Page 36 of The Alpha's Forced Rejected Mate
His expression darkened. “You went through my cabin.”
“Yes.” She made no apology for it. “It wasn’t always your cabin, was it? And what I found supports everything I’ve been telling you. These journals describe exactly what’s happening—hunters changing after joining the organization, their wolves growing distant, their humanity fading.”
Dominic’s eyes fixed on the journal in her hand. “Xerxes died years ago. Rogue demon attack.”
“Are you sure that’s not another lie they fed you?” Luna challenged. “Because his final entries suggest something very different was happening to him.”
She held out the journal, offering it to him. After a moment’s hesitation, he took it, flipping it open to scan the pages. His face remained impassive as he read, but she could see the change in his eyes as he absorbed the words.
Dominic’s gaze flicked to the bathroom door, then back to her. “You had no right to go through those things.”
“I had every right,” Luna took a step toward him.
“I’m fighting for my life here, and not just mine. Do you know how many witches have disappeared into your organization? Twenty-seven in a year, according to one of those records. Twenty-seven women like me, who thought they were being ‘saved’ when they were actually being fed to demons.”
The thought of all those women, their magic harvested for some dark purpose, filled her with a mixture of rage and heartbreak.
Dominic was silent for a long moment, his expression unreadable. Then he said, “Show me.”
Luna led him to the bathroom and retrieved the other journal from its hiding place. She handed it to him, watching as he read through the entries, his brow furrowing deeper with each page.
“I wonder why I never found these,” he murmured, almost to himself.
“Would you have believed them if you had?” Luna asked quietly. “I don’t think you were searching for hidden books, were you?”
The question hung between them, unanswered. Dominic closed the journal and handed it back to her, his expression troubled.
“First, we need more information,” Luna said. “We need to know exactly how many demons there are, how they’re controlling the hunters, and what they’re doing with the witches they capture.”
Dominic nodded slowly. “Adrian might know more than he’s letting on. But approaching him is risky—if he’s compromised…”
“We’ll have to take that chance,” Luna said. “We need allies if we’re going to expose the truth.”
She moved back into the main room of the cabin, aware of Dominic following close behind her. The white ritual dress suddenly felt too thin and revealing for the seriousness of their conversation.
“You could have escaped,” he said suddenly. “When you discovered the cuffs didn’t work. Why didn’t you?”
Luna turned to face him, surprised by the question. “And go where? This compound is crawling with hunters and who knows how many demons. Even if I got past the perimeter, they’d track me down eventually.”
She shook her head. “Besides, if I escaped, the truth would die with me when they caught me again. No one would know what’s really happening here.”
Dominic simply nodded.
Was that respect?
“We should check if there are other journals,” she suggested, moving toward the desk. “Maybe other hunters have been documenting changes, too.”
As she reached for a drawer, Dominic’s hand shot out, catching her wrist. The contact sent a jolt of awareness through her body, her magic surging in response to his touch. Golden light spilled from where their skin connected, startling them both.
“What is that?” Dominic demanded, but he didn’t release her.
Luna could feel her magic reaching out to him, drawn to the darkness lurking within him like a flame seeking oxygen. “It’s my magic,” she explained, her voice barely above a whisper. “I think it’s trying to cleanse the demonic influence from you.”
His eyes widened, but still he held her wrist, watching as the golden light spread up his arm. His breathing quickened, matching her own suddenly rapid heartbeat.
“Does it hurt?” she asked.
“No,” he said, sounding shocked. “It feels…warm.”
