Chapter Eighty Seven - Warning - Damian's POV
As I leave the dining hall, the weight of every stare clings to my back like a second skin and I hate the feel of it. My steps echo louder now in the hallway as I brew about what just happened.
How dare she threaten Maya when so much is at stake.
But I only make it about halfway down the hallway before I stop cold, muttering a curse under my breath. I forgot our breakfast.
With how Luce was acting, I'd marched right out without grabbing a single plate of anything. Maya hadn't eaten yet, and after the training yesterday, she needs something. It's the least I can do since she is still sleeping, or was when I left.
Turning on my heel, I head back to the dining hall, straightening my expression as I walk through the opening again. The room is still tense at best. Luce is now gone, but Tiffan stands off to the side with crossed arms. They must have gotten into it after I left for those brief few seconds.
It appears a few others who weren't standing there previously are now around her, asking for information about things they wouldn't dare ask me to my face.
I stride toward the food table near them, ignoring the silence that creeps in with my return. I grab a tray and start collecting an assortment of things. She hasn't told me her preferences, but I've seen her nibble on bacon, eggs, and a few other things.
As I reach for a small dish of honey for the biscuits, Tiffany appears at my side.
'Didn't expect you to come back to this room of horrors so soon."
'Forgot breakfast," I mutter.
Her lips twitch. 'She'll need more than food if she's going to face what is coming. Luce won't let this go."
'I know," I scoff. 'Whatever Luce is planning, I'll handle it. But Maya comes first."
Tiffany nods. 'Then make sure she knows how much she means to you before someone else tries to tell her otherwise. I don't think Luce will stop with a threat of a challenge. She may try other methods to get her to leave."
I glance at Tiffany, my hands gripping the tray tightly as my jaw clenches. 'If Luce tries anything, I'll make sure she regrets the day she was born."
'She's already halfway there, alpha," Tiffany murmurs, her voice low.
'She just doesn't know it yet."
With the tray full, I nod to her in thanks for the warning and turn away before the anger simmering in my chest has a chance to boil over. It's not her fault. It's Luce's. I walk out of the dining hall without a word, shutting out all the hushed whispers and side glances that follow me wherever I go.
Let them talk. Let them wonder about how their alpha feels. None of it matters if Maya doesn't feel safe here.
If all else fails, I'll have to take her away from here to keep her safe. I'd do anything just to make her happy. But without the safety of a pack around us, my father and brother would hunt us down quicker, then we'd be in real trouble.
The hall feels quieter now as I head back to my room. Our room. The farther I get from the others, the more I can breathe again. The scent of food wafts my way, but it's the thought of her tangled in sheets that keeps me moving.
When I reach the door, I hesitate just for a moment before pushing it open quietly. The room is still dim with the curtains filtering the morning light in soft golden rays. Evelyn is sitting in the chair near the fireplace, her head tilted back with her eyes closed. Then I look left, only to find Maya sitting up in the middle of the bed, a blanket pulled around her shoulders.
Her hair is a bit messy and her eyes are hazy from sleep. She looks at me, blinking slowly.
'You left," she says, her voice a little hoarse.
I chuckle low under my breath. 'Only for a minute," I answer gently as I use my foot to nudge the door closed behind me. 'I had to get breakfast for us. Figured you might actually eat something this time."
She offers a tired half-smile, eyes flicking down to the tray full of food in my hands. 'What in the world did you bring? Is that everything from the dining hall?"
'No, not quite," I say with a laugh. 'You know how we eat. This barely scratches the surface."
Maya looks at me in disbelief, then her gaze falls back on the tray. 'Thank you for bringing it. I don't feel like facing everyone."
With that said, I know I need to tell her everything, so I sit on the edge of the bed beside her, laying the tray in front of us. 'Tiffany said Luce isn't letting this go. And she might try something other than what she has in the past."
Her expression darkens. 'That explains everything. When you were gone those eight days, she popped off on a few occasions, but I didn't think anything of it."
'What? What did she say?"
Maya looks at the plate of food. 'She mentioned something about a challenge."
'You heard this? And didn't say anything."
She shrugs. 'I don't know. There weren't any names called out. I never made the connection she meant me."
This gets Evelyn's attention. She turns in her seat, eyes wide with horror. 'When did you hear this?"
'When we were walking down the hallway one day. Why? What does it mean?"
'A challenge means that she wants to fight you."
Maya's face goes blank. Her eyes never leave the tray. 'So, today, I have breakfast with a side of looming danger. What a morning."
I breathe out a ragged sigh. 'Welcome to pack life."
Evelyn mutters something under her breath and stands, pacing toward the window with a frown on her face. 'This is exactly what I've been worried about," she says. 'Luce is going to continue to push limits because she thinks she'll have the pack's support. If she's been thinking about it this long, she may just go through with it."
Maya picks at a piece of toast absentmindedly. 'What if she challenges me? What am I supposed to do? You just started training me and I'm not even a wolf. I won't stand a chance in a fight against her."
'You may not have shifted blood or have the official pack title, but you are our luna. You're mine. That means I will fight in your place and bring order," I say firmly. 'She can't do this, not when you are such an integral part of all of this."
Her eyes flick to mine, uncertain. 'That's not really reassuring when I have no idea what a challenge involves. What if she kills you to get to me?"
Evelyn turns back to face her, arms crossed over her chest. 'She hasn't announced it yet publicly, so there is still time. But to answer your question, a formal challenge is public and brutal. There are rules and given that you are human, you're not even eligible. Luce is reckless, but smart enough to twist something somehow into her favor."
'And petty enough to try," I add. 'She wants you out because she thinks she'd be better as my mate, so no, she won't kill me. But this position isn't one she can just claim, either. You are my fated mate, just as I've told you, and I won't let anyone try to take it."
Maya's voice is barely above a whisper when she speaks. 'Shouldn't I fight her to prove myself? If you defend me, then the pack may not believe I'm worthy."
I reach over, placing a hand gently on her thigh. 'You're not fighting her, no matter what the pack thinks. I'll stop her before it gets that far."
She nods faintly, finally biting into the piece of toast in her hand with slow, thoughtful chewing. 'I feel like I'm in the middle of someone else's nightmare. Not mine."
'Nightmares can be survived," I say, watching her carefully. 'Especially when you aren't going to face them alone."
Evelyn nods in agreement. 'And trust me when I say this, Luce may talk big, but there are more people in this pack that want to see you succeed than you think. She just makes the most noise. You are going to be what saves us."
Maya exhales, finally reaching for a piece of bacon off the tray. 'Well, then. Let's get through breakfast before I have to face another life-threatening event."
I smile faintly, and even Evelyn cracks a grin. 'There's the spirit."