Eighth-Born Luna (Emily and Nathan) novel Chapter 83

Office still smelled like my father.

Old leather, bourbon, and the smoke from a fire he always kept too high. I sat in his chair, buried in paperwork—maps, council reports, and patrol routes. None of it made sense. The chair felt massive, like I was a kid playing dress-up in a man’s life.

Outside, the pack was already moving. Guards in black, people gathering for the funeral, everyone waiting for me to step up and be the Alpha King they needed.

But I was just exhausted.

I rubbed my eyes and—

Marcus walked in, coming with some—

I picked up another paper without even looking at it. Then, the heavy doors pushed open.

Marcus was followed by three Elders. They were old, powerful, and carried that quiet danger that comes with surviving many wars.

“Alpha Nathan,” the first one said.

I lifted my eyes, fixed on them. “Can I help you?”

They just stood there, which was enough to make my blood simmer.

Marcus leaned by the wall, watching us like a hawk.

“We’re sorry for the loss of your father,” the oldest one said.

His words felt like a dull ache I couldn’t shake. I looked away, staring at the wall.

“He led us for fifty years,” another added. “He kept us together.”

I didn’t say anything. I just wanted them to get to the point.

But the first Alpha continued, his voice careful. “The packs can’t be without a leader for long.”

And there it was. The vultures were here.

I let out a short, cold laugh. “You Elders don’t waste any time, do you? It’s almost impressive.”

The air in the room turned sharp.

“My father’s body isn’t even cold, and you’re already circling his crown like scavengers.”

One of them frowned.

“No?” I snapped, my voice rising to a growl. “And you’re already circling his crown to rip his legacy apart before we’ve even put him in the ground.”

Marcus finally moved, stepping into the light. “Nathan. Easy.”

“Let them speak,” I snapped, keeping my eyes fixed on the Elders.

The oldest one didn’t flinch. “That crown isn’t just a symbol of your grief, boy. It’s what keeps us from falling apart.”

“Boy?” Asher snapped, his voice a jagged edge in my mind. Tell that old fossil to watch his throat before I tear it out.

“Your father chose you as his successor years ago,” the old wolf continued. “Most of the packs will stand behind that.”

Most. Not all. I saw the trap immediately.

“But?” I spat, the word coming out like a low threat.

The air in the room felt thick. No one moved.

“You have to take the throne beside your Luna,” he said.

The eldest Alpha let out a slow breath. “Nathan, look. We’re on your side here. But if you want to stay Alpha King, you don’t have a choice. This is the only way.”

I stared him down. “How many days?”

“Not many,” he said. “We can give you seven days. That’s the best we can do to give you time to get her ready.”

Seven days. That was all the time I had left to protect her before the world tried to take her from me.

Seven days to put my father in the ground.

Seven days to turn Emily into something more than an ordinary Luna—a Luna Queen.

The Elders bowed their heads, their movements stiff and formal. “We will leave you to your grief,” one of them said.

No, I thought. You’re leaving me to drown.

They filed out, the heavy doors thudding shut one by one until only Marcus was left. He walked over to the desk, his eyes searching mine.

“We’ll handle it,” he said.

I wanted to laugh, but there was no humor left in me.

No one could handle this. They didn’t know what I knew. They hadn’t heard the way Emily’s voice shook after she woke up. They hadn’t seen her body give out while she was saving my mother.

They didn’t understand that she wasn’t just a girl. She was becoming something else entirely.

I looked down at the documents, the gold crown seal staring back at me from the leather desk pad. I looked at the future that was waiting to swallow us both whole.

Then I spoke. “Marcus, I’m scared as hell to make her Luna Queen.”