Chapter 329: Chapter 329

Gabriela “| hate him,” | whispered fiercely. “The only reason | wish he wasn’t dead is because I'd like to kill him myself!”

“Understandable. In fact, if you’d said anything else, I'd wonder if you were telling the truth.”

| felt better for having said it aloud, but the confession had taken something out of me. | sagged a little, my elbows on the table so | could put my face briefly into my hands. | didn’t want anyone seeing how upset | was, but | also couldn't hide it.

“It's bad enough that he didn’t honor our mating bond. Infidelity happens, even among wolves. But he sired a child with another woman and never told me. Never allowed his son to have a brother. Orion's selfishness caused so much trouble for so many people...! won’t even get into the disgusting things he was doing with hybrids.”

I | peeked through my fingers to make sure she knew what | was talking about. It would be a lot to explain.

“Of course there is so much to learn about how traits manifest in hybrids, but a medical torture facility is hardly the way to go about it,” she said firmly. She leaned closer to add, “And I'll tell you something else, Gab. | never liked him. He was arrogant, and you were far too good for him!”

To my surprise, | laughed. At first just a low chuckle.

I Then louder, until | was almost wheezing with it. | had to wipe my eyes of pained tears and hold a hand to my stomach until my rasping guffaws faded.

Lenora gave me a satisfied smile. “There. That's much better.”

| did feel better, almost like I’d had an infected wound that had been drained of its poison. It still hurt and likely would for a long time...but perhaps | could finally start to heal.

At last, | helped myself to a biscuit. “I just never thought anything like this could happen to my family.

Maybe that was my downfall, you know? | was too proud. Too confident in my role in the pack, too convinced | deserved it.

Maybe the Moon Goddess decided to teach me some humility.”

“If your Moon Goddess is the sort to punish those who follow her simply because of a little pride, I've never heard of it,” Lenora said with a wave of her hand. “And besides, that’s nonsense. You were more than deserving of being a Luna. It’s not your fault your mate was a horrible person...even if, by all accounts, he was an incredibly strong and successful Alpha. Like your son, yes?

Xander.”

“Yes. Xander is also a strong Alpha.”

She took a dainty sip from her inug But not successful?”

| wasn't sure how to answer that.

He was happy to be the Alpha, though, yes? | mean, when his father relinquished the role, Xander “Of course.” | hesitated. “Why would you think otherwise?”

“He wasn’t Alpha very long, though. He couldn’t have been. But you say he was happy about it, having his father hand it over to him?”

“It's what he’d been waiting for,” | said after a second “To be honest, | never asked him if he wanted it. | just assumed.....

“Of course, of course. Your boy would’ve been ecstatic to take over from his father without having for it. Or wait for his father to die. I'm sure he meant to be the best Alpha possible.”

| digested her words. The hesitant tone. “But he didn’t have the chance, you mean.”

“Wel...I’m sure in time...” She coughed lightly into her fist. “You know how the young are, consumed with their mates when it’s all fresh and new. Certainly none could blame him for being so focused on his new Luna, particularly since she’s as special as she is. He could hardly help it, could he?”

“Because she’s a hybrid, you mean?”

“Gab, listen. Nobody could blame him for losing sight of his pack. Not when that girl came of age and went into heat. It's a miracle he was able to think straight, much less competently run a pack.” Lenora added another biscuit to my plate.

| crumbled it between my fingers. “It's the vampire part of her, isn’t it? That’s what you’re trying to get at.

My son is so enamored of this woman because of that.

“It does make her stronger, Lenora said. She clapped her hands quickly and gave me a wide smile. “Enough of all that. Tell me you're not dying for a mani-pedi.

We have a delightful place here on Eighty-Seven run by a witch I’ve known forever. She’s got the most amazing herbal scrubs.

You can’t even believe it. She’ll have you feeling like you're on top of the world...and |

don’t mean because we're in Alaska.”

“That sounds lovely,” | said, but my mind was on what she’d said before.

| let Lenora take me to the nail salon, but | couldn’t stop thinking about everything she’d said about Lanie.