Second Chance for the Barren Luna (Talia and Jason) novel Chapter 222

CHAPTER TWO HUNDRED & TWENTY TWO

Nolan’s POV

Talia loosened the clasp at her collar as soon as we stepped inside our bedroom. I removed my jacket and set it over the chair. For a moment, neither of us spoke.

“We should be there when construction begins,” Talia said at last.

I glanced at her. “Why?”

“He was opposed to the proposal, and he was not happy with you ordering it to still be completed,” Talia replied. “I want to see how he’s organizing the warriors. And how the villagers are reacting.”

“You think he’ll mishandle it?” I asked.

“I don’t believe so but there are different ways to mishandle things while still seeming innocent,” Talia answered.

“We’ll go in the morning,” I agreed.

We were preparing to go to bed when there was a loud knock at our door.

I exchanged a look with Talia before crossing the room and opening it. Marco and Della stood in the doorway. Both looked panicked.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“There’s a disturbance at the border,” Marco said.

“Warriors and villagers are arguing,” Della added. “We have broken up a few fights, but it is only escalating.”

“I’ll handle it,” I said.

I turned to Talia. “You’re staying here.”

Her expression changed immediately. “No, I’m going with you.”

“This could turn violent,” I said. “You were just injured.”

“And I am Luna,” she shot back. “If the conflict is over the wall, then it concerns me directly.”

“It concerns the pack’s security,” I corrected. “Which means I go.”

She stepped closer. “You cannot keep sidelining me every time something becomes dangerous.”

“This is about your safety.”

“No, this is about control,” she said angrily. “You think you are protecting me. You are not. You are isolating me. What will the pack think if I am not there? No one will respect me as Luna.”

I frowned. There was no time to discuss this. “Talia,” I said firmly. “You are staying.”

Her eyes flashed with anger. “You do not get to order me like I am a child.”

“Della,” I said, turning away from Talia, “you and two guards remain here. Do not let her leave.”

Della hesitated for half a second and then nodded. I stepped out with Marco before the argument could continue. Behind me, Talia yelled, “You cannot treat me this way, Nolan!”

‘You shouldn’t have done that. You are disrespecting our mate,’ my wolf growled. I ignored him and did not turn back.

The border was already lit with torches by the time we arrived. I could hear the shouting when we were about a mile away.

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Warriors and villagers were clustered near the first marked stretch. Some were pushing each other. Others were shouting over one another. Tools lay abandoned in the dirt.

At the center of it stood Walden. He was not interfering. Walden was just watching.

“Enough!” I shouted.

Pack members flinched at my voice before turning to face me.

“What is going on?” I demanded.

Walden stepped forward. “I issued the construction order,” he said. “As commanded.”

“I can see that.”

“The warriors are unhappy,” he continued. “The villagers are more so.”

A villager shouted from behind him, “We shouldn’t be doing this work! This is not our job!”

Walden did not look back. “I explained the incentives,” he said to me. “It did not help.”

“What did you tell them?” I asked.

“The truth,” he replied. “That half the warriors would be assigned. That each household must send at least one able member to assist. When they learned it was Luna’s proposal, tempers worsened.”

I felt my wolf bristle. He did this on purpose. What point was he trying to prove?

“How is that relevant?” I asked quietly.

“I told them where the idea originated,” he said evenly. “I thought they needed to know.”

“It is your job to control them and make this work,” I pressed.

“I have controlled patrol disputes and border skirmishes,” Walden responded. “But this is not a rogue threat. This is internal resistance.”

‘We need to put him in his place. He is overstepping,’ my wolf growled and now I agreed. Walden was purposely causing issues, so this would fail.

“You have commanded this pack’s forces for years. You expect me to believe you cannot handle a riot?”

Walden did not flinch. “This is not a riot. This is distrust.”

I stepped closer to him. My Alpha aura began rolling off me, but Walden didn’t back down. “You will not incite hostility toward my Luna.”

“I am not hostile to her,” Walden replied. “I am concerned about you.”

“Choose your next words carefully,” I warned.

Walden held my gaze. “Since you brought her back,” he said, “your focus has not been the welfare of the pack. You have expanded patrols. You have adjusted guard rotations. You have now committed half the warriors to construction to keep rogues away instead of addressing the major issues happening within the pack.”

Marco stiffened beside me. “That is enough,” he said sharply.

Walden ignored him. “There is no need for the wall. Rogue incursions have been manageable.”

“And yet, my Luna was still captured,” I said.

“And recovered,” Walden countered. “Because you acted decisively.”

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WENT TWO

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“No, she recovered because she escaped on her own,” I growled.

“The mate bond is clouding your judgment,” Walden finally said.

Silence settled around us. Even the villagers had stopped shouting.

“You believe my judgment has weakened.”

“I believe you are acting out of protectiveness rather than strategy.”

“The rogues are changing,” I said. “You do not know everything I know.”

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