Chapter 112 – The Luna Trials Novel by Marissa Gilbert

Filed To Story: The Perfect Luna by Marissa Gilbert

“Nice try!” she narrowed her eds at him. “As if king Kai’s closest man wouldn’t be checking everyone who was arriving for those stupid Luna Trials.”

Kai swallowed. His Beta and Gamma were probably doing this all night and they would know who she was. It all went a bit too far. He had to let her go.

“Listen, it was a mistake,” he sighed. “Let’s just forget about it and move on from…”

A sudden piercing pain stabbed his foot and he realized that she stepped on it with her sharp metal heel. “Fine!” The girl purses her lips. “Mistake it is! See you never, gardener!”

Her every word was coated with hate she felt for him at this moment and she was ready to leave when he held her in place, grasping her tighter.

“Not so fast, little maid!” He growled into her ear softly. “No one stabs me and leaves.”

He didn’t even know why he was still holding her. He deserved that and he had to let her go. He absolutely had to. Only that neither him nor his wolf really wanted to.

“The dance is not over yet,” he whispered into her ear, accidentally brushing his lips over her skin as he leaned down. “Leaving early is rude.”

“If you are a masochist, just say so,” the girl sneered and stepped on his other foot. He gr0@ned, but not from the pain this time. He was used to physical pain. But that audacity of hers required some answers.

So, when she lifted her foot to repeat the same annoying action, he caught her thigh and lifted it higher, wrapping it around his own as if they were in a sensual provocative dance and not a street fight.

“Take your hands off me,” her eyes were throwing daggers at him while her cheeks flushed.

“Aren’t you?” she rolled her eds. “You can’t touch a woman like that without her con. sent.” “It brings me as much ple@sure as it brings to you,” he glared at her and she did the same.

The two of them didn’t even notice that the music was off. They didn’t realize that they were not moving anymore. And that everyone around them was staring.

Someone cleared their throat right next to them. “Excuse me,” Elene touched her brother’s arm. “I am busy,“ he growled at her.

“Kai!” Elene raised her voice slightly. “You aren’t supposed to dance with the contenders before their introduction. That is if they get through it in the first place! And princess Savannah needs to go and take her place because we are about to start.”

They both looked at her in awe, processing her words. And then they got back to gazing at each other… “Princess Savannah?”

“Kai?” They said the words in unison.

Savvy looked at him in shock, and his grasp on her became tighter. Elene cleared her throat again, bringing them both out of their daze.

“Kai!” She hissed. “We need to go. Now! Everyone is watching.”

“Right,” he conceded, finally letting her go. Savannah straightened her dress, and the realization of how they might look dawned on her, also considering most people present were aware that he was their king. Not to mention that she was about to become unmasked as well.

“Excuse me,” Kai took her hand and bowed to k*iss it, however, she snatched it back before his lips could touch it. A soft growl left his chest, and she wondered what he was thinking. His level of deception was really beyond anything she could comprehend, and all that she wanted at this moment was to slap him. Then slap him again. And more, if it were possible. But, of course, she couldn’t. Too many eyes, too many witnesses. At least he helped her finalize a decision she had been pondering.

There was no way she was leaving humiliated. She would make him and his mean sister regret the day they decided to do this to her. She would win the stupid Luna Trials and get those wishes from her “groom-to-be”. Then she would get her alliance and reject him, making it impossible to hold it against her, her brother, or her kingdom in any way.

“You are excused, Your Majesty.” She filled her words with as much venom as she could muster and turned on her heels to walk toward what looked like a queue of women.

“Please, over here.” A girl in a black dress and a mask gestured for her to stand toward the back. Savannah recognized Elene’s a*s*sistant. “I am sorry, you have the last turn …”

“That’s fine.” Savvy cut her off with the sweetest smile she contained in her arsenal. “In the l/1/est, we save the best for last.”She was fuming, and even Athena was unsettled inside her.

‘‘Are you okay?” Kyle mind-linked her. She knew he had seen everything and was probably wondering what was going on. They had known each other since they were kids, and he could sense when she was troubled.

“Peachy,” she replied sarcastically. “I am going all in. You and Zara need to find out everything you can about every single contender. So, keep your eyes open now that they will be revealed.”

“Fine,” he said quietly and closed the link, knowing it was better not to contradict her when she was in such a state.

“Together again,” a girl next to her remarked as she smiled brightly. Savannah looked at her in an effort to recognize her.

“It’s Astrid,” the girl whispered. “I’m placed in the room next to yours.”

“Oh, right!” Savvy chuckled. “You are another lucky contender.” “At least I am in good company,” Astrid replied, giggling, but then, the sound of a loud bell interrupted them. They watched as Elene froze like a statue of some ancient queen at the top of a staircase leading to a throne which was now taken because King Kai was sitting in it and staring at her with his piercing blue eyes. Savannah pretended not to notice and stood behind Astrid, hidden from his gaze.

“Lad*ies and gentlemen!” For once, Elene’s voice sounded truly sweet, as if she loved the people gathered before her, not the contenders, of course, but the northerners present in the hall. “It’s time to begin! The Luna Trials are about to start, and you are present during an historical event which will lead to the appointment of the new Luna of The North!”

They all cheered loudly, and Savvy could decipher one phrase voiced all around her, by Fenrir’s will. She almost forgot that the northerners often preferred the wolf warrior god to the Moon Goddess, who was worshipped more in the West.

Of course, she was respected everywhere, but it was considered that Fenrir was the patron of these lands. The photographers and cameramen stood between Elene and the contenders, filming everything from different angles.

“Our first contender!” The princess made a gesture, and a familiar brunette in a red dress came up to the bottom of the stairs and curtsied as if this were the Middle Ages.

Savvy rolled her eyes. For some reason, she remembered how that woman was touching Kai moments before she snatched him away and that memory was particularly unpleasant. Nevertheless, she quickly brushed it to the farthest corner of her mind, where Athena then obliterated it. This was war, with no strings attached.

“It’s time to reveal who we all are,” Elene commanded, as she turned to her brother, who was sitting on a throne behind her. A throne! Savvy scoffed. She had never seen Gideon sit on a throne. They didn’t even have one.

Well, technically, they did, but it was in a museum, and no one in their right mind would be sitting on that old thing anyway. She liked the north less and less. Kai slowly removed his mask. For the first time today, she noticed that his beard was now a barely well-trimmed stubble.

It was something she had missed during their dance because she was mad at him. She hated to admit it, but he looked even better than he did before. His eyes grazed quickly over hers, still, once again, she pretended to look at someone else in the crowd. Elene followed his example by removing her mask, and so did all the northerners in the room, finishing off the motion with a round of applause.

Show-offs.

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