Chapter 9

The room was suffocating. Eyes burned into Althea from all directions, judging, piercing, dissecting her. Whispers rippled through the air like daggers aimed straight at her chest. “She’s not fit to be Luna.” “She doesn’t belong here.” “What was the Alpha thinking?” Althea felt herself shrinking, her shoulders curling inward as if she could make herself invisible. Her hand trembled in Kaden's grip, and she tried to pull free, desperate to escape the weight of it all. “Let me go,” she whispered, her voice weak, breaking. “No,” Kaden said firmly, his silver eyes scanning the room. His grip tightened slightly. “You’re not running again.” “But I can’t—” “You can.” His tone left no room for argument, but his voice was softer this time, gentler, as though he could sense she was seconds away from shattering. Althea swallowed hard, tears blurring her vision. She didn’t belong here. She didn’t belong anywhere. Her pulse spiked when Gideon's voice cut through the noise. “Kaden,” Gideon barked, s