The Alpha King's Contracted Luna by Nelson Claudia

Chapter 238

-Ava’s POV

Dylan was a bastard.

I knew it the moment | felt the mating bond with him, and I still don’t understand how the hell that even

happened. Even without my wolf, | had been sure it was him. | knew he was a bastard on the day of our mating

ceremony, and every single day since then, he has done nothing but prove it over and over again.

And today?

Today, he outdid himself.

| called him. I hadn't even gotten a single word out before he cutoff with a voice as cold as death itself, “You

found your way to hell. Stay there.”

Then he hung up.

Stupid, stupid Dylan.

Well, so much for trying to rat Crystal out and hoping Dylan would have enough sense left to pull her out of

whatever mess she was tangled in. He was a lost cause.

“So, | take it that didn’t go well,” Isabella muttered, still scrolling through her phone, her expression blank.

| huffed, shoving my own phone into my pocket. “He's an idiot. And he still remains one.”

The gates ahead creaked open, and our car rolled forward smoothly. The estate was quiet, too quiet for my

liking. | was the first to step out the moment we cto a stop, inhaling deeply. The air was thick, humid, like

the sky was seconds away from splitting open with a storm.

Rickon, my father, and Maria would be arriving soon. Grayson and my mother-if they hadn't killed each other

yet-were supposed to be meeting us back here after tracking down the High Priestess. Once everyone was

together, we'd finally sit down and discuss... everything.

Ricardo had suggested a feast for the occasion.

A feast.

The thought of it had struckas odd when he first mentioned it, but now... now it felt like something else. A

last meal before the battlefield.

A final send-off.

| exhaled sharply and started walking toward the house. My mind was already racing through everything we had

to handle, every piece of the puzzle that still wasn't fitting-

Then it hit me.

A sudden, sharp, blinding pain ripped through my body, white-hot and searing. My knees buckled. A cry tore

from my throat before | could stop it and the world tilted but before I could fall, a hand grabbed my arm.

“Lilian!” Isabella’s voice was sharp, panicked. “What the hell-are you okay?”

| could barely hear her.

The pain—it wasn’t normal. It wasn’t just pain. It was something else. It burned, not on my skin, not in my bones,

but inside

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Chapter 238

me, coiling through every nerve like fire, like my own body was turning against me.

| sucked in a sharp breath, shaking my head, “I'm fine.” | forced out. “I don’t know what just happened”

Liar.

| wasn’t fine. | didn’t know what this was, but it felt wrong.

| took a step forward, willing myself to ignore it, to shake it off but it hit again.

84%

This time, | didn’t just stumble. | fell. My knees slammed into the pavement, and the pain flared so violently that

my vision blurred. My entire body convulsed, every muscle tightening, locking, as if something was clawing

throughfrom the inside out.

Isabella dropped to her knees beside me. “Lilian-what the hell is happening?”

| couldn’t answer, | couldn't think. The pain was suffocating, like | was being crushed from all sides, my own body

turning into a prison.

“Lilian, talk to me!” Isabella grabbed my face, her grip firm, forcingto focus on her. Her eyes, usually

unreadable, were wide with panic. “What's happening to you?”

| tried to speak, but the words wouldn't come. My fingers dug into the pavement, my breath coming in short,

uneven gasps. My skin burned. My blood felt wrong.

Something was happening to me.

I didn’t know what, but | could feel it-something insidewas shifting, unraveling.

Isabella whipped around, shouting at the security team. “Don’t just stand there! Do something!”

The guards moved then, finally, closing in, their hands reaching for their weapons. That was when the the first

gunshot rang

out,

The sound shattered through the air like thunder.

Then another.

And another.

The air was ripped apart by bullets. The men standing closest to us shouted, ducking for cover, but | was still on

the ground; still writhing as another sharp, agonizing wave of pain crashed through me.

Isabella screamed, “What the fuck-"

I.forced my head up, blinking past the haze, past the way the world tilted aroundand then | saw them.

Ricardo’s men. They were the ones attacking. They weren't just attacking. They were slaughtering the men

Grayson had hired to protect me. What the hell was seriously happening right now?

A body hit the ground near me, blood pooling across the pavement.

Isabella grabbed my arm, her voice frantic, “Can you get up?”

I tried. | tried.

But the pain-fuck.

| clenched my teeth, reaching-pulling for my wolf, for her strength, for something to push past this, to fight

through

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Chapter 238

whatever was happening to me.

The gunfire didn’t stop. It kept coming, sharp and deafening, tearing through the air like a storm of metal and

blood. My cars were ringing, my body still wracked with the unbearable pain that wouldn't let up. | clenched my

teeth, trying to breathe through it, trying to focus-but every movement sent another jolt through me, like

something insidewas breaking apart.

Isabella's grip on my arm tightened as she ducked low, eyes darting around. “Why the hell are Ricardo’s men

shooting at Grayson’s guards?!” she hissed. “What the fuck is happening?”

I had no answer.

None of this made sense. If Ricardo’s men were the ones attacking, shouldn't we be trying to get back to his

house instead of running straight into the crossfire? But before | could say it, another body dropped near us with

a sickening thud, and the hot, metallic scent of blood filled the air.

Isabella turned, grabbed my face. “We need to move. Now.”

I sucked in a breath, trying to ground myself, trying to push through the agony still gripping me. “If Ricardo’s

men are the ones shooting,” | forced out through clenched teeth, “shouldn't we be getting back to-"

“Are you out of your mind?!” Isabella cutoff, eyes flashing. “There’s a fucking war zone happening right now,

and you want to waltz over to the people with the guns?!”

| flinched as another round of shots rang out, closer this time. She was right. | wasn’t thinking clearly. The pain

had clouded everything.

“We need cover,” Isabella said firmly, scanning the area. “Inside is safer than standing out here waiting to get

shot.”

She barely finished before she was haulingup with surprising strength, draggingtoward the entrance of

the house. My legs were unsteady, my muscles still trembling, but | forced myself to move, to push through

whatever the hell was happening to me.

Gunfire still cracked behind us, men shouting, bodies hitting the ground. One of Grayson’s guards was still

standing. returning fire, but he was outnumbered. This wasn't a fight. It was a slaughter.

Isabella practically shovedthrough the front doors, slamming them shut behind us. She locked it

immediately before turning to me, breathing hard. “Okay, what the hell is going on with you?”

| braced myself against the wall, my chest rising and falling rapidly. “I don’t know.”

“Bullshit.”

“Isabella-"

“No, Ava. No.” She stalked toward me, her jaw tight with barely contained anger. “You dropped like someone

yanked the fucking floor out from under you, you looked like you were about to pass out, and you're still not

okay. So, tellwhat's wrong.”

0g

| pressed my fingers against my temple, my head pounding. “I don’t know,” | repeated, voice weaker this time.

“It just-hit. Out of nowhere. Like something insidewas tearing apart.”

Isabella swore under her breath, pacing. “This is bad. This is really fucking bad.”

Outside, the gunfire had slowed, but it hadn't stopped. Shouts echoed in the distance-commands, screams,

bodies being dragged.

“Ricardo planned this.” Isabella turned back to me, her voice low, sharp. “This was a setup.”

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My stomach twisted. “No. He is on our vide

“Ava, look outside. She gestured wildly, “Ricardo’s men weren't defending us. They were killing Grayson's

people. If this w just smisunderstanding, why the fuck would they be the ones firing fire?”

She was right. And | hated it.

“So what do we do?” | asked, my voice hoarse.

Isabella exhaled sharply, glancing around. “We need to get the hell out of here before we find out what else

Ricardo has planned.”

I nodded, pushing off the wall. The pain hadn't fully faded, but | could stand. | could move. And I sure as hell

wasn't going to wait around for Ricardo to make his next move.

We had to get out. Now and we made to when a sharp creak echoed through the house suddenly.

Isabella and | both froze.

The gunfire outside had died down to sporadic bursts, but the silence that settled in its place was almost worse.

It felt weighted, like the air itself was thick with something unseen. My breath was uneven, my pulse thudding in

my ears as | forced myself to stay upright. The pain hadn't fully faded-it lingered, curling in my bones, like an

open wound that refused to close.

And then-footsteps.

Steady. Unrushed. Purposeful.

Isabella’s claws extended instantly. My fingers twitched at my sides, but | wasn’t sure if | could even fight.

Whatever had just happened to me, it had drained me, leftraw.

Another step.

Then another.

And then-he stepped into view.

Ricardo.

He wasn’t running. He wasn’t panicked. He wasn’t even armed. He simply walked into the room like he owned it,

his hands in the pockets of his perfectly tailored suit. His dark eyes flicked between the two of us, unreadable,

before his lips curved - into a slow, maddening smile.

“What the hell?!” Isabella snapped, raising her gun. “What the fuck is going on, Ricardo? Why are your men

attacking us?”

Ricardo didn’t flinch. He barely even looked at her. His gaze locked onto mine instead, his expression unreadable.

And then, softly, he said, “I'm sorry, Ava.”

My stomach twisted. Something cold slithered through me, wrapping around my ribs, squeezing tight.

His smile didn’t falter, but there was something different in his eyes now. A quiet finality. A certainty.

“But | have to be on the winning side. Don’t worry, it will all be over

soon.”

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