When The Luna Broke Her Chains novel Chapter 48

Chapter 48 The Blessing In Disguise

[KNOX]

I barely manage to hold the growl back.

Finished

I should have thought. Once. Just once. I should not have spoken that vow in anger, not with the Goddess as witness and my father watching for any excuse to tighten the leash around my throat.

Now there is a Guild woman standing in front of me, pale and confused, unaware of how close she has come to being crushed beneath something she never asked for.

And my father–Zephyr knows exactly what is at stake.

If he cancels the Luna Choosing now, if he dares to, it will mean facing every Alpha, every noble house, every family that crossed seas and borders believing their daughters or sisters might one day stand beside the throne. He cannot say I chose someone outright, not without

consequence.

So he chooses another word.

Favored.

The trials will continue. The ceremony will proceed. The farce will be maintained. But everyone in this room knows who the crown is being angled toward.

And so do I.

I swore an oath to the Goddess.

She tied me to a Guild woman.

I swallow a laugh before it can escape. I can’t even imagine the chaos if it had been Seraphel who stepped through that door first.

I shake

my

head sharply, forcing my thoughts to slow, and focus on the woman standing there.

“Davina,” I say her name firmly, my voice steady despite the storm inside me.

She looks up at once.

“How long is your service to the Moon Guild?” I ask. “How many years remain on your oath?”

She blinks, clearly startled by the question, then wets her lips. “Two years left, Your Highness.”

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Chapter 48 The Blessing In Disguise

“Two years,” I repeat, more to myself than to her.

My father’s gaze sharpens.

Finished

“So,” I continue aloud, thinking as I speak, “even if she participates in the Luna Choosing, even if she were to… win it, she cannot marry until her servitude ends.”

Zephyr’s jaw tightens.

Aria answers instead, cautiously. “That’s correct. A Guild oath supersedes all other contracts. You would have to wait.”

I turn to her. “Two years.”

She nods. “Yes.”

I glance at Seraphel. “Is that right?”

Seraphel looks between us, clearly unsettled. “Yes, Your Highness. Any marriage would be postponed until her oath is fulfilled.”

I turn back to my father. “You can push the ascension forward,” I say evenly. “But the marriage itself would have to wait. For two years. And so would my ascension.”

Zephyr stares at me, reading between every line.

Finally, he exhales sharply and rises from his chair. “I’ve lost my appetite,” he snaps. “Fine! You can take the throne once this Luna Choosing farce concludes. But you will marry her in two years‘ time. The Goddess will forgive my mistake and the command I gave while frustrated. I will pray to her day and night.”

Something loosens in my chest.

Two years.

It feels like a miracle disguised as punishment.

Two years to find a cure. Two years without consummation. Two years where no woman dies by my hand.

Guild oaths demand celibacy.

Perfect.

I don’t bother hiding the small, satisfied curve of my mouth. “As you wish, Your Grace.”

Zephyr storms out.

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Chapter 48 The Blessing In Disguise

)

inished

Aria lets out a breath and presses her fingers to her forehead. “Goddess help us,” she mutters. Then she turns to Seraphel. “Forgive us. Please, sit. We… started without you.”

Seraphel takes a moment to gather herself. “It’s quite alright,” she says. “I brought her only to introduce her. She’s…. blessed. Her capabilities are immense—”

Aria nods weakly, glancing at Davina, who still stands frozen, hands clasped tight.

I lean back, finally allowing myself to breathe.

Two years, I think again.

“I will explain everything later,” Aria says softly. “For now, let us dine.”

***

When I return to my room, my gaze goes immediately to the wall. To the ceremonial cloak.

I exhale loudly. The thought of her barely starts to stir in my mind when a knock resounds against the door and my beta enters.

“I thought you’d want to know this,” Iver says.

I turn. “What is it?”

“The woman you… favored,” he says carefully. “Davina.”

“Yes?”

“She’s her sister.”

My stomach drops. “Whose?” I ask, even though I already know.

“Luna Xena’s,” Iver says. “Step–sister, I believe.”

I close my eyes.

Of course. Of course, the Moon Goddess would do this instead of the simple thing. If she truly wanted to bind us together, she could have let Xena be the one to walk through that door.

I swallow hard.

My mind goes to her room. The low ceiling, the thin light, the way she stood there trying not to take up space.

“Arrange better chambers for her,” I say quietly. “At once.”

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Sesong in Droguse

Jer bestes France, don’t you funk fat would-

Tagore greations my decision send them to me. I’ll answer them.”

Ther and be the leaves, I state at the doak again

Two years, I think

Whatever the Von Collerants from me, she’s no longer asking

78

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