The Dead Luna
Chapter 44- Puppet

Chapter 44: 44- Puppet

Aurora/Phoenix:

I kissed the forehead of the little kid who was now sleeping peacefully in the hospital bed. I just got done with the healing.

The poor soul broke his leg while jumping from the tree. My itching hands led me here after I was done with my warrior training.

I was supposed to meet the king before lunch, but Jai told me that it was not needed anymore as he had controlled everything.

May the Moon Goddess bless him.

One more day and the Royals would leave. I needed to keep myself busy till then. I hadn’t bumped into Sebastian King, nor was I interested.

But once... just once, I wanted to see him. Maybe from a distance.

The way he touched my hair when he invited me to that dinner date. The way Beta Hunter called his name behind me when my invisible body was running away from that fire.

Was he still this handsome?

The girls in the training ground kept talking about him. The maids who were responsible for his meals were always blushing while preparing them. Pack cleaners who used to clean his room were happy that Tina wasn’t sharing his room.

In my mind, I had thought that they must be married by now.

I was walking down the corridor when a small blur ran right up to me.

"Whoa!" I bent down quickly, stealing her, "Careful..."

"Sorry!" Maria grinned up at me, her tiny hands grabbing mine.

I frowned at her and shook my head. In the last two years, the child had gotten used to my face when it was covered with a mask.

Now she didn’t care how my face looked behind it.

"You are again giving a tough time to Emily, Maria?" I asked with narrowed eyes. Her presence was a telltale sign that Alpha Blake must be nearby.

Luna Raya didn’t want to take her responsibility anymore, especially when she discovered that the olive piece stuck in baby Asher’s throat was due to her.

"Aunt Phoenix. Emily is too slow!" She scrunched her nose.

I laughed, brushing a loose curl from her face, "And you always run like you are being chased by a tornado."

We high-fived, just like we did every time we met.

"Where are you going?" she asked me, swinging my hand as we walked.

"To see your uncle. Is he in Jai’s office?"

Maria nodded, "Yup. They were talking loudly, so I came out of the room.

I smiled a little. That didn’t surprise me.

When we reached the office door, I slowed down. I could hear raised voices coming from the room. Alpha Blake and Jai were clearly at it again.

Lately, he had been fighting everyone in the pack.

"I don’t care what you think she needs, Jai," I heard Alpha Blake snap, "You should have let her decide! You sounded so stupid in front of King Sebastian."

"Why don’t you understand, Blake. She is not ready," Jai’s voice was sharper than usual. She would have panicked."

"She is not a child, Jai!"

"And you stop treating her like a prop to impress the King, Blake!"

I blinked in confusion. Were they fighting about me?

I twisted the door handle and opened the door without knocking. Both men turned to see me. Jai’s eyes widened slightly. He shot Alpha Blake a warning look, but he didn’t back down.

His jaw was clenched as if he could explode any minute.

"Come in, Phoenix," he then sent a mind link to Maria’s governess, "Emily is on the way, Maria. Go with her, sweetheart," he asked his niece, who was more interested in Jai’s writing pad.

She pouted but didn’t argue with her uncle.

"Bye," she whispered to me, giving me a small wave before leaving.

The moment the door got closed behind Emily, Alpha Blake didn’t waste a second. He knew I needed an explanation.

"King Sebastian wanted to meet you," Alpha Blake explained, something I already knew, and gave a confused look to Jai.

"Your doctor here," he added dryly, "Instead of sending you there, he went there and told him like some crazy fuc*king stupid jerk that you couldn’t meet him or anyone without his approval. Now King Sebastian thinks that there is something more to it."

I slowly turned my head to look at my friend, whom I wanted to kill. I was sure the look I gave him said it all.

Seriously!

He didn’t meet my eyes. How typical!

Alpha Blake sighed, running a hand through his hair, "Now the king seems more interested in prolonging his stay. His initial plan was to give two days to each pack, but now his visit is extended for two more days. Just because..." he trailed off, gritting his teeth

What the actual fu*ck!

***

I was having my dinner in the Warrior’s Café when someone took the seat before me. Without looking up, I knew it was him.

"Go back. I don’t have enough energy to engage in an argument right now," I told Jai, and ate my lentil cream soup.

"I’m not here to argue," his voice had that edge I hated, "I just wanted to explain..."

"Great!" My spoon dropped in the bowl, "Explain what, Jai? For making decisions I never asked you to make?"

He leaned forward with a sigh, "Phoenix. I know you are angry. But I did it for your good. You weren’t ready to face the king. I saw your face, dammit, when you saw those Royal ladies that night."

I picked back my spoon and finally looked up, "Jai. Who gave you the right to decide when I will be ready? Huh?" I leaned closer, "I didn’t decide to become a warrior because some asshole makes me look like a coward in front of others."

"You are taking it all wrong, Phoe," he lowered his voice, "You’re still recovering... I can see that... You’re..."

"You know what?" I told him softly, "Fu**ck off."

He blinked in disbelief, "Seriously, Jai. Just stop controlling everything around me like I’m a damn puppet. You told me not to worry because you would handle it. That’s how you were planning to handle it, Jai? I might be nervous, but I’m not broken."

I was panting by the end of it.