Chapter 5 The Only Card Left

_Rowena's POV_ An hour later, I watched the Varkos estate disappear in the side mirror of an unmarked car. Velvet sat beside me, her hands clasped tightly in her lap. Grace had remained behind to preserve the illusion that nothing had changed. She would keep the lamps burning in my chambers, carry documents in and out of my study, and tell anyone who asked that the Luna was not to be disturbed. It was a thin deception. But it only needed to last one night. We had almost reached the outer gates when two guards stepped into the road. The driver braked. Velvet stiffened beside me. "My Luna—" "Stay calm." One of the guards approached my window. His gaze passed over the plain car before settling on my face, and his expression immediately changed. "My Luna." He bowed, but his hand remained on the weapon at his belt. "I'm afraid no one is permitted to leave the estate tonight." "On whose order?" The hesitation lasted less than a second. "Alpha Kaelen's." Of course. Kaelen had left my chambers believing he could contain the damage by containing me. A bitter smile touched my lips. "When was that order issued?" "Less than half an hour ago." "Does it specifically name me?" The guard glanced at his companion. "No, my Luna. But the Alpha said no one was to pass without his direct authorization." "And I am still the Luna of Moonreign." "Yes, but—" "Then you know I have the authority to conduct pack business without requesting permission from every soldier at the gate." I let the words settle between us. The guard's eyes lowered, but he did not move. "Please do not make this difficult," he said. "If the Alpha learns we allowed you to leave—" "If you prevent me from carrying out my duties," I interrupted, "you will answer to your Luna now." A pressure stirred beneath my skin. It was not Kaelen's Alpha command. I had spent years smothering that part of myself so completely that no one in Moonreign remembered the bloodline I carried. But now, for one brief moment, I loosened my hold. The air inside the car changed. The guard's face paled. His neck bent before he seemed to realize he was bowing. Deep within me, Kyra lifted her head. "That's more like it," she murmured. "Open the gate," I said. The guards obeyed. * Leaving the estate was not the same as becoming free. In Moonreign, Kaelen was not merely the husband I wanted to leave. He was also the authority empowered to deny me. Ordinarily, an unmarked and unconsummated marriage could be dissolved without much difficulty. The absence of a completed bond meant there was no spiritual tie to sever, no shared blood oath, and no heir whose rights had to be considered. But pack marriages were judged under pack law. And within Moonreign, Kaelen was the law. Any petition I submitted would cross his desk. Any local tribunal would answer to him. Even if an elder dared to support me, Kaelen could reject the decision with a single command. He could keep me married to him simply because his pride would not allow me to leave. There was only one person in the region whose authority stood above an Alpha's. The Alpha King. Alaric. I had spent three years refusing to think about him. But Kaelen had stripped away every safer option I possessed. If I wanted a decree he could not overturn, I would have to go to the one man I had sworn never to approach. Celeste's residence occupied the upper floors of a tower in the center of the city. The building did not display her name, nor did it need to. Its understated luxury was exactly like Celeste herself—controlled, quiet, and far more powerful than it first appeared. She was waiting when the private elevator opened. Her eyes swept over me once. Then all warmth disappeared from her face. "Inside," she said. Velvet remained near the entrance while Celeste led me into the living room. She did not offer tea. She did not ask why I had come. Instead, she reached out and pulled aside the silk scarf around my neck. Her fingers froze. Kaelen's bruises had darkened during the drive. The marks of his hand stood out clearly against my skin. "Did he do this?" Celeste asked. "Yes." Her voice became dangerously calm. "What else?" I said nothing. Her gaze dropped to my wrists. Grace had tried to cover the bruising with powder, but it had already worn away at the edges. Celeste took my hand and turned it over carefully. "Rowena." "He tried to force the marriage into completion," I said. "He believed that if he consummated it, I would lose my grounds for divorce." Velvet made a wounded sound behind us. Celeste's hand tightened around mine. "Did he succeed?" "No." For the first time since I arrived, some of the tension left her shoulders. "Good," she said. "Then the bond remains incomplete. He has not closed every door." "Not yet." Celeste met my eyes. She understood immediately. "He will try again." "Yes." She released my wrist and crossed to the windows. Below us, the city glittered beneath the night sky, unaware of the decision being made above it. "I can place you somewhere secure," she said. "Kaelen won't find you unless I allow it." "Hiding will only delay him." "It would give us time." "And give him control of the story. By morning, he would tell the elders I had abandoned my Luna duties in a jealous rage. He would freeze my access to pack records and issue an order for my return." Celeste turned back to me. "Then what do you want?" I rose. "I want you to arrange a meeting with Alpha King Alaric." Even Kyra went still. Celeste studied me for a long moment, searching for uncertainty. She found none. "You understand what you're asking," she said. "I do." "The moment you file a royal petition, this stops being a private marital dispute. Kaelen will be notified. His conduct, your marriage, and Moonreign's finances may all become subject to royal investigation." "Let them." "And Alaric may demand answers you have spent years avoiding." My mother's warnings stirred in my memory. Stay quiet. Hide what you are. Never give powerful men a reason to look too closely. I had obeyed her until obedience became another prison. "I'm finished living according to decisions other people made for me," I said. "Kaelen will not decide whether I remain his wife. My mother will not decide how much of myself I am permitted to reveal. And Alaric will not decide my future simply because he wears a crown." Celeste's expression shifted slightly. "If he wants something in return?" she asked. "Then he can name it, and I will decide whether the price is mine to pay." A faint smile touched her mouth. "There you are," she murmured. I ignored the strange ache those words caused. "How soon can you arrange the meeting?" "Normally? Several weeks." "I don't have several weeks." "No." Her gaze returned to the bruises around my throat. "You don't." She reached for her phone. "One day," I said. "That is all I can safely give you." Celeste unlocked the screen. "I'll see what I can do." She selected a number from memory and placed the call on speaker. It rang once. Then a man answered. His voice was deep, calm, and edged with an authority that made the room seem smaller around us. "Put Rowena on the phone." My heart stopped. Celeste had not told him I was there.