Second Chance for the Barren Luna (Talia and Jason) novel Chapter 37

Nolan’s POV

I thought a shower would help clear my mind, but Gideon’s words replayed over and over, refusing to let me rest. I slumped forward, my elbows rested on my knees, hands underneath my chin.

I remembered that banquet as if it had been carved into my skull. My father, Alpha Ryker, stood tall at the head table, with a goblet in his hand. He spoke calmly, commanding the hall without effort, until he started coughing. His eyes turned red, and foam spilled from his mouth as he lunged for my mother.

I had only been a boy, but even then, I knew something was terribly wrong. A black wolf then lunged at father, tearing into his throat. Marco and the guards dragged me away, protecting me. When the chaos cleared, I saw Alpha Rudolf, the Alpha King now, fainted outside with blood on his clothes. I knew he had killed my father. He wanted the throne. That truth had hardened me over the years, shaping everything I became.

Now Gideon’s story contradicted that belief and made it more complicated.

Could it be true?

Had Alpha Rudolf really colluded with rogues to trap my father?

Or was it just a dying rogue’s attempt to twist the past and make himself useful before his end?

The door opened behind me. I hadn’t even heard the knock.

“You’re brooding,” Marco said.

I looked up, startled, not realizing how deeply I’d sunk into my thoughts. He stepped into the room, closing the door behind him, a thick envelope in his hand.

“What?” I asked.

He raised the envelope but didn’t hand it over yet. “Before I get to this, what’s got you so distracted?”

I hesitated. Marco had been at my side for years. If there was anyone, I could trust with what Gideon told me, it was him.

“I spoke to a prisoner today. An old rogue who claims he once served my father,” I said slowly.

Marco arched his brow. “And?”

“He says my father wasn’t mad. That he was poisoned by the blood of crazy rogues that attacked our border.”

Marco crossed the room and set the envelope down on my desk. He leaned against it, arms folded, studying me. “You mean the same kind. Do you believe him?”

I exhaled and shrugged. “I don’t know what to believe. I watched my father lose himself in public. His eyes are red like those rogues. I know what I saw.”

“And yet this Gideon thinks there’s more to it,” Marco pressed.

“Yes,” I snapped. “But it doesn’t change the fact that Rudolf benefited from the chaos. He became the sole Alpha King.”

“Did you think there’s a connection between Alpha King and the crazy rogues?” Marco asked.

I nodded. Marco always can mind reading what I think.

“I see. I will pay attention to their patrol team too, trying to find any clues when the crazy rogues appear again.” Marco added.

I nodded. “What is that envelope?”

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