The Rise Of The Betrayed Luna (Amorah and Holmes) novel Chapter 21

Chapter 21

AMORAH

I held the pen in my hand longer than I expected. The contract sat in front of me. My name was not written yet, but it felt like the decision had already begun to shape everything around me,

I did not look up immediately.

“What happens if I sign?” I asked.

Conrad did not hesitate. “You become mine.”

His voice was calm, but there was no softness in the words. It was not a suggestion. It was a statement.

“And if I don’t?” I asked.

“Then you walk back into that hall alone,” he replied. “And you face Holmes without protection.”

My grip on the pen tightened slightly.

“I’m not weak.” I said.

“I didn’t say you were,” he replied. “But you’re outnumbered.”

That was true, I needed an ally.

I finally looked up at him. “And you’re offering to even the odds?”

“I’m offering to shift them completely.”

I looked back down at the contract again, reading through the lines more carefully this time. Five years. One year for an heir. His name tied to mine in a way that would change everything.

My wolf stirred faintly.

“Do you trust him?” she asked quietly.

“I don’t know,” I answered.

“Then why are we considering this?”

Because I had no better option.

Because Holmes was already moving.

Because tonight had shown me exactly how easily I could be cornered.

I exhaled slowly.

“If I sign this,” I said, “you don’t control me.”

Conrad’s gaze remained steady. “I don’t need to control you,”

“That’s not an answer.”

“It is,” he said. “You’ll understand once you stop thinking like someone who has already been controlled.”

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.

His words settled in a way I did not expect. I looked at the contract again.

Then I lowered the pen.

“I have conditions.” I said.

Conrad leaned back slightly, watching me. “Go on.”

“My fight with Holmes is mine.” I said. “You don’t interfere unless I ask you to.”

He nodded once. “Agreed.”

“I decide when and how to present my evidence.”

“Agreed.”

“And if I choose to walk away after five years,” I added. “there’s no retaliation.”

His expression did not change. “If you fulfill your part, you walk away clean.”

That was enough. I looked at the contract one last time; then I signed.

The moment my name was written, something shifted inside me. It was not loud or overwhelming, but it was clear.

There was no going back now. I placed the pen down slowly.

“It’s done,” I said.

Conrad reached forward and took the document, his eyes scanning the signature briefly before he folded it neatly.

“It/is,” he replied.

For a moment, neither of us spoke.

Then he stood up. “Come,” he said.

“Where?” I asked.

“Back to the council.”

My chest tightened slightly. “Already?”

“Yes.”

I stood as well. “Why?”

“Because you don’t sign something like this and stay hidden,” he said. “You show them.”

A part of me understood immediately.

“You want me to go back with you.”

“I want them to see the difference,” he corrected.

I held his gaze for a moment before nodding.

“Fine.”

We left the restaurant together, and the car was already waiting outside. The ride back felt shorter this time, though my

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Chapter 21

thoughts were heavier.

When we arrived, the council hall was still active. That alone told me everything. They were waiting.

The moment we stepped inside, the room shifted again. Conversations slowed, then stopped, as attention moved toward LES.

I walked beside Conrad without hesitation, aware of every gaze that followed. The elders were already seated, and several Alphas remained in place, watching closely.

And then I saw Holmes.

He stood near the front. Bethany beside him, both of them turning toward us at the same time.

His expression changed the moment he saw me walking next to Conrad.

“What is this?” he asked.

His voice echoed through the room but I did not answer right away.

Instead, I stepped forward slightly, closing the distance just enough to be seen clearly.

“This.” I said calmly, “is my decision.”

Holmes’s eyes narrowed. “Your decision to what?”

I met his gaze directly.

“To stop standing alone.”

Silence followed.

Bethany’s expression shifted, though she tried to hide it quickly. Holmes stepped forward, his focus entirely on me now.

“You don’t get to replace me,” he said.

“I’m not replacing you,” I replied. “I’m leaving you.”

“You’re still bound to me,” he said.

“Not for long.”

His jaw tightened.

“What did you do?” he asked.

I didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, I turned slightly toward Conrad.

He stepped forward then, just enough to stand fully beside me. His presence settled into the room in a way that made several wolves shift where they stood.

“I made an agreement,” I said.

Holmes’s gaze snapped back to me. “What kind of agreement?”

I held his eyes.

“The kind that ensures I don’t lose this.”

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Holmes looked between me and Conrad, and something in his expression changed.

“You don’t even know who he is,” he said.

“I know enough,” I replied.

“Then let me tell you something,” Holmes said, his voice lowering slightly. “You just made a mistake”

Before I could respond, one of the elders stood.

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