From Betrayed Luna to Wolf Queen (Lillian) novel Chapter 18

Chapter 18 The Message Recalled

Chapter 18 The Message Recalled

Eleanor’s POV:

Returning to the hospital room, I found Iris awake, her eyes open and fixed blankly on the ceiling.

I hurried to her side, softening my voice. “Iris, you should be resting. The doctor said you need deep sleep to heal.”

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Iris‘ hand emerged from the sheets, fingers weakly plucking at my sleeve. Her eyes were clouded with confusion. “Did… did Ethan have to leave again?”

Seeing her so thoroughly conflate Julian with her lost mate sent another pang of sour anguish through my heart. “Just sleep now, dear. Everything’s alright.”

“Eleanor,” Iris‘ voice took on a pleading, childlike tone, “could you… call Ethan for me? Talk to him… tell him not to work so hard… I just had our babies, and I miss him so much when he’s not here. Please?”

“Yes, yes, of course. You sleep. I’ll speak to him later. Now, be good.” I agreed hastily, fussing with the edges of her blanket.

Iris nodded, a faint, dependent smile touching her lips. “Thank you.”

Third–Person POV:

However, beneath that seemingly guileless and fragile smile, Eleanor completely failed to perceive the fleeting, perfectly masked flash of icy triumph that glinted deep within Iris‘ eyes.

Julian’s POV:

A corrosive irritation had been eating at him since he left the hospital.

He didn’t go to Lillian’s room. Showing up there now would only ignite a more incendiary conflict. Instead, he drove straight to Noir, an exclusive lounge in Gilneas City enclave frequented by high–ranking pack Alphas and his own circle.

Once in the private room, he spoke little, downing several measures of straight bourbon in succession. Yet, the burn of the liquor did nothing to quell the restless agitation in his chest; it only seemed to fuel it.

Liam and Victor, seated across the low table, exchanged a glance.

Finally, Victor broke the silence, his tone laced with characteristic, teasing mockery. “What’s eating you, Julian? Domestic trouble getting too hot to handle?”

The words struck a nerve. Julian’s expression tightened, and he poured another glass, his irritation spiking.

Victor dropped the flippant act, his voice lowering. “I told you before, and you didn’t listen. Lillian isn’t some placid, compliant Omega.”

Just hearing her name made a sharp throb pulse behind Julian’s eyes.

The door to the room opened then, and Finn walked in. Catching the tail end of the conversation about Lillian, he said nothing. He moved to a shadowed booth in the corner and sat down, lighting a cigarette. The fingers holding the lighter were clenched, the knuckles standing out white.

Julian’s gaze briefly clashed with Finn’s across the hazy room before he snapped at Victor, his tone sour. “Out of hand? What do

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Chapter 18 The Message Recalled

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you think?”

Victor had always been on decent terms with Lillian. Over the past six months, as Julian’s public appearances with Iris had multiplied due to perceived family duty, Victor had pulled him aside more than once. He’d warned that females had long memories, especially ones like Lillian, who possessed a quiet, steely core beneath a calm exterior. He’d said to expect blowback.

Well, the blowback wasn’t just coming–it was here, and it was a wildfire.

Liam sighed, swirling the ice in his glass. “Victor did warn you. Repeatedly.”

“She’s filing a lawsuit against Iris,” Julian muttered into his next drink.

Victor and Liam both stilled. “A lawsuit?”

From the shadows, Finn’s eyes lifted through the cigarette haze, fixing on Julian. His long legs were crossed, the cigarette in his hand burning down quietly. In those usually impassive eyes, upon hearing of Lillian’s legal action, there flickered a trace of understanding–and something else, infinitesimally faint.

He didn’t seem the least bit surprised that Lillian would sue.

Victor and Liam were genuinely taken aback, Liam especially. “Suing Iris? For… mate–poaching?”

That genuinely rankled. Julian shot Liam a glare sharp enough to make the other Alpha flinch. “Then… what’s the basis?”

Julian lit a cigar, took a heavy drag, and exhaled a thick cloud of smoke. “The Moonvale Eco–Community project.”

The Moonvale project? Victor and Liam shared another look, comprehension dawning.

Finn, silent, merely took another drag, his expression one of grim acknowledgment.

Victor frowned. “Well… in that case, you can’t exactly blame her. Lillian nearly died during the initial terrain survey for that project, caught in a storm–triggered mudslide. Those designs… She paid for them in blood. And then the credit went to Iris… It’s no wonder she’s furious.

“I said back when the Moonvale development broke ground that Lillian would recognize her own work. I never understood what you were thinking, letting Iris‘ name go on those plans.”

Lillian’s POV:

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