Bound By The Moon: The Eternal Bond - Chapter 40: Chapter 40

The air inside the room was heavy-thick with silence and the scent of tension. Aiden, Jessy, and Julia knelt on one knee, heads bowed, sweat gliding down their temples.
Valen paced before them like a caged predator. His dark cloak snapped with every sharp turn, boots striking the stone with thunderous precision. Power coiled around him-restrained, but only barely.
"You thought I wouldn't know?" His voice was low and lethal. "That my own warriors could scheme behind my back and walk away untouched?"
No one spoke.
"You planned this idiocy. And you-" He stopped in front of Julia, his eyes burning into her. "How dare you go against me?"
Julia's fingers curled tightly against her thigh.
"You had no right to act on your own. You endangered everyone-yourself included. I should've known better than to let you run wild like some loose mutt."
His voice rose-louder, sharper. Then crack-his fist slammed into the table beside him. The pendant that was now reduced to shards shifted under the impact, drawing his attention.
He stared down at the shards in silence, then slowly picked one up-examining it as if it held answers. When he looked at Julia again, his eyes were colder.
"Did you know anything about this?" he asked.
Jessy and Aiden both lifted their heads to glance at her, wondering the same thing.
"I don't know," Julia said, voice calm but heavy. "I was about to ask the same."
Valen narrowed his gaze. "Back at that party-you asked me about it. I knew something was wrong when you wandered off with Lily. I should've pushed harder."
He stepped closer, looming over her like a shadow.
"About your mind-reading... It was the pendant, wasn't it?"
Julia froze. Her mind flashed back. That pendant-it had granted her strange abilities, subtle whispers of power she hadn't understood until too late. Now it was shattered. And she felt... hollow. As if a part of her had died with it.
Valen had once mentioned it was his mother's. Said he never noticed anything unusual. No wonder Lily had been so obsessed. She wanted it-for whatever twisted magic she served.
She still couldn't believe how Lily had changed. From indifferent lady... to full-blown villain.
Aiden finally broke the silence. "Maybe the late Luna knew what the pendant really was. That's why she passed it on-maybe even knowing it had power."
Valen looked down at the shards in his palm. Now that it was destroyed, he doubted it would ever work again. But that was a problem for later-right now, too much else hung in the balance.
He exhaled slowly. Then-too calm-he spoke.
"The Alpha King has been quiet far too long. You think that's a good thing? You think he's just sitting on a throne, playing chess with himself?"
He met their gazes, one by one. When his eyes landed on Aiden, the poor wolf-who'd only just relaxed-began to sweat again.
"Every move you make... hands him another piece."
Valen turned to Julia, his voice now low but sharp, like a knife just before it cuts.
"I'll have someone investigate it. What the pendant truly was. What it was meant for. And what it released when it broke."
Julia's head rose slightly, searching his face. "But... it's shattered. What if it's lost its power? Can it even be fixed?"
Valen said nothing.And his silence chilled the room more than any threat ever could.
Before anyone could respond, the room doors burst open with a hollow clang.
Ryker stormed in, face grim. He bowed to Valen, then nodded at Julia.
"My Alpha. There's news. The Northern Pack has moved."
Valen stiffened, the other three raising there heads to him with curiosity
"Speak." He commanded.
Ryker hesitated only a moment. "It's... not good. The spy I planted reports that Damon is conducting experiments. In the basements. On the slaves."
He paused then continued. "He's creating something. Twisted warriors. Bigger than werewolves-twice the size, with spines like bone spears. Something feral. Not just muscle... rage. They don't bleed right."
A chill swept the room like frost. "And the Southern Pack..."Ryker continued. "There are whispers. Rumors that we possess a cursed pendant. Forbidden magic. The other packs... they're starting to believe we're dabbling in the dark arts."
Jessy blurted out, fury burning in her eyes. "That's-!"
Valen raised a hand making her shut up, still fuming.
"The Alpha King makes a move," he said, his voice laced with bitter amusement. "Took him long enough."
Julia stood abruptly , fire erupting in her chest. "My pendant wasn't cursed. It's Lily-she's the one spreading these lies. The North is the one practicing that kind of magic. Not us. And now they're using it to turn the other packs against us?"
Valen, now seated, tapped his fingers on his wine glass. The silence returned-dense, painful to the ear.
Then he spoke, voice quiet as a blade drawn in the dark.
"Ryker. Spread word to the scouts. I want eyes in every shadow between here and the Northern borders. If Damon's breeding monsters... we need to know what makes them bleed."
Ryker gave a sharp nod.
Valen didn't look up, his gaze fixed on the floor. "Tell the Southern envoy we hold no cursed relic. And if they doubt me-they can say it to my face."
Jessy was a hundred percent sure that the Southern Pack had trust in their Alpha, so that wasn't a problem at all.
Valen stood from his chair and walked to the window, staring outside, the view from letting him see a part of his territory from above
"And if the Alpha King wants to play the devil with blood and bones... then we'll show him what hell really looks like."
He turned sharply to the others. Barking orders.
"Aiden. Jessy. Your punishment will wait. For now, I need soldiers who don't flinch when monsters come knocking."
They both nodded quickly, then stood up-feeling a little bit relieved.
"And you, Julia..." Valen's eyes locked with hers, unreadable and hard. "You're not off the hook either. That pendant wasn't cursed-but it was something. And if Lily knew... others might know too."
He shifted his gaze to Ryker. "You'll take her to the witch we captured last moon. If anyone knows relics older than war itself, it's her."
Julia's brows furrowed. "A witch?"
"We still have that witch locked beneath the west wing? She hasn't said a word in weeks. What if she doesn't talk?" Ryker asked.
Valen's voice turned to ice. "Then cut off her tongue."
Everyone fell still. Julia frowned. The last thing she wanted was to face a witch-but Lunas didn't get to choose their timing. So she straightened her back and raised her chin. This was her duty now.
"Don't worry, my king. I'll drag words out of the witch's throat," she said, almost smiling.
"Good. I'm done playing nice," Valen continued. "This stopped being about pride a long time ago. Now? It's war. And if we don't play our cards right, things may end badly. Which is unlikely. "
A slow smile tugged at his lips-but there was no warmth in it.