Wolf-less Omega Luna novel Chapter 69

Alana’s POV


Axel still didn’t respond to my question and neither did his eyes meet mine. What could he have done? And why wasn’t he coming with us?

“Talk to me, Axel.” His hands were back in the chains that were bound to the ceiling. He leaned on his toes, facing me with his head down. My dad was still on the other side of the room, offering words only when necessary.

Slowly, his head tilted up and he locked his gaze with me. “I made a deal with Derek. He’ll let you go but I can’t come.”

“What deal?”

Silence.

“Axel, you’re scaring me.”

“Derek lets you go and he gets to keep Crescent Moon pack as his.”

“You’re kidding.” I looked around hysterically, thinking that there was a camera pointed at me somewhere and this was a prank. 

“Sadly, I am not.”

“Derek can shove that deal up his ass. We’ll find another way. Tyler should be here soon. We’ve been gone for too long. We just have to wait a little bit longer.” 

There was nothing fair about that deal and there was no way I was going to allow Axel to lose what he and his father, and those before him had worked so hard to build.

“It’s the only deal he’ll agree to. It doesn’t matter, Alana, he won’t get through with whatever this is.”

“The pack. Did you think about them? Do you really think Derek would care for them the way you do? If there’s anything he wants to do, it’s to destroy Crescent Moon pack. He doesn’t care. And what about you? And your parents? Did you think about that?” The world was starting to spin around me.

“Alana, Listen to me carefully. He inched towards me. They’re letting you out now. Don’t look back. You have to get to Crescent Moon pack as quickly as possible and tell them to prepare for what’s coming. I’ll try my best to stall for as long as possible but I can’t do much. I’ll take care of Derek, but you have to get the pack to safety first.”

My heart thumped violently against my chest. “I can’t do this.” My vision was starting to play tricks on me. “I can’t do this.”

“I won’t let him hurt you, Alana, or any other person for that matter. Once you get back, get everybody to safety as quickly as possible. Get the women and pups as far away as possible, and stay away.” 

I whipped my head up to him. “If my pack is going to be under attack, I’ll be leading the fight. I will not hide while every other person is out there risking their lives for me.”

Axel came closer to the opening between two bars, trying so desperately to get closer to me. The sound of his skin connecting with the silver bars sizzled through the air and my heart squeezed in my chest.

“Let the pack warriors do their job, Alana. I can’t lose you. Please. Get back to the pack and get to safety.” His eyes held pain. Unspoken pain. His heart too. I felt it.

I nodded, unable to form words.

“I left the car a little distance from where you left yours. It’s covered in the bushes so it should still be safe. Yours would have been sabotaged by now so when you get there, don’t use it. Find mine.”

“I’m sorry for stealing your car,” 

He shook his head. “It was yours anyway.”

I hadn’t had the time or space to process anything that was happening. All I knew was that we had to stop whatever Derek was planning from happening.

There was a lot to talk about. I had to let Axel know how important he was to me. How sorry I was. And how much I wanted us to make things work without letting anything come between us anymore.

Now wasn’t a good time but thinking about it in that moment, there was never going to be a good time. I opened my mouth to speak before the doors were pulled open, disrupting our conversation.

Axel still stayed close to me but turned to my dad with a plea in his eyes. “Look after her. Please.”

My dad nodded silently. “She’s my blood. I’d die before I’ll let something happen to her.”

“Would you? You lost her for ten years but you lived through it without a problem.” Derek’s smug face came into view but before it did, I already recognized the voice from the sneer it held. 

He had changed into an outfit that made him look like he was going to war. And he was. With Crescent Moon pack. His mischievous grin made my blood boil.

“I hope you are not thinking about going back on your word because I made a deal and unless those conditions are met accurately, you’re not getting anything from me,” Axel spat, venom coating his words. 

“Don’t worry, Axel, I am a man of my word.” The keys to the cell jingled in his and he stepped forward to open mine. Only then did Axel’s hand retreat from my cell side, leaving red streaks on his skin. Physically, Axel didn’t look like he was in any pain.

Derek opened my cell and took a step back. He had learned his lesson about coming close to me. From my observation the last time Derek was here, there was only one spot where you could open the door to the cell without having your fingers burned.

I reached for it and pulled the door in. Once I stepped out, I threw my weight on Axel’s taut body and inhaled his soothing scent, forgetting that he was still in chains. I said no words to him, but a million emotions swirled through me.

Someone clearing their throat from behind us —no doubt, Derek,— was what finally pulled me away from my mini moment.

“And my dad,” I said after a pause that seemed like hours.

He then made his way to my dad’s cell, fished out a key too slowly for my liking, and finally unlocked it.

As soon as my dad was out, I crossed the room to him and took him in a hug as well. I easily outweighed him but his fatherly embrace overwhelmed me. His warmth, his love, and his heartbeat up close were everything I’d never experienced before. Tears of joy dropped from my eyes before I found it in me to break the hug.

We were going to have a reunion party after this but right now, we needed to face the war we had in front of us.

“One hour,” Derek chimed. “Tick. Tock.”

In a few steps, Axel covered the gap between us, forming a shield between Derek and me, and he cupped my cheeks. I struggled to keep my emotions at bay.

His eyes held mine in a way that said nothing other than love. Pure, genuine love. 

“We’ll get through this. Together.” His hand traced my body to my hands and interlocked it, bringing it up to his lips and sealing it with a kiss.

I inclined my head and brushed my lips over his. I kissed him slowly, softly, and then deeply. This kiss was different from our other kisses. This kiss was laced with promises. Agreement. Submission. Love.

We finally took a step back from each other and I walked out of the dungeon with one last look at the man who held my heart in his palms, and my dad trailing behind.

We were going to get through this, and there'd be nothing else between Axel and me. Derek included.