Alle Kapitel von Shadow Luna: Kapitel 1 – Kapitel 10

The heavy, stifling scent of ozone, rain, and wet earth drifted through the open windows of the grand hall, but all I could smell was my own impending doom. The air inside the Crescent Moon packhouse felt thick, suffocating, and heavy with a desperation that had been building for months. "You will smile, Lucia," my stepmother hissed, her voice a sharp whisper that barely carried past my ear. Her manicured, claw-like fingers dug painfully into the flesh of my shoulder, the pressure bruising. "Your pack is falling. Look around you, you ungrateful girl. We are completely bankrupt, our borders are bleeding from ruthless rogue attacks every single night, and the Brook Pack is the only thing standing between us and total slaughter. Do not dare ruin this alliance with your miserable face." I squeezed my eyes shut for a brief second, trying to force down the hot bile rising in my throat, before forcing my eyes open to look across the long mahogany table. My eyes locked onto the man who he

Maximo’s grip on my wrist felt like a band of solid iron, squeezing tight enough that my fingers began to go numb. His chest heaved with a quiet, lethal rage, and his intoxicating scent of cedarwood and winter rain completely surrounded me, trapping me against the cold bedroom wall. His amber eyes burned into mine, demanding an answer that could destroy my entire pack if I gave it."I'll ask you one more time, Lucia," Maximo growled, his voice dropping to a terrifying, vibration-heavy whisper that rattled my bones. "Where did you get that broken silver pendant? Agatha wears the wolf pendant given to her by her savior. This is an exact match to the relic of my family. Did you steal this from her room before you left?"Panic flared hot in my chest, but I forced my eyes to remain wide, glassy, and completely hollow. I couldn't tell him the truth. I couldn't tell him that when I dragged his bleeding body from the burning wreckage five years ago, the heavy silver pendant around his neck ha

I forced my breath to steady, my heart slamming against my ribs like a trapped bird as Maximo took another step toward me on the windy balcony. "It was just my stepmother," I lied, my voice tight as I shoved the phone deep into my pocket, hiding my trembling hands. "She was checking to make sure I hadn't disgraced the Hayes family name yet."Maximo searched my face, his piercing obsidian eyes narrowing with deep suspicion. He clearly didn’t entirely buy my answer, but before he could press me further, his own phone rang, breaking the heavy tension. He pulled it out, glancing at the screen, and his expression instantly hardened into stone."Brook," he answered, his voice dipping into sudden, lethal Alpha authority. He listened for a mere three seconds before his eyes snapped back to me. "Get your coat, Lucia. We're leaving. Now.""What? Where?" I blinked, stumbling slightly as he grabbed my upper arm—not roughly, but with an unyielding grip that brooked no argument."One of my pac

Maximo froze at the base of the grand spiral staircase, his chest rising and falling beneath his black silk shirt as his jaw tightened to stone. The absolute fury that had coated his face just a second ago evaporated, replaced by a sudden, jarring wave of pure shock. He stared at me as I stood trembling on his polished black marble foyer floor.I was a pathetic sight. The cheap cotton coat I wore was frozen stiff, caked in mud and layers of mountain frost. My breath came out in short, ragged white plumes that vanished into the warm air of the house. My lips were a deep, unnatural shade of blue, and my body shook so violently that my knees knocked together. I was clutching my chest with hands that were raw, swollen, and bleeding from the biting frostbite."Lucia..." Maximo’s voice lost all of its booming Alpha authority, dropping into a low, stunned murmur. He took a fast step forward, his heavy boots clicking sharply against the marble. "What happened to you? Why are you in this stat

The suffocating silence stretched between us like a physical wire, tense and ready to snap at the slightest movement. Maximo stood tall at the foot of the leather sofa, his dark obsidian eyes tracking the small movements of my chest as I breathed. He looked incredibly imposing in the morning light, but the absolute, rigid certainty that usually defined his posture seemed faintly altered, clouded by a shadow of confusion he couldn't quite shake."You should have told the guards to wait for you, Lucia," he said finally, his deep voice unusually quiet as he broke the silence. He didn't use his roaring Alpha command, but the words still carried a heavy weight of accusation. "Wandering into the neutral border ridges alone at night is a suicide mission. If you wanted to throw a tantrum because I prioritized Agatha’s safety, you could have done it within the safety of my perimeter walls."A sharp, bitter sting pricked the back of my eyes, but I forced myself to stare directly into his cold