Ch. I Refuse to Be Your Luna 245 I Refuse to Be Your Luna 245

Chapter 245 The Price Of The Truth

Lady Flourish POV

“That was on my mother’s clothes.”

M

Ne

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Harold studied the blood-marked stone, then looked toward the damaged tunnel where the creature had disappeared.

The warriors were still recovering from its aura, and dust continued to fall from a crack near the ceiling.

“Rhys, seal every entrance leading to this section,” Harold ordered. “No one goes in or out without my approval.”

Rhys spoke into his headset, relaying the command to the patrol teams. Two warriors moved to secure the chamber while another checked the injured members of the group.

“Get Marvolo to the pack clinic,” Harold continued. “Have the healer examine him and keep a guard outside his room.”

“I’m not leaving until he tells us what he knows,” I said.

Harold turned to me. “You need to get checked too.”

“I’m fine.”

“You used an ancient ward without knowing what it would do. Your hands were glowing, Flourish.”

“And it stopped that thing long enough for you to get Marvolo out.” I pointed at the blood on the wall. “My mother was held down here. I deserve answers before everyone starts deciding what I’m allowed to know.”

His jaw tightened, but Magnus stepped between us before he could respond.

“She has a right to hear what Marvolo knows,” Magnus said. “We all do.”

Harold looked toward the tunnel again. “Then we question him at the clinic, once the healer says he can speak.”

I followed the others out of the chamber. The passage was crowded with security teams, and the estate’s emergency lights had switched on along the lower corridors.

My phone kept vibrating with messages from Cheryl, who had been trying to reach me since the alarms began.

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I sent her a short reply telling her I was safe and that I would call when I could. She immediately asked whether the disturbance had affected the company’s systems.

That reminded me how much was happening beyond Stonehedge’s walls. F-Tech had contracts awaiting my approval, staff who needed direction, and financial decisions that could not be left unattended because my family was in danger.

I typed that Rhys would check the company’s security access and asked Cheryl to hold any unusual payment requests until I reviewed them. Then I put the phone away and kept walking.

At the clinic, the healers had already cleaned Marvolo’s wounds and placed him in a private room. He was awake, though his face remained pale, and a monitor beside the bed tracked his pulse.

A guard stood outside the door. Harold entered first, followed by Magnus, Rhys, and me.

Marvolo looked at us, then tried to sit up.

“Don’t,” the healer warned. “You’ve lost blood, and your ribs are injured.”

“I can speak,” Marvolo replied.

“Then start with Elara,” I said.

His eyes

moved to me. For a moment, he seemed unsure where to begin.

“I found her beneath Stonehedge several days ago,” he said. “I didn’t know she was alive until I reached the chamber.”

“Why didn’t you bring her out?” Harold demanded.

“Because I couldn’t get past the creature.”

Marvolo explained that he had found a narrow passage leading close to the chamber where Elara was held.

He had managed to speak with her through an opening, but the creature remained outside and attacked whenever he tried to get nearer.

“The people holding her had built more than a cell,” he continued. “There were old pack wards in the walls, but they’d also installed cameras, motion sensors, and electronic locks.”

Rhys frowned. “The tunnel systems weren’t supposed to have active security.”

“They do now,” Marvolo said. “Someone knew how to combine the old wards with modern systems.”

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Chapter 245 The Price Of The Truth

“Who hired you?” Harold asked.

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Marvolo shifted against the pillows and winced. “I wasn’t working for the people who took her.”

“That wasn’t the question.”

“I kept quiet because I thought someone inside Stonehedge was involved.” Marvolo looked toward Magnus. “If I reported what I found through the usual channels, whoever had access to the tunnels would know I’d discovered them.”

Magnus’s expression hardened. “You should have brought your evidence to me.”

“I didn’t know who I could trust.”

Harold stepped closer to the bed. His Alpha aura pressed into the room, and the guard outside shifted his stance.

“Names,” Harold said. “Give us names and evidence.”

“I don’t have enough to accuse anyone.”

“Then tell us what you do have.”

Marvolo started to answer, but Rhys’s phone chimed. He checked the screen, then moved closer to Harold.

“The concealed control panel in the chamber was accessed using credentials assigned to an authorized Stonehedge user,” Rhys reported. “The system log is damaged, but the access itself is confirmed.”

“Can you identify the user?” Magnus asked.

“I’m working on it. The credentials could have been used by the owner or someone who got hold of their login.”

Harold looked at me. “You’re going back to the residence.”

“No.”

“This investigation is dangerous.”

“My family is involved, and the creature reacted to my blood. You can’t keep me out of it.”

“I can keep you away from the tunnels until we understand what you triggered.”

“And what about Flourish company?” I asked. “The enemy has already targeted my family. If

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they have access to Stonehedge’s systems, I need to know whether they’ve reached my business

too.”

Harold’s expression changed, but he didn’t answer immediately.

“I’m not asking you to put company work ahead of your safety,” I continued. “I’m telling you that my business is part of my life, and I won’t leave it exposed while everyone else investigates.”

Before he could reply, Rhys’s phone rang. He listened briefly, then turned toward us.

“The clinic says Marvolo’s strong enough to identify the person who first hired him to investigate the tunnels.”

Harold faced the bed again. “Who was it?”

Marvolo swallowed. His gaze settled on me, and I waited for him to speak.

“Alpha Garret,” he said.

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I Refuse To Be Your Luna