Marked by the Alpha Team (Luna Merrick) novel Chapter 72

Chapter 11

Chapter 72

Luna’s POV

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I sat at the edge of the bed, my hands resting on my thighs, my fingers loosely intertwined as 1 stared straight ahead at nothing in particular My eyes were open, but I wasn’t really seeing anything. It felt like my mind had gone somewhere. else, far away from this room, far away from everything that was happening, and I honestly didn’t know if that was a good thing or not

The silence in the room was terrible, the kind of silence that choked you until you started to feel uncomfortable in your own skin, and I had no idea what to do with myself.

It was strange, because I had never really had a problem with silence before. I liked being alone sometimes. I liked quiet spaces where I didn’t have to talk or think too much, but this silence was different. This one felt forced, like it wasn’t supposed to be there, like something was missing, and the worst part was that I wasn’t alone. Knox was in the room with me, sitting somewhere behind me on the sofa, and the fact that there was another person here made the silence even

worse.

For the first time in my life, I found myself wishing that my wolf would just take over completely and do whatever she wanted. At least then, I wouldn’t have to deal with this awkward feeling sitting in my chest. At least then, I wouldn’t be sitting here like an idiot, not knowing what to say or do while someone else was in the room with me. It was honestly crazy that I had gotten to a point where I preferred losing control over dealing with something as simple as silence.

But of course, my wolf decided to be completely useless.

She was quiet.

I frowned slightly, my brows pulling together as I sat there, still staring into space. It didn’t make sense. Knox was in the room, and he was one of them, one of my so-called mates. If what Ryder and Theo had said was true, then my wolf should have reacted by now. She should have sensed him, recognized him, and done something, anything, but there was nothing. No voice, no sudden urge, no loss of control, just silence.

It was almost like she didn’t care, and that made me wonder if she had already figured something out that I hadn’t.

My lips pressed together slightly as a thought crossed my mind. Maybe she knew. Maybe she had sensed that Knox wouldn’t be interested in me, especially after what he had just told me earlier. He had said it so plainly, so casually, like it wasn’t a big deal at all that he liked men, so maybe my wolf had picked up on that and decided that there was no point reacting to him.

Did it work that way?

The thought made something twist slightly in my chest, but I quickly pushed it aside. I didn’t even know why I was thinking about it that deeply. It wasn’t like it mattered. If anything, it should have been a good thing. One less person to worry about losing control around, and one less problem.

So why did it feel… strange?

I shifted slightly on the bed, letting out a small breath as I adjusted my position, but it didn’t help. The silence was still there, stretching on and on like it had no end, and I could feel myself getting more uncomfortable by the second Thad no idea how long we had been sitting like this, but it felt like forever.

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16:36 Sat, 30 May

Chapter S

Just when I thought I might actually lose my mind from how awkward everything felt, Knox finally spoke

“Are you always this quiet?” he asked, his voice breaking through the silence so suddenly that I almost jumped. “I expected you to be more outgoing.”

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I blinked, my head turning slightly in his direction even though I didn’t fully look at him right away. For a second, I just sat there, letting his words sinkem, and then I felt a small sense of relief settle in my chest. The silence was broken. Finally.

I let out a small breath before responding, my voice coming out more normal than I expected. “Then you definitely got the wrong mipression,” I said. “I would have thought you’d be the outgoing one, though. You’re a football player, and you’re popular.”

There was a small pause after I spoke, and for a moment, I thought he was going to say something else, but then he just chuckled, and that was it. Just a chuckle.

I frowned slightly, turning my head a little more this time, my brows pulling together as I glanced at him. He didn’t add anything else. He just sat there like that was enough of a response, and I felt a small wave of frustration rise inside me.

Was he always like this?

I opened my mouth slightly, about to say something, but I stopped myself. I didn’t want the silence to come back. I couldn’t go back to that again. So instead of waiting for him to say something meaningful, I decided to just speak again before things got awkward all over again.

The first thing that came to my mind slipped out before I could think about it properly.

“Is Jace your Alpha?” I asked.

The question hung in the air for a second, and I immediately felt a little stupid for asking it so randomly, but I didn’t take it back, I leaned back slightly on my hands, finally turning my head enough to look at him properly. “I mean… I don’t really know how your whole ranking thing works,” I added. “But I was just curious.””

Knox looked at me, and for the first time since he had started talking, he actually seemed a little surprised. His brows lifted slightly, and there was a brief pause before he responded.

“What made you think that?” he asked.

I shrugged lightly, looking away from him again as I spoke. “He just gives off that vibe,” I said. “Like he’s the one in charge. not just because he’s the team captain, but… I don’t know. It just feels like that.”

I paused for a second before adding, “But I could be wrong, and if I am, then sorry, I didn’t mean anything by it.”

There was another short silence, and I braced myself for another one of his quiet chuckles that gave me nothing to work with, but this time, he actually spoke.

“I’m not offended,” he said, and there was a small hint of amusement in his voice again. “I can see why you’d think that.”

I turned my head slightly, waiting for him to continue, and thankfully, he did.

“But Jace isn’t our Alpha,” he added.

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16:36 Sat, 30 May

Chapter 7

I blinked, my brows furrowing slightly, “He’s not ?”

Knox shook his head “No”

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That confused me even more. I straightened a little where I sat, turning more fully to face him now “Then what is he?” I

asked

He leaned back slightly against the sofa, looking relaxed as he answered. “The same thing we all are,” he said. “An Alpha,”

I stared at him for a second, trying to process that. “Wait… what?”

“All five of us are Alphas,” he continued calmly. “We’re just from different packs.”

I blinked again, my confusion growing. “All of you?”

“Yeah.”

I shook my head slightly, trying to wrap my mind around that. “That doesn’t make sense,” I said. “If you’re all Alphas, then why does it feel like he’s in charge? Again, I don’t mean to be offensive, but it just feels that way.”

Knox didn’t answer immediately. He looked thoughtful for a moment, like he was choosing his words carefully, and found myself watching him closely, waiting for his response.

After a few seconds, he finally spoke. “Just because we all hold the same position doesn’t mean we’re all equal,” he said.

I frowned slightly. “What do you mean?”

He shifted slightly on the sofa, his expression calm but serious now. “There’s still a kind of hierarchy,” he explained. “Not just based on age, but power, influence, and how strong your pack is.”

I listened quietly, my mind slowly trying to piece everything together. “And in all of that,” he continued, “Jace is… ahead.”

I blinked, the words sinking in slowly. “So he’s stronger than all of you?” I asked.

“Not physically, but if you put it that way,” Knox said. “Then yeah, sure.”

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