I Refuse to Be Your Luna

Ch. I Refuse to Be Your Luna 243 I Refuse to Be Your Luna 243

Chapter 243 The Voice In The Dark

Lady Flourish POV

Finished

I tried to move around Harold, but he stepped in front of me and raised his arm to stop me.

The sound of Elara’s voice had come from beyond the chamber, and my wolf was already pushing against my control, urging me to run toward her.

“Wait,” Harold said. “We don’t know who’s down there.”

“I know her voice.”

“That doesn’t mean it’s her.”

I stared at him, anger rising faster than I could contain it. “You heard her call my name.”

“And someone could be using that to draw you into a trap.” His eyes stayed on the passage ahead. “We’re not walking into the dark without checking it first.”

My wolf snapped at the restraint.

“Move.”

I pressed my lips together and forced myself to stay where I was. Harold’s scent had changed, carrying the sharp edge of his Alpha aura, but he kept his hands away from me.

Magnus stepped beside us and looked toward the warriors. “Search for another entrance. Check every side passage and report before anyone moves farther in.”

Two warriors headed back toward the corridor, while Rhys began scanning the chamber with his tablet. I turned toward the wall where the voice had come from and noticed a narrow line running between two blocks of stone.

There had been no opening there when we entered.

I moved closer, and Harold immediately followed.

“Flourish, don’t touch it.”

“I’m not doing anything.”

But as I raised my hand, the stone beneath my fingers began to glow. A pale light spread across the carved markings, tracing lines I had not noticed before.

My skin tingled, and the ward responded to my blood.

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12:33 Thu, Oct 1

Chapter 243 The Voice In The Dark

Finished

I pulled my hand away, but the light remained. The markings brightened, and a low sound came from inside the wall before the stone shifted with a heavy scrape.

Harold drew his weapon.

“Everyone back.”

The warriors moved into position, their wolves pressing against the edges of their control. Magnus stood beside me, ready to pull me away if the passage opened onto an attack.

The wall separated down the middle, revealing a narrow doorway and a short corridor beyond it. Cold air came through the opening, carrying blood, sweat, and a scent I recognized from the recent investigation.

“Marvolo,” I said.

Harold glanced at me. “You’re sure?”

“I smelled him at the dinner.”

He moved through the doorway first, with two warriors covering the sides. Magnus stayed close to me as we followed, and Rhys brought up the rear with his scanner.

The corridor ended in a small chamber with metal rings fixed to the wall. A man sat slumped beneath them, his wrists restrained, his shirt torn and stained with blood.

Marvolo Fischer.

For a moment, I could only stare. His vehicle had been found outside Stonehedge, abandoned, and we had no idea where he had gone after the attack at the dinner.

Now he was here, chained beneath our territory.

“Marvolo?” I called.

His head lifted slowly. One side of his face was bruised, and there was dried blood along his temple, but he was alive.

His eyes moved past me to Harold.

“Alpha.”

Harold aimed his weapon at him. “Start explaining.”

Marvolo tried to straighten, then winced as the restraints pulled at his wrists. “I didn’t take Elara.”

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12:33 Thu, Oct 1

Chapter 243 The Voice In The Dark

Finished

“You were investigating the tunnels,” Harold said. “Your tracker led us here, and you were found restrained in a hidden chamber.”

“I know what it looks like.”

“Then explain it.”

Marvolo looked at me. “I believed Elara was being held beneath Stonehedge. I’d been searching the eastern tunnels because I found evidence that someone was moving people through them.”

“What evidence?” I asked.

“Old access records, vehicle logs, and a scent trail that kept disappearing near the sealed sections.” He swallowed and glanced toward the doorway. “I found her days ago.”

My heart lurched.

“You saw my mother?”

“Yes. She was alive when I found her.”

I took a step toward him, but Harold caught my arm.

“Where is she now?”

Marvolo’s breathing grew uneven. “They attacked me before I could get her out. There were several of them, and they knew the tunnels better than I did.”

“Who attacked you?” Harold demanded.

“I never saw their faces clearly. They moved her before I woke up again.” Marvolo tugged at the restraints, then stopped when pain crossed his face. “I don’t know where they took her.”

I looked at the blood on his shirt. “How long have you been here?”

“Since the night I tried to get her out.”

“Why didn’t you contact us?”

“I tried.” He turned his head toward Rhys. “The control panel blocked outgoing signals. I managed to activate the tracker, but I couldn’t send a message.”

Rhys checked his tablet. “The tracker transmitted only recently.”

“Because they moved something near the panel,” Marvolo replied. “It must have restored the connection.”

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12:33 Thu, Oct 1

Chapter 243 The Voice In The Dark

Finished

Harold lowered his weapon slightly but did not put it away. “Who are they?”

Marvolo opened his mouth, then stopped.

A deep growl rolled through the tunnel.

The sound struck the stone walls and reached us from somewhere beyond the chamber. Every wolf reacted at once, and the warriors spread out, weapons raised toward the corridor.

Harold moved in front of me.

“Defensive positions!”

Magnus pulled one warrior toward the chamber entrance while Rhys backed away from the wall, his scanner held close. My wolf pressed hard against my ribs, reacting to a presence I had never encountered before.

The scent reached me next.

It was the same strange smell we had found around the eastern commander’s body, but much stronger here.

It carried no ordinary rogue’s scent, and the pressure against my wolf made my knees weaken.

“What is that?” I whispered.

Harold’s grip tightened around his weapon. “Stay behind me.”

The growl came again, closer this time. My wolf lowered its head inside me, but it did not submit; it was confused, wary, and ready to fight if the creature came near.

A shape moved at the far end of the corridor.

The warriors aimed their lights toward it, and I caught a glimpse of a large body stepping out from the darkness.

Its movements were slow, but the force of its presence reached us before it came fully into view.

Marvolo went completely still.

His face changed when he saw it, and the color drained from his cheeks. He looked at me, fear plain in his eyes.

“That is what they used to guard your mother.”

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Chapter 243 The Voice In The Dark

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