied with exasperation. "Now move. The rain is going to get harder, and you need to get warm."

"I'm sorry, Lord Alexander. I'm sorry for hurting you, I didn't mean to."

His eyes narrowed at me. "And why exactly were you running away?"

I opened my mouth, ready to tell him everything, but then quickly clamped it shut. This was not a discussion I could have with him, no matter how much I wanted to. My true identity had to remain a secret.

"Right, another thing you're planning on withholding from me," he said. He walked around me and continued toward his kingdom.

"I really thought I was doing what was best for both of us," I whispered as my voice trailed off.

Lord Alexander turned around suddenly, walking right up to me, and stared into my eyes with intensity.

"You don't get to decide for me, Natasha. You don't get to decide what's best for me and what's not. Your leaving was the farthest thing from being the best for me. What you did was careless and selfish."

I hung my head in shame, acknowledging that his anger was justified. I had no leg to stand on in that moment.

"My patrols of vampires are searching every corner of the kingdom for you, and here you are, telling me that your actions were for the best. You hurt my vampire and you hurt me as well. You put us through hell."

"I'm sorry," I said, trying to calm the situation.

"I'm tired of you keeping secrets from me. I know you're lying about having amnesia. You don't have amnesia, and I know you're running away from something or someone. The wolf attack on you confirmed my suspicions. I want to trust and protect you in my kingdom, but how can I do that when I barely know you?"

My heart ached inside my chest. I knew he deserved the truth, but I didn't know exactly why Damien was after me. All I knew was that he had killed my husband and my mother and had forcefully wanted me as his wife. However, I didn't want to reveal this to Lord Alexander, at least not here in the forest. I felt genuine remorse and regret for my actions.

"Let me in," he suddenly said, placing his forehead against mine. "Let me help you," he continued, trying to read my mind with his special vampire power.

I knew Alexander was a lord and that he had greater royalty to his kingdom than to me. I was scared that when he found out about my past, he might not want anything to do with a once-married woman, or rather, a widowed Luna like me. He might even hand me back over to Damien.

Quickly, I pulled away from him, breaking the connection. A look of rejection and hurt crossed his face, but it faded as quickly as it appeared.

"We're almost in the kingdom," I said, continuing to walk, with him joining me.

Lord Alexander was everything I needed, but he wasn't mine. I knew there were words I needed to speak, even if the silence between us was comfortable. I needed to ask him about Cynthia and put an end to this drama. I wanted him to look me in the face and tell me if he wanted me or Cynthia.

I looked ahead and could now see the houses and buildings of the kingdom. We were getting closer, so now would be the best time to ask Alexander about Cynthia.

"Alexander," I said, looking up at him as we walked.

I noticed then that Alexander's face had paled, and his movements seemed sluggish. I placed a small hand on his arm to get his attention. He looked down at me, and I watched as his eyes rolled back, and he lost strength, falling onto me.

Thankfully, I caught him with my hands and slowly lowered him to the ground.

"Lord Alexander?" I gently slapped his face, trying to wake him. "Lord Alexander, come on, wake up! You need to wake up!"

Suddenly, blood started coming out of his mouth.

"No, no... please, Lord Alexander, wake up. I can't lose you too," I pleaded, flashes of my husband and mother's deaths rushing back to my mind.

"Help!" I screamed at the top of my lungs.

I looked into the distance and saw the healing center, and thankfully, Desmond emerged from it.

"Desmond!" I screamed as loud as my voice could carry. "Desmond! Over here!"

Desmond heard my voice and his head shot up, searching for where the sound had come from. When his eyes landed on where I was holding Lord Alexander in my arms, they widened, and he rushed over to us, dropping to his knees.

"What happened?"

I shook my head as tears streamed down my face.

"There was an attack... and he... he saved me. Please, Desmond, save his life. I don't want to lose him. I don't know what I'll do without him."