Jordan casts a disgusted gaze at the warrior, his personal scapegoat, it seems. I am not sure how they bribed him in the first place, but I certainly hope it was worth the money for the humiliation he is going to face now. “Be glad we are short on men, or I would have killed you on the spot.”
“The man was honest,” Elder Frank says. “He fell into the trap of the luna. He had no chance.”
“Maybe,” Jordan snarls. “I will keep an eye on you. Now get lost.”
He doesn’t need to repeat his words, as the guy basically scrambles out of the room, his eyes wide with fear.
“I have everything we need,” the third elder says. He brings a bowl with a silver knife, handing it to Jordan first, waiting for him to cut his palm. Drops of red blood drip down into it. Then, Frank pours the contents of a vial into it.
“What’s this?” Arthur asks.
“A witch’s potion mixed with the alpha’s blood. It will break the bond between him and his mate,” Frank sneers. Once done, he hands Jordan the bowl. “It’s on you, Alpha.”
Jordan just smirks when he looks at me. “Hold her in place, Clemmens,” he commands. Clemmens’ hands tremble when he presses me down onto my knees. Jordan steps closer, grabbing me by my hair and pulling my head back. I am certainly notgoing to help him in any way, but he is strong enough not to need any help. “Hold her head,” he snarls.
Clemmens obliges, casting his eyes away from me while he does so. Meanwhile, Jordan clasps my face, his fingers digging into either side of my cheeks until my jaw is forced open. “Finally,” he whispers while he starts pouring the liquid into my mouth. Then he clasps his hand over my nose, forcing me to swallow it all. He smiles down at me. It’s a happy smile, but equal parts cold and vile.
For a moment, nothing happens, then slowly I feel something churn inside me. It’s like my insides are set on fire, as if I am burned from the inside out. Jordan lets go of me, his face grimacing in pain as well. “I reject you, Rosea Hall, as my mate and luna.”
He says more, his voice mixing with other voices, but I can’t tell what’s being said. My body is shaking and trembling. Whatever they fed me can’t be legal. I don’t know how it works, but I know one thing for certain: it’s eating and burning up my bond to Jordan.
In a peculiar, twisted way, I am finally set free from him. I just don’t know if I will survive this.
Distantly, I can hear a knocking sound against the door. Between the waves of nausea and pain, I can make out the door opening slightly.
“Come in, child.” Elder Frank says, now sounding gentle all of a sudden.
Clara enters the room, and one look at her face tells me this poor kid is terrified. “I am here. I have heard… but…”
“Don’t worry, dear,” Elder Frank says, his voice sickly sweet. “We are not expecting a child from you immediately.”
By the goddess! What is wrong with this guy? Clara is barely legal, yet they want Jordan to have his way with her? Clara herself looks white like a sheet. It’s one thing to be subtlycourted and praised by the alpha, but an entirely different thing to suddenly be forced to become his chosen mate. To become his breeding machine.
She is a naïve child who has no idea what is going on.
Clara’s gaze wanders towards me, and I must truly look horrible for the way her eyes widen in horror.
Jordan frowns. “Take her away, Clemmens!”
Clemmens nods, hurrying to pull me up to my feet and dragging me out of my room. He keeps saying something, but I can’t make out any words. I barely notice where we are walking and who else we meet. Only when I fall into the comfort of my bed do I realize I am back in my room.
The noises from outside keep getting louder and then quieter again. Sometimes it feels like someone is screaming right next to me, while at other times everything sounds so far away. How much time has passed?
…sea!
There is something warm reaching out towards me. And then something cold.
“Luna,” a voice whispers. A sharp smell enters my nostrils, startling me. My stomach revolts, but before I can throw up all over myself, there is a bucket in front of me, and someone moves my head over it. “Finally, out with it,” the voice mutters.
I know that voice. It’s… “Marie?” I whisper.
“One of the omegas alerted me,” she mutters.
“But how…”
“I have my ways to sneak around,” she says, before a second wave of nausea hits me. Marie keeps holding the bucket and pulls my hair to the side. She rubs my back gently. “I don’t know what they gave you. I thought something to help you throw up could be beneficial now. I am sorry for the discomfort, though.”
“Don’t be,” I mutter. “For all I know, you might have just saved my life.”
