Alpha's Discarded Luna (Talia) novel Chapter 63

Chapter 61

Aires’s POV

I dial her number with reluctance, and the phone rings

exactly twice before she answers.

“Mother is awake now, her condition has become stable.”

There is a pause on her end, before I hear her voice, flat and

unimpressed: “So, Mr. Perseus. Can you release my friend

now?”

I almost laugh at the audacity. “You put my mother in the hospital, and you expect me to just let Electra go?”

“I didn’t put anyone anywhere.” Her voice is calm and

measured, infuriatingly so. Is there nothing in the world

which will affect her?

“You were there, you heard everything. I didn’t say a single thing that wasn’t true.”

I open my mouth to argue, but the words won’t come.

Because she’s right, I was there. I heard Mother hurl that

bottle, saw the blood on Talia’s cheek, watched her crumble 2

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not under Talia’s attack but under the weight of her own fury.

Mother’s behavior was excessive, embarrassingly so. And

the thing that’s bothering ne the most is that even Athena

seemed unsurprised, which makes me wonder- how long has this been going on? How many times has Mother treated Talia like this when I wasn’t watching?

The silence stretches. Then the line goes dead.

I stare at the phone, something uncomfortable sitting in my

chest.

***

The next morning, Richard finds me in my office. His

expression is serious, more than usual.

“Did you issue the command to release Electra yet, Alpha?”

Before I can answer, his phone rings. He listens, and I

watch his face transform with surprise, then concern, then

something colder.

“She found her? Where? … Understood.” He ends the call and

meets my eyes. “Alpha, Talia located Electra. They’re both at 2/8

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the hospital now.”

I lean back in my chair, thinking. She found her… without my

help, or my permission.

Talia’s POV

Electra winces as the nurse dabs antiseptic on her split lip.

Her face is a canvas of bruises–purple swelling around

her eye, a cut at the corner of her mouth, her cheek puffy

and discolored. She looks like she went three rounds with a

professional and lost.

But she’s alive. She’s here. That’s what matters.

“Talia.” Her voice is soft, meant only for me. “Aires did take

1. me. But he let me go after I apologized to Imema. The people who hurt me… that wasn’t him.”

I listen, letting her tell it.

After she confronted Imema at the hospital, Aires’s men

found her within a day. They didn’t hurt her–just confined

her. Then Bruno came, reasonable and calm, explaining that

an apology to Imema would secure her release. For my sake. To avoid making things worse between me and Aires. 3/8

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b

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Electra, loyal to a fault, agreed. One apology. No big deal.

So she apologized. Imema, gracious as always, accepted with tears and forgiveness.

Then Electra was released.

And immediately kidnapped by someone else.

“They beat me,” she says, flinching as the nurse touches a

particularly tender spot. “But nothing permanent. Just… you know. A message.”

My hands clench at my sides. “Aires was involved in the first

part, though. He had you taken.”

“Talia.” She meets my eyes, serious. “Imema tried to kill

herself because of what I said. Whatever you think of her,

that happened. Aires had every right to demand answers. He didn’t hurt me. He just… contained me until I apologized.” She pauses. “If not for you, he might not have let me go at all.

Your marriage bought me that much.”

I want to argue, but she’s not wrong.

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“The bruises-”

“Weren’t him.” She shakes her head, then winces at the

movement. “Don’t blame him for this. That’s exactly what she

wants. Don’t play into her hands.”

I fall silent, processing.

A soft knock at the door.

Imema enters, wrapped in that delicate, ethereal presence

she wears like armor. “Nick mentioned he saw you

downstairs. I heard Ms. Parker was injured. I had to come

check on her.”

Electra’s face twists with disgust. “Speaking of the devil. Here to inspect your handiwork?”

Imema ignores her, focusing on me. “Ms. Perseus, I’m so glad you found your friend safe.”

I meet her gaze directly. “Did you kidnap her, Ms. Volkov?”

Confusion, beautifully performed. “Kidnap? I don’t

understand what you mean.”

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She’s good. Really good. But I’m done playing.

“It doesn’t matter if you admit it.” I step closer, my voice dropping. “I called the police. They’ll uncover the truth with or without your confession.” I let the words land. “You came at the perfect time, actually. If you hadn’t shown up, I would have come looking for you.”

Imema’s smile doesn’t waver. “Aires won’t let anything happen to me.”

Another knock. Two police officers enter, scanning the room.

“Ms. Imema Volkov?”

She nods, serene. “Yes?”

“You’re under investigation for suspected kidnapping. Please

come with us.”

“I didn’t-” She shakes her head, still calm. “There must be

some mistake.”

“Then you can explain at the station. Please cooperate.”

They move toward her.

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Imema screams.

The sound is piercing, inhuman. It shocks everyone–the officers freeze, Electra jumps, even I flinch back.

“I didn’t! I didn’t!” Imema’s eyes dart wildly around the room, her composure completely shattered. “Stay away from me!

It’s not me! I swear, it’s not me!”

She grabs my hand, her nails digging into my skin with desperate strength. “Ms. Perseus, please! I didn’t do anything! Make them stop! Please!”

The pain is sharp, real. I yank my hand back.

Imema crumples to the floor.

The door bursts open.

Aires strides in, taking in the scene–the police, Electra’s

bruises, me standing over Imema’s collapsed form. His eyes

land on her, and something shifts in his expression.

He crosses to her in three steps, lifting her from the floor with careful hands. “Imema. What happened?! Are you alright?”

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She clings to him, trembling, tears streaming. “Aires, I didn’t

do anything. I came to check on Ms. Parker, and they–she-”

She can’t finish, dissolving into sobs against his chest.

Aires’s gaze lifts to mine, cold. Questioning and accusing.

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