Page 35 of The Alpha's Forced Rejected Mate
Luna closed the journal, her mind racing. Had he undergone the same transformation that seemed to be affecting Dominic?
The sound of footsteps outside the cabin jerked her from her thoughts. Quickly, she stuffed the journal back beneath the clothes and quietly closed the chest. There wasn’t enough time to return to the bed and refasten the cuff before the door opened.
Instead, she slipped through the bathroom door, leaving it slightly ajar so she could hear if someone entered. The bathroom was as simple as the rest of the cabin—a shower stall, toilet, and small sink with a mirrored cabinet above it.
The footsteps passed by the cabin and continued down the path. Luna released the breath she’d been holding, her heart pounding in her chest.
She opened the medicine cabinet out of curiosity, finding only basic supplies—toothbrush, razor, first aid kit—but once again, she noticed the boards behind the cabinet was mismatched.
She found another journal, smaller than the first, wedged behind the other items as if intentionally hidden. This one was newer, the leather cover still supple.
“I continue to excel as commander, but I worry about the changes in me. The ruthless efficiency Xavier praises seems to come at the cost of my humanity. Now I understand only cold calculation.”
Luna’s heart skipped a beat.
“Three more witches bound this month. I searched the records for information on their placement after the ceremony, but found nothing. When I asked Xavier directly, he said only that they were ‘serving the greater good.’ Something doesn’t add up.
“I’ve started keeping track of the witches brought in for binding ceremonies. Twenty-seven in the past year alone. None can be accounted for afterward. The official explanation is that they’re relocated to integration centers, but no such centers appear in any of our records. Where are they going? And why is no one questioning this?”
Luna closed the journal with trembling hands.
The sound of the cabin door opening sent her heart into her throat. She quickly replaced the journal, closed the cabinet, and took a deep breath to calm herself. Through the crack in the door, she could see Dominic entering the cabin alone.
His gaze immediately went to the empty bed, his body tensing as he noticed the open cuff dangling from the headboard. “Luna?” he called, voice low and dangerous.
She pushed the bathroom door open, stepping out to face him. “I’m here.”
Dominic’s relief changed to curiosity as he took in her unrestrained state. “I thought I made it clear you were to stay put,” he said, his voice deceptively calm.
Luna lifted her chin. “And I thought those cuffs were supposed to be unbreakable.”
“Apparently, I underestimated you.” He closed the distance between them in two long strides. “What are you doing out of bed?”
“Bathroom,” she replied, the half-truth coming easily. “Unless you expected me to lie there uncomfortably all night?”
Dominic’s steel-gray eyes searched her face. “And the cuff? Did it just fall off on its own?”
“Not exactly.” Luna held up her wrist, letting a hint of golden magic dance across her fingertips. “They don’t work on me anymore. Not since the ritual.”
His stared at the shimmer of magic. “That’s impossible. Those cuffs are designed to suppress any witch’s power.”
Not this witch.
“Well, they’re failing spectacularly at their job.” She allowed the magic to fade, dropping her hand to her side. “Where have you been?”
“That’s none of your concern.”
“It absolutely is my concern, if you’re out there telling your demon masters about what happened during our ritual.”
Anger flashed in his eyes. “I told you I needed to think.”
Luna watched him, noting the tension in his shoulders, the way his hands clenched and unclenched at his sides. Despite everything, a flicker of sympathy stirred within her.
“I found something while you were gone,” she said finally, deciding to take a risk.
Dominic stopped pacing and turned to face her. “What?”
Instead of answering directly, Luna moved to the wooden chest and pulled out Jonathan Xerxes’s journal. “This,” she said, holding it up. “And there’s another one hidden in your bathroom cabinet.”
