The Alpha King's Contracted Luna by Nelson Claudia

Chapter 191

Chapter 191

-Ava’s POV-

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I had always felt like | wasn’t good enough-not by choice, but because that was how my parents had made me

see myself. And when | turned eighteen, the feeling of inadequacy becmore than just emotional; it became

a defining truth.

| didn’t have a wolf so | felt incomplete.

But it wasn’t just the absence of my wolf that madefeel incomplete. It turned out, | had been incomplete

from the moment | was born.

I had a twin.

There was me, and then there was her. Born on the sday, a human being. A sister.

“Ava?”

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| hadn’t moved from the spot where | nearly suffocated from a panic attack. | knew my nwas being called,

but I couldn’t bring myself to answer. Not from the woman who had lied tomy entire life, who had only now,

after twenty-five years, chosen to tellthe truth. The truth that my birth had been prophesied by the

ancestors, and that the child born would be the perfect match, the fated mate to the Alpha king.

But there were two of us.

So my parents had to make a choice. Pick one, and transfer the essence to her, because if they hadn't, both of

us would have died. So, they chose one. A ritual was performed, transferring the essence from one to the other,

leaving the unchosen child hollow.

Somehow, after the transfer, my sister-the twin-was stolen. They believed | was the weaker twin, but they were

wrong. | was the one who carried the essence. | was Grayson'’s fated mate.

If | weren't so exhausted, if | didn't feel like everything was unraveling around me. If | wasn’t actually scared that

all the laughter might actually mean | was going insane, | might have laughed again.

| might have laughed and never stopped.

“Where is she? Who is she?” | whispered, forcing myself to look at my mother-even though I couldn't meet her

eyes.

| would have been stunned by the way Evelyn Pierce, of all people, looked almost apologetic, as if she were truly

sorry for treatinglike a mistake my entire life. She thought they'd lost the child they wanted, and no matter

what | did, | would never be good enough. | would always be weak. Inadequate.

But | was the twin. The chosen one. Now she sat there, after all these years, tellingthat she and my father

had been wrong. She'd realized it the night of the ball, and now, with everything that had happened, it was clear

that | was the one who carried the power.

“Is that why you never touched me? Because | wasn’t your choice? Is that why you detested me?”

“Ava-"

“Don’t say my name. Don’t you ever say my name.” | pushed myself to my feet, every emotion within me

silenced, leaving only the sense of anger. “You treatedas if my very existence was a mistake. You made me

beca version of myself that projected perfection, but it wasn’t perfection you wanted from me, was it? You

were trying to moldinto the person you expected her to be-the exceptional child, the chosen child. And now

you sit here, telling| was the chosen one, like

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Chapter 191

that’s supposed to makefeel better?”

“You don’t-"

“Just shut up, Mother. Stop talking. Just shut up.”

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She actually clamped her mouth shut, and | saw fear flicker in her eyes. It tooka moment to realize that my

claws had extended. | let out a sigh, pulling them back in and forcing myself to breathe before I did something |

would regret.

So, my wolf had been right. | was Grayson’s fated mate. But if that was true, why didn’t the bond break his curse

when he marked me? Why?

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| shook my head. | wasn't going to think about him right now, or my head would explode from the chaos swirling

inside me.

| needed to get out of here. | couldn't bear another moment looking at her face.

“Where are you going, Ava? In your condition?” she asked, reaching out to touch me. Without thinking, my claws

extended again, slicing through her hand. Blood flowed immediately. Her eyes widened in shock, mirroring my

own, but the anger rushed through me.

“You stay the hell away from me. | never want to see you or Father again.”

| turned and ran, not knowing where | was headed, but just needing to keep moving. | ended up at a park and

collapsed onto

a stone bench. | closed my eyes, not even knowing what | was feeling anymore. All | knew was that | was tired.

And angry. So, so angry.

My wolf stirred inside me. | opened the mental link between us. ‘Did you know?"

She was silent for a moment before her voice resonated in my head. “That you were his mate? Yes."

There was a subtle tone, like she'd tried to tell me, but I hadn't listened. Then she continued, ‘I wasn't aware of a

twin.

Silence followed through the link before the next words reached her before I could think them. ‘Why did you take

so long to cto me?’

I had never asked her. The darker version of myself had said it was because | was weak, that my wolf was

powerful and | hadn't been a strong enough counterpart.

‘Because you didn’t let me."

That was her only reply before the mental link broke off, and | knew that she wasn’t one for long conversations.

| let out a sigh, not bothering to reach out again for an explanation. | knew she was done for now, and | was too

tired to try.

“Dr. Pierce?”

The voice startled me, and | opened my eyes to see Mikayla and a boy hee age standing in front of me, staring.

“Mikayla, hi,” | said, trying to sit straighter and wiping away the tears that had been constant for the past few

days. But | knew it was no use. | didn’t need to look at myself in a mirror to know how | must have looked-like I'd

been living on the

streets.

The boy next to her turned away and spoke to her. “I'll see you tomorrow. Bye, Kayla.”

| watched as a tiny blush crept up on Mikayla’s cheeks, but her attention quickly shifted back to me. She

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12:37 Wed, 5 Feb MMO «

Chapter 191

head to toe, and | didn’t even try to hide the exhaustion then she sat next to me.

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For a moment, neither of us spoke. What was | supposed to say to a teenager who was the daughter of someone

I had once treated, who was looking atlike | was a shell of the person | used to be?

Finally, she broke the silence. Her words weren't what | expected. “So, there was a bake sale at my school last

week to raise money.”

I blinked at her, confused. “For what?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. | still don’t really pay attention in school.” She grinned, and | couldn't help but let a

small smile tug at my lips.

Silence followed again before Mikayla spoke once more. “So... do you want to tellwhy you're sitting in the

middle of a park, crying and looking like you've been run over by a garbage truck at least three times?” She

sniffed the air. “Make that

six.”

| didn’t say anything and she let out a sigh, “Or | guess we could not talk about it.” Then she jumped to her feet

suddenly, “Con, let's go.”

“Where?”

“Well for one, my mom would be very happy to see the woman who saved her life.”

That madefeel a pang. | hadn't saved her, Grayson had. But | pushed it away.

“And for two,” Mikayla added, “No offense but you are kind of stinking up the place.”

| stared at her for a moment before looking back in the direction | had run from. My hand instinctively reached

for my stomach, and a thought crossed my mind. Another life.

I had another life growing insideand so | stood up, feeling the weight of everything pressing down on me.

“We can walk,” Mikayla said, her tone matter-of-fact. “My house isn’t far from here.”

| nodded quietly, following her as we walked in silence. | wasn’t sure where | was going, but it was better than

staying in that place, with all the lies and confusion swirling around me.

| wasn’t sure how long we walked, but eventually we reached a building. Mikayla spoke again, her voice soft, “It

isn't much,

but-"

The door swung open before she could finish her sentence. Tessa stood in the doorway, looking healthier, more

vibrant than the last t| saw her. Her eyes widened when she saw me, but Mikayla spoke before Tessa could

say anything.

“Mum, you remember Dr. Pierce. She'll be staying with us for a while.”

I glanced down at Mikavla, momentarily taken aback, but then Tessa smiled warmly and added. “For as long as

she wants.”

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