The Lunar Queen (Lyric and Mason) novel Chapter 181

Chapter 181

atre for BOTHING.” I s

furbing table set ste grund the mining entire fe

“Wait a minute so te did a trang and ming and then lannut ” Tomass

It’s like Wam finally regters

the room. “Ch my Sud Ty didn’t even realize you were bene” the cavs coming

and tugging him.

smiles and laughs. “It’s okay. Aunt Leah Emotions are unming high night now,” ite says.

The brings her hands to her mouth in stock, and tears beam diwa ter face. “I know you’re not my Lytic, but how she

Innking at Tabitha.

“Hello, Luna Leah, my name is Tabitha, and I am Toby’s mane Lyric is basically my cousin,” she says, smiling

“You look more like her than iris, and they are twins,” Mom LEL

“Oh, can I meer her? I would actually like to meet all of her shilings if that is possible,” she says.

“Of course it is, but maybe tomorrow?” I say.

“Yes, of course,” she says.

“Dad, we need to talk.” I say.

“What’s going on, son?” he says.

“In private,” I say.

My mother’s brows furrow. “Whatever you have to say to me, you can say in front of your mother,” he says.

“It’s about Freya,” I say, and they both go silent. Not confusion. Not hesitation. Recognition-instant, sharp-and something in my chest tightens because I already know what that means. Zeus stills completely, listening.

“Um, what about her?” he says, clearing his throat.

“Why did she leave?” I ask.

They both look at each other. That look isn’t quick. It lingers just enough to confirm it-this isn’t something they forgot. This is something they buried.

“She said she wanted to try finding her fated mate, and she left right before Xavier was born.” Dad says.

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Chapter 181

Lying to my face. It lands before I even think it through-instinct, immediate, something in me rejecting it outright. My jaw tightens, fingers curling slightly at my sides. Zeus reacts with it, a low pressure building under my skin.

“So you weren’t having an affair with her?” I ask.

His eyes go wide in surprise. “What did you just say?” he says.

“Were you having an affair with her?” I ask more firmly, a small command behind it.

“Yes, I was,” he says, and my mother’s tears begin to fall.

“Did she leave because of you, Mother?” I ask.

She shakes her head, tears falling, but I see the guilt written across her face. It’s there, clear, undeniable-and it pushes something sharper through my chest.

“Tell me the truth NOW,” I snap.

“I found out your father was having an affair with her right after I gave birth to Elias, I couldn’t understand what it was about her,”

she says.

“She was my mate,” he says low.

Mate. The word doesn’t just land-it hits, heavy, knocking something loose in my chest. For a second everything goes too quiet, like my mind is trying to catch up and failing. Zeus goes completely still again, but this time it feels different-focused, locked in.

“So Mom isn’t your fated mate?” I ask.

“She is, but so was Freya,” he says.

“How?” I ask, my mind spinning.

“I have two wolves. My Alpha wolf is mated to your mother, and my Gamma wolf was mated to Freya,” he says.

“My mother was a gifted wolf…” he says.

“…and Selene wanted one of her pups to inherit her gifts, and although I wasn’t the oldest, she felt I was more worthy than my brother,” he says.

Two wolves. Two mates. The pieces don’t sit right. They don’t settle. They just stack on top of everything else I didn’t know, everything that was kept from me, and it starts to feel like there’s more underneath it still.

My mother looks at my father as if she is seeing him for the first time.

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