Chapter 81 - The Deal

LUNA ASTERBELLE'S POV

I never left Jerome's side for the next couple of hours. My adoptive mother was the only one who invited me to rest or at least have a short break to eat my meal, but regardless, I still stayed on the same spot.

"Why are you pretending like you never insulted Jerome before?"

The curiosity from the past still lingered, and it wouldn't leave me until either one of my adoptive parents gave me a response.

Mrs. Asterbelle sighed, avoiding eye contact with me. "Jerome Dawson had a lot of similarities with the moon goddess—I didn't like that."

"And what if I tell you that Jerome was the moon goddess' son? Will you disapprove of him as my mate? Will you treat him like trash?"

Mrs. Asterbelle has been hating Althea for years now, even before I got to meet her and Brian. We never talked about why she loathed the moon goddess so much; she always changed the topic whenever I tried.

"Hey," Nero stole my attention after he tapped my shoulder, gesturing to me to follow him outside the guest house.

"Why? Is Shin here?" I worriedly asked the beta.

I could only silently wish that the alpha would never show his face to us ever again and just leave us alone to do as we pleased.

Nero simply shook his head. He explained how he wanted to have a single drop of my blood in exchange for all the efforts he exerted just to help me out. There were doubts in my mind, but I had no option other than to say no and turn him down.

"We do owe you a lot, but I think giving you a droplet of my blood was too cocky of you," I said without any hesitation.

The expression in Nero's eyes suddenly changed, which made me step backwards unconsciously until I reached a dead end. "Please don't see me as a bad guy, Luna. I just want to conduct an experiment with your blood, which could possibly result in a cure for the virus' cure or something better," Nero mumbled, still trying to convince me. "Your blood would be safer with me than Shin. Trust me," he added.

I looked elsewhere, and just as Nero spoke about Shin, he appeared on the other side of the gates. He kept his head bowed down, and his aura screamed how much bloodlust he had stored for the beta. I hurriedly grabbed Nero's wrist, bringing him back to our room. I told them that they should prepare themselves for the worst, as Shin was already outside.

From the gist of Shin's expression, I had this weird feeling that this would be our last fight. "Aren't you tired of chasing me, Shin? I already told you from the beginning that I am not interested in becoming yours as your chosen mate, and I will never consider it," I said.

The alpha's emotions didn't change at all. His mind was probably occupied with only the intention of killing the beta or anyone here.

When I tried to divert his attention to somewhere else, he spoke. "You're overestimating yourself, Luna. I no longer want you, Luna…"

It was the second time that someone officially told me that. Before, Jerome used to tell me how much he despised me.

Shin didn't waste his time, as he began to wreck the entire guest house, starting from the exterior. He totally destroyed all that he stumbled upon; everything turned into tiny fragments while slowly melting into dust. Shin had no mercy for the innocent people that resided in their pack's guest house, as if they were strangers to him.

While the alpha was busy, I took the chance to face my allies, who were suppressing their fear.

"Don't worry, Shin wouldn't dare to lay his fingers on any of you. I'm sure he will calm down later on. If not, then I'll be the one to kill him instead," I said to somehow reassure them. "Joseph, flee from the other side of the hallway. You'll reach a wall that seems like a dead end, but that's where you'll escape. There's a hidden exit there. Bring Jerome with you. Mrs. Asterbelle and Yve would protect you from behind."

My mother was trembling. It was unusual since I've always known her as the woman who never gets scared of anyone as long as she's alive. I went close to her and held her hands. I smiled at her, which she sweetly returned. With one last nod, they went out of the room, where Shin wouldn't see them even from his peripheral vision.

I was with the beta, but he hasn't talked to me since I disapproved of his request for my blood.

"Now is not the right time for you to sulk, Beta Holmes. I need your strength to take down Shin. You're the only person left who I can rely on," I mumbled.

Nero chose to look the other way, as if he didn't hear what I said. I stepped in front of him, forcing him to glance at me.

"Let's have a deal." I sighed, still contemplating whether this was the best solution or not. He raised one of his eyebrows, giving me the sign to continue. "I'll give you some of my blood, and you can use it for anything you want. In exchange, I want you to at least make Shin unable to move. Once Shin is vulnerable, I'll do the honor of taking his life," I muttered.

The beta's lips slightly parted, probably confused as to why I suddenly changed my mind. "Is that all you need? Is removing my brother's legs and arms enough for you to ultimately destroy him?" he asked consecutively, which I answered with a thumbs up, realizing that Shin was already inside the same room as us.

"It's now or never, Nero," I whispered to him as we got into our positions.

Shin raised his hand, which instantly transformed him into his werewolf. "First, it was Yuki. And now, you'll also turn your back against me, Nero?" His wolf howled, which led a strong wind to blow in our direction. "You're going to pay for this."