His Missing Luna

CHAPTER 43

NATHAN

LIES, CHALLENGES, TRUTH

“Alpha Nathan, control your wolf!” Alpha Samuels commands, his voice echoing through the grand hall. Though an alpha, his command doesn’t work on me.

I only obeyed out of respect for his position as the head of the Council and this hearing.

“Alpha Nathan, this is a meeting, and you will not disrupt it, regardless of what Alpha Kizziah says or does. Are we clear?”

Taking a deep breath, I force Declan to retreat, Jessica’s touch aiding me. “Perfectly,” I snarl, then turn to her, kissing her knuckles. “Sorry about that,” I apologize to her before looking at the elders. “Do forgive my wolf and me.”

Elder Matthews nods with a small smile before speaking. “Thank you, Alpha Nathan.” Then turns to Kizziah, “Alpha Kizziah, refrain from calling Miss Jessica your son’s mate for the rest of this meeting. Your son too. Are we clear?”

“But…” Kizziah starts to argue before another alpha warns him of the consequences of disobeying their order.

“You may continue,” De Santos urges Kizziah.

Kizziah glares at me before continuing, “As I said, no one was forcing her. Jessica willingly agreed to the mating.”

“That’s a lie!” Jessica’s voice is strong and clear, cutting through the tension in the room. “I never agreed to mate with Saul. I was given no choice. They forced me that day!”

A murmur runs through the council members, their eyes now focused intently on Jessica.

“Miss Jessica, can you elaborate on what you mean by coerced?” De Santos asks, leaning forward with genuine interest.

Jessica takes a deep breath, her gaze never wavering. “I was told that if I didn’t agree to the mating, Saul would force himself on me and no one would interfere. I had no choice,” her voice breaks and I capture her palm in mine, squeezing firmly.

The council members exchange looks of concern and disbelief. Samuels raises a hand to silence the murmurs. “This is a serious accusation, Alpha Kizziah. How do you respond to this?”

Kizziah’s face turns red with anger and desperation. “She’s lying! She’s just trying to discredit my pack and my family.”

“Enough,” Samuels says, his voice authoritative. “We will investigate these claims thoroughly. For now, we need to proceed with the rest of the hearing.”

“Just a second, Alpha Samuels. Miss Jessica, before you elaborate further on this isue, I want to ask you some quick questions,” De Santos says, leaning forward with genuine interest. “Is that okay?”

“Yes, elder,” she replies.

“Thank you, sweetheart,” a mischievious smile plays on his lips as he casts me a brief glance.

JESSICA/AMERIE

“Do you have any recollection of how you arrived at the Montana pack? Do you have any memories of your parents?” the alpha asks me.

“No, Alpha. I have no recollection of who I am,” I answer sadly. Though I have my mate and his family, I still yearn for my real parents.

“And how did they treat you while you were with the alpha and his family?”

“They made me their slave until some months ago when they told me I was going to be mated to Saul and give him pups that will be like me,” I can recall Kizziah’s words that day.

“Care to clarify what you mean by ‘Like me’?” Elder Samuels asks, scrunching his brows.

Kizziah’s gaze met mine, his voice dropping into my head. “You ungrateful b***h!”

Ignoring his words, I explain everything to the elders. Nathan sends me an encouraging nod and smile when I finish.

All the council members direct their gazes at Kizziah and Saul.

“Alpha Kizziah, these are serious accusations leveled against you and you son. What do you have to say?” one elder asks.

“Surely, you can’t believe the words of this girl. She’s delusional. Everything she said never happened,” Kizziah defends himself.

“Then, how come she was about to be forcibly mated to your son? If Alpha Hunt hadn’t come, your son would have marked and mated her,” Alpha Matthew throws at him.

“She’s lying! She’s the one after my son!” Kizziah lied through his teeth. “She made him fall in love with her so she could be his Luna!”

“Lies!” I scream at his falsehoods.

“Why are you lying, Jessica? You said you loved me,” Saul suddenly speaks in a broken voice, tears rolling down his cheeks, lips trembling, leaving me dumbstruck. “You begged me to make you my Luna.”

I look at my mate, wanting to see his reaction, but his eyes are already on Saul. If looks could kill, Saul should be dead by now.

Saul turns to the elders. “Elders, please implore Alpha Hunt to return Jessica to me. I love her. Ever since he took her from me, I haven’t been myself. I can’t eat or sleep…”

“Liar!” a loud growl from me fills the place, shaking the furniture and windows. “You piece of s**t! You pervert! Sneaking into my room to touch and sniff me.”

Saul’s eyes flicker for a moment but return to their broken state. “My love, I was watching over you as you slept. You don’t know how beautiful you look when you do so.”

“You’re clearly insane!” I spit out, anger boiling inside me like the waves of a storm.

“Sniffing and touching your skin is my wolf’s way of seeking our bond,” Saul presses on, playing the part of a love-sick puppy. “I miss you, my love.”

I feel disgusted as he calls me his love and release a louder growl that rattles not only the windows and furniture but also vibrates through the walls of the place.

My thoughts run wild, seeking to rip the tongue out of this liar, to break every one of his fingers, the same fingers that touched me.

I start to picture this happening to him, feeling the familiar tingles in my hands, about to raise my hands up in the air, when Nathan’s voice whispers from behind me.

“Flower, stop thinking.”

He grabs me from behind, turning me to him and pressing a kiss to my forehead.

“You need to relax. Your eyes are glowing,” he says, swiping his palm over my face, covering my eyes. I feel the heat burning beneath my lids.

“Can you please tell the alpha to stop touching my mate?” Saul pleads with them, forgetting the order not to do so.

Nathan whips his head back at him, snarling, loudly.

Alpha Samuels snarls at him too. “Didn’t we specifically order you and your father not to refer to her as your mate during this meeting?”

“I apologize,” Saul quickly says, realizing his mistake.

“You will be fined a hundred thousand dollars for disobeying the orders of the Council,” Alpha Samuels fines him and the Clerk types it immediately.

“Alpha Kizziah, something isn’t right with what we have heard so far from you, your son, and Miss Jessica. We believe you are hiding the truth,” Alpha Matthews says, looking suspiciously at the father and son. “And if we do find out the truth later, we won’t hold back on inflicting heavy punishments on you two.”

“I am not lying,” Kizziah defends himself, puffing his chest out, acting the part of an honest person. “How can you believe the words of a girl I allowed to live in my pack and under my roof for years.”

“Let’s hope so for your own good,” De Santos shakes his head, leaning back into his seat. “You can sit down,” he tells them.

“Alpha Hunt?” Samuels called my mate. “Do you have anything to say?”

My mate turns to Kizziah and Saul, giving each a menacing glare. “I do, actually. This alpha is lying, and I will find out the truth. When I do, I will challenge whoever is alpha of the pack, and it will be a fight to the death.”