Underwater: The Silent Luna novel Chapter 69

Underwater: The Silent Luna

Chapter 69

Ashley could hardly breathe through the jealousy burning in her chest.

It coiled tight and vicious, a living thing that slithered through her ribs and wrapped around her lungs until every breath felt like a

battle. Jealousy was not foreign to her, but this kind was different. This one was laced with fear. With urgency. With the terrifying

awareness that time was slipping out of her control.

She needed Joseph home.

She needed the wedding done.

She needed the title secured.

Only then, only then, could she finally put Meadow where she belonged.

Beneath her.

Ashley’s fingers curled slowly beneath the table, her nails pressing into her palms hard enough to sting. She imagined the future in

clean, brutal pieces: the pack kneeling, the title of Luna on her shoulders, the weight of authority finally hers. Meadow would be nothing then. A forgotten wife of a broken Alpha. A quiet shadow that no one looked at twice.

As long as Joseph remained acting Alpha, Ashley believed victory was guaranteed. The Luna seat would be hers. The pack would

bow. Meadow would fade into irrelevance.

It was a beautiful dream.

And dreams were fragile.

“Did he tell you when he will be coming home?” Amber asked Meadow calmly.

Ashley’s heart slammed.

Meadow shook her head.

The movement was gentle. Honest.

And it infuriated Ashley beyond reason.

Amber’s gaze shifted slowly to Ashley, who was simmering beneath the surface, her hands clenched beneath the table. The shift was

subtle, but deliberate. Amber did nothing without intention.

“Did Joseph tell you when they will be returning?” Amber asked.

Ashley forced a soft sigh. She tilted her head slightly, her expression carefully constructed to appear weary, worried, patient.

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Chapter 69

“I haven’t spoken to Joseph since he left. I assume the pressure of the negotiations must have kept him occupied.”

The words were smooth. Polished. Perfectly arranged.

i

But they landed like an insult.

Amber’s eyes sharpened instantly.

“And let me guess,” she said coolly, “Ethan must have too much time on his hands because he’s just an escort, which is why he had

time to call his wife.”

Ashley stiffened.

The accusation hung in the air like a blade suspended above her neck.

“I have to warn you, Ashley,” Amber continued coldly. “Joseph does not own or run this pack. That meeting can only pull through

with Ethan. He is still the Alpha of Whitewood.”

Ashley swallowed.

Heat crawled up her spine. She could feel herself being stripped bare beneath Amber’s calm, merciless gaze.

“Joseph must have his reasons for not calling,” Amber went on. “But do not insult Ethan because of it. Just because you are hurt

that Ethan communicated with his wife and Joseph did not call you does not mean you should attempt to belittle your Alpha.”

The room went deathly quiet.

Not even the servants moved.

“Under normal circumstances,” Amber said, her voice dropping, “your marriage to Joseph would not even stand with this attitude

you’ve shown these past few days. But I will excuse it as hormonal, because you are pregnant.”

Ashley’s face burned.

The words hit harder than a slap. Humiliation wrapped itself around her throat, tight and unforgiving. Every unsaid judgment in

Amber’s tone carved deep.

“But I advise you to watch it. I might be lenient. Joseph might be blinded by affection. But you know Ethan, he is none of those | things.”

Amber leaned forward slightly.

The movement was small, controlled. But its dominance was absolute.

“Something you clearly do not understand is that even when Ethan was active, he always made time for his loved ones. Something Joseph never did.”

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Chapter 69

Ashley’s heart stuttered.

For a fraction of a second, panic flickered inside her chest. She had built her entire sense of security around the idea that Joseph was hers, emotionally, politically, strategically. Hearing Amber place Ethan above him in even this subtle way was a threat she hadn’t anticipated.

She nodded stiffly. “I’m sorry for my behaviour.”

Amber did not even acknowledge her apology.

Her gaze returned to Meadow.

The dismissal stung worse than a slap.

Ashley lowered her eyes, hiding the storm building behind them.

She had pushed too hard.

Revealed too much.

From now on, she would attack quietly. Invisibly. Like poison in water.

“Please,” Amber said to Meadow, “find out from your husband when they will be returning. This treaty is taking too long, and it is

making me nervous. The Alpha of Ceenas does not have a good reputation.”

Meadow nodded at once.

Her obedience was not weakness. It was sincerity. And that sincerity unsettled Ashley more than defiance ever could.

The rest of the meal passed in uneasy silence.

The cutlery scraped too loudly. Every breath sounded exaggerated. No one spoke. Everyone thought. And none of those thoughts

were harmless.

When they were done, Meadow signed good night politely and returned to her room.

Inside her room, she closed the door gently behind her.

The silence settled instantly.

It wrapped around her like a second skin.

Her chest felt tight.

Amber’s fear had unsettled her.

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Chapter 69

Ashley’s hatred exhausted her.

And Ethan’s absence felt heavier than ever.

She sat on the edge of the bed for a long while without moving. The room felt too large without him. Too cold without the sound of

his voice. Too quiet without his steady presence filling the space.

She retrieved the secret phone from the nightstand drawer.

Her fingers hesitated over the screen for several seconds.

She thought of Amber’s trembling hands.

Ashley’s burning eyes.

The way Ethan’s voice had sounded the last time they spoke.

Then she typed.

Meadow: Are you safe? When are you coming home?

She placed the phone beside her pillow.

And waited.

Far away, in the darkness of Ceenas, Ethan’s phone vibrated.

He read Meadow’s message.

And for reasons he could not explain,

His chest tightened with dread.

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Underwater: The Silent Luna