I settled back in the seat, in the cacophony of the chatter melding together. Bruno tapped at the iPad where he marked down all the information and calendars I needed to keep track of. Since I’d given him free rein to take charge of all disputes, it was already minimizing my workload.
39
The crowd parted as shifters caught sight of me. I approached the platform Lucian stood on, addressing the pack.
I had stuck to our room for most of the Blood Moon Celebration, in a funk. All I could think about was Dad. How Cierra had taken him away from me because of petty jealousies. I allowed myself to mourn and cry for what could have been.
Shifters lowered their head as I passed. I’d listened to Lucian’s speech until he finished. The lies Cierra had committed. How she’d killed Sorin and then consequently killed Samantha. How we returned Samantha’s body to her family. How Cierra’s family chose to leave the pack. Only when he was done did I start to move through the crowd in eerie silence.
Lucian held his hand out for me. I took it and rose onto the wooden platform. The robe, similar to the rest many wore tonight, fluttered around my ankles in the breeze.
“Bring in the traitor,” Lucian ordered. The shuffling of feet came from the back of the crowd. It parted as Bruno dragged a stumbling Cierra forward until they were at the base of the platform. He shoved her forward, and she fell flat onto it.
“Luna,” he intoned.
Lucian squeezed my hip, and it was the encouragement I needed. I stepped forward and crouched. Her hands were tied behind her back. I gripped her hair hard and pulled until she was sitting upright—a sneer fixed on her expression.
“You’re going to rot,” I hissed in her ear, tightening my grip even more. She flinched, her eyes pinching at the corners, yet her smile spread. Such rage raced through my stomach, and I brought my fist down on her face. Blood spattered across my face. But it felt good. So I did it again. And again.
She landed on her back, and I tossed my leg over her to straddle her. I beat her until my hands were slicked with claret and her face a bloody mess. Cuts scattered her face, and I was sure her nose was broken.
The silence was eerie. I didn’t bother looking at the shifters. This was for me.
Cierra rolled into a fetal position, raggedly panting.
Lucian stepped on her neck, and with a quick move, a loud snap echoed through the clearing. She flopped, lifeless, her head lolling. I couldn’t look away from her blank eyes.
I’d finally avenged my dad.
The moon settled at the highest peak in the sky.
A shiver coasted down my back, the energy in my body sizzling for release. Lucian shucked off his robe, and all other shifters took the signal and began to shift.
I couldn’t take my eyes away from my mate. Sexy, powerful, muscled. My eyes stayed glued to my name on his ribs.
The edges were slightly red and swelled, but had begun to heal nicely.
Fuck, he drove me crazy. I licked my lips and swayed toward him.
He shifted and tossed his head back.
The cacophony of howls broke through the clearing. Shifters took to the woods, leaving us alone.
With my next breath, he shifted back and turned to me, eyes feverish. I didn’t run like I had last time. My craving for him was too violent and ravenous.
He came at me so fast that all I had a chance to do was rip off my robe. We clashed together with fiery passion.
He shoved his tongue inside my mouth, kissing me hungrily. I met his fervor, digging my nails into his shoulders. He picked me up in a smooth motion and lowered to his knees with the same move. He was fucking strong. My sex settled over his jutting cock, the shaft pressing against the slit of my sex. I moaned, writhing against the pressure.
Lucian pulled back from my lips with a growl, and he flipped me onto my knees. He slammed inside my sex in the same motion. I screamed, jolting my hips for more of the delicious pleasure he wrought. He rutted into me, the slap of his thighs against the back of mine flaring my lust to a pinnacle.
He’d thrust once, and I was close to coming, but his pace didn’t slow, not allowing me to catch my breath. Lucian continued fucking me, hard.
I sank my fingernails into the crack in the wooden platform, reveling in the delicious claiming. Electrical pulses wracked my frame, and I squeezed my eyes shut, the pleasure so intense, tears squeezed free. I pressed my cheek against the ground.
Cierra’s body remained still and unseeing.
“You have my heart and soul, mate,” Lucian rumbled against my ear, forcing my attention away from the corpse.
