Marked by the Alpha Team (Luna Merrick) novel Chapter 52

Luna’s POV

The moment the door closed behind them, I let out a breath I didn’t even realize I had been holding. It felt like I had been sitting in a room with no air, and now that they were gone. I could finally breathe again, even if it still wasn’t enough.

The scent they always carried, that strange, heavy, overwhelming scent, was still stuck in the room like it had soaked into the walls, and it made my head spin all over again. I didn’t even think twice before getting off the bed and rushing straight to the windows, my fingers fumbling slightly as I pushed them open one after the other.

The cold air from outside rushed in almost immediately, brushing against my skin, but it barely helped me get rid of the scent. Unfortunately for me, it was still there and still clinging to me, to the sheets, to everything, and it made my stomach twist in a way I didn’t understand.

I stood there for a moment, gripping the edge of the window as I leaned forward slightly, trying to calm myself and refill my lungs with untainted air. My body still felt too warm, like I had a fever that wouldn’t break, and even though the fresh air helped a little, it didn’t take away that strange, restless feeling sitting deep in my chest. It was like something inside me was awake now, something I couldn’t control, and it didn’t care that I was confused or scared or completely overwhelmed. It just… existed. loud and impossible to ignore.

After a few seconds, I forced myself to step back, turning around slowly to face Ivy. She was still standing near the bed, watching me carefully like she was trying to read my mood before saying anything. For once, she wasn’t talking, and that alone told me that she knew this wasn’t the time to joke or ramble or throw random facts at me. I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself down, before walking closer to her.

“How much do you actually know about werewolves?” I asked, my voice coming out more serious than I expected.

Ivy blinked at the question, clearly surprised, but she recovered quickly. “Well… the basic stuff,” she said slowly. “And other things I’ve learned over the years from reading and… researching

I stared at her for a second, my brows slowly pulling together. “Researching?” I repeated. “Like… seriously researching?” She shifted a little, her shoulders lifting slightly like she was bracing herself. “Yeah,” she said. “Online, mostly, and… some books. Libraries too.”

I just looked at her like she had completely lost her mind. “You went to libraries?” I asked, disbelief clear in my voice. “For werewolves? Are you fucking joking, Ivy?”

She immediately crossed her arms, her expression turning defensive. “Okay, first of all, don’t look at me like that,” she said. “Everyone has their thing. Some people like true crime, some people like aliens, and I like werewolves. It’s not that weird if you think about it from a less biased point of view.”

“It is weird,” I said flatly, shaking my head slightly. “It’s very weird, and I’m not even being biased.”

She rolled her eyes. “Well, it’s coming in handy now, isn’t it? The heavens knew what they were doing putting me in a room with you, so be grateful I know my stuff,” she shot back.

That made me pause for a second, and I hated the fact that she had a point. I let out a small sigh, running a hand through my hair as I tried to gather my thoughts again.

“Fine.” I muttered “Whatever Just… tell me what I need to know.”

She uncrossed her arms slowly, her expression softening a little now that I wasn’t outright dismissing her anymore. “What exactly do you want to know?” she asked.

I hesitated for a moment before answering, trying to pick where to even start. There was too much, way too much, and I would have never imagined that one day I would be asking questions about werewolves.

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12:44 Sat, May 30 MMM.

Chapter 52

“They said something earlier.” I said finally. “About me being an omega.” I glanced at her. “What does that even mean?

Ivy’s eyes lit up slightly, like she had been waiting for this exact question, but she quickly tried to tone it down when she saw my expression. “Okay,” she said carefully. “So… from what I know, wolves have a kind of system, like a hierarchy”

I frowned slightly. “Hierarchy?”

“Yeah, she nodded. “At the top, you have the Alpha, and they’re the leaders, the strongest ones, and the ones everyone listens to

I immediately thought about Jace without even meaning to, and that alone made my stomach twist slightly. I didn’t say anything though. I just let her continue.

“And then there are other ranks,” she went on. “But the important part is that the Alpha usually has a partner, a mate, and that mate is called a Luna.”

I blinked at her. “A Luna?” I repeated slowly.

N

“Yeah,” she said. “Like… the female counterpart to the Alpha. The one who stands beside him.”

For a second. I just stared at her, and then I let out a short, disbelieving scoff. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” I muttered.

“What?” she asked.

“My name.” I said, gesturing to myself. “Luna.”

Ivy paused, and then her eyes widened slightly as realization hit her. “Oh,” she said. “Oh wow. I didn’t even think about that.”

I let out a dry laugh, shaking my head. “I always wondered why my mom named me that,” I said. “Out of all the names in the world, she picked Luna.”

I looked down for a second, my thoughts spinning slightly. “And now you’re telling me it means something like that?”

Ivy hesitated before answering. “Well… as a title, yeah,” she said. “But as a name, it just means moon, So she probably didn’t name you that because of… all this.” She gestured vaguely around us. “It could just be a coincidence.”

I nodded slowly, even though I wasn’t fully convinced. Nothing about my life felt like a coincidence anymore.

“So what does that make me then?” I asked after a moment. “If I’m an omega?”

Ivy frowned slightly, clearly thinking. “From what I’ve read, omegas are… rare,” she said. “They’re not like regular wolves. They’re more sensitive, more… connected, I guess, and during certain times, like… heat…”

She trailed off, her gaze flicking to me briefly. I swallowed slightly, my chest tightening again at the word.

“They react more strongly,” she continued carefully. “To their environment, and to other wolves, especially Alphas. I don’t know as much about them as I know about Alphas since there was limited information when it came to them.”

I didn’t say anything, but my mind immediately went back to how I had felt when all five of them walked into the room. The dizziness, the heat, and the way my body reacted without my permission.

It made me feel sick just thinking about it, but it also made me wonder if all of them were alphas since I was reacting to all five of them

T

I let out a slow breath, trying to push that feeling down before it took over again.

“And.. mates?” I asked quietly.

Ivy hesitated again. “From what I know… mates are like… destined partners,” she said. “Wolves can recognize them. Through

OOGT

12:44 Sat, May 30 MMM.

Chapter 52

scent, mostly.”

My stomach dropped slightly at that.

“And sometimes,” she added, “it’s not just one. It can be more, especially in rare cases.”

I didn’t like where this was going. “So you’re saying..” I started, my voice trailing off as I tried to form the words.

Ivy didn’t answer immediately, but the look on her face said enough.

I shook my head quickly, cutting that thought off before it could go any further. “No,” I said. “No, we’re not going there. That’s… no.”

She didn’t argue, but she didn’t look convinced either,

I turned away from her, pacing a little as my head started to hurt again from trying to process everything. “This is insane I muttered. “All of this is insane.”

I stopped after a few steps, pressing my fingers against my temples.

“Speaking of insane,” Ivy said softly, “have you thought about talking to your mom?”

I froze.

That was the last thing I wanted to think about right now.

“Maybe she knows something.” Ivy continued. “If your dad is… what they say he is, then..”

I let out a bitter laugh before she could finish. “I’d love to ask him,” I said. “Really, that would be great.”

I turned back to her, my expression flat now. “Except I’ve never met him.”

Ivy blinked, clearly caught off guard. “Oh,” she said quietly.

“Yeah.” I added. “Nineteen years, and I don’t even know if he’s alive or if he even knows I exist.”

I saw that look start to form on her face, that soft, pitiful look that people always gave me when this topic came up, and it immediately irritated me.

“Don’t,” I said quickly, raising a hand slightly. “Please don’t do that.”

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