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Mask and moonrise - Chapter 39



Chapter 39

Blood Moon Vows

 

​For a few seconds, Safia didn't understand what had happened, only the furious glare in Sion’s eyes was visible. Her mind felt as blank as a full moon night, her heart a frantic drum against her ribs. Her feet were rooted to the ground as she stared back at him in shock. Had he just slapped her? The question hung in the air, as unspoken and a grave warning. All the promises, all the whispered vows, they were shattered now.

 

​She reeled from the realization that this was the second time in two months of their forced marriage that his hand had moved faster than his mind. She wasn’t his to play with, not his personal toy to be tossed aside when his wolf-like temper flared. Safia hadn't entered his life for a whim; she had come for a purpose, bound by an oath. But if he couldn't keep his promise to at least treat her as human, as something other than a bargaining chip, then there was no point in her staying. Before anything else, she was a woman—and a wolf—with her own self-respect.

 

​Seconds later, Sion’s face shifted, a flicker of something akin to shame crossing his features. He reached out, his hand hovering near her cheek, his lips parting to speak. But what could he say? And would Safiya forgive him? She had already endured his misbehavior for too long. Biting her tongue when his true nature surfaced, she flinched from his touch and, without another word, she was gone. 

Safia pulled out her phone and called Tyla , her voice forced into a strained cheer. “Hi Tyla , how’s business going? Is Dad able to manage everything?”

 

​"Soren is doing great! He’s on top of the world now that all the company's debts are cleared,” Tyla  chirped excitedly. “Would you like to speak to him? He’s just in the room beside mine.”

 

​“No, don’t. I want to give him a surprise,” Safia said, forcing a smile that didn't reach her tear-filled eyes. “I’m coming home tomorrow.” Thankfully Tyla couldn't see her.

 

​“Jesus, that’s amazing! I can’t wait to see you! It’s been so long,” Tyla  said, her excitement clear. “Let’s go motorboating in the Mediterranean when you get back!”

​Safia chuckled, a small, genuine laugh. “What more?” she asked.

 

​“Soren has been counting the days for you to get back to the city,” Tyla  replied, oblivious of the fight she and Sion had. “He called you this morning, but your phone was off, so he called Sion.” Tyla 's words hit Safia with a sudden, sharp clarity. She was glad she had made the call before her arrival.

 

​Sion waited at the dining table, a half-eaten plate of food growing cold. But Safia had locked herself in the bedroom, refusing to come down. Her absence was a physical ache, a silent accusation that cut deeper than any words could have. He walked to his home office, sinking into his executive chair and staring out at the wintry landscape. He knew he had made a blunder by hitting her, she was waiting for him to talk, to explain the things he couldn’t, to disclose the true nature of his world.

 

​He wrestled with the confusing emotions she stirred in him. Other women, countless women, had flocked to him, desperate for his attention. But Safia held him at a distance, a constant challenge and a welcoming change as against other females. Despite the pain she had caused him, she had the uncanny ability to stir emotions he had never experienced before, emotions he swore he had buried long ago. She was made to be his girl, in the past, present and future too.

 

​Most men wouldn’t have turned back after what she had done. But his love for her was an unprecedented, primal thing. He had married her, not just for the family pact, but to understand the reasons behind their strained relationship, to find the missing pieces of a puzzle he never thought he’d bother with again. With Safia anything was possible. She had invaded that part of his heart that nobody had ever dared to touch.

 

​“I’m sorry, sweetheart,” he muttered, burying his face in his hands. But little did he know, his "sweetheart" was already gone.

 

​Safia walked through the immense iron gate with only a purse. The security guards didn’t give her a second look, assuming she was just going for a walk. And that was exactly her plan. Not give them any clue and slip from the house. Half-kilometer later, she hailed a cab and headed straight to the airport. She flew back to New York and her father's waiting arms.

 

​“Safia! How did you get here so early?” Soren asked, his shock palpable. “I just spoke to Sion this morning, and he said you’d both be coming back after a week because of the strained weather.”

 

​“I wanted to surprise you, Daddy,” she said, her voice light, as if speaking to a child. She couldn't tell him the truth, not yet. Her father was a heart patient; the truth would come later, in time.

 

​Later that night, Sion knocked on her bedroom door. He had gone to his office, but he couldn't stop thinking about the silent rift between them.

 

​“Safia, I’m sorry. I apologize from the bottom of my heart. This will not happen again, I promise. Please open the door.” He waited. No reply.

 

​“I have keys to this room, you know,” he said, his voice now a low growl. “But I’m not using them. The food I left for you is still untouched. Security said you left earlier. I hope you ate something. Come on, open the door. We need to talk.”

​He twisted the doorknob. It opened. The room was empty.

 

​A wave of panic hit him. He checked the bathroom, the closet, everything. Her clothes were still there, but she was gone. He called her, but his calls went straight to voicemail. “Where the hell did my wife go?” he roared at the security guard.

​“Sir, I just arrived for my evening shift,” the trembling guard replied. Sion immediately called the day-shift guard, who confessed that Safia had left with only a purse.

 

​“Jeez, Safia, where did you go?” He called Albert, his chief of security, and Vance Maze, a private detective. Half an hour later, he had his answer.

 

​“Sir, she went back to New York, to her father’s place.”

 

​A cold fury settled in his veins. She had run away. He knew why. Her company was no longer in debt. Her need for him was over. The marriage was a ruse, a business transaction, and he was nothing more than a convenient solution. His spite was a living thing in his chest. He booked his private chopper. He would fly to New York first thing in the morning.

 

​He dialed her number again, this time from an unknown number. He heard her soft voice. His heart started to beat erratically.

​“He is the kind of man I would call a ‘controllo.’ It’s either their way or the highway. They can charm the pants off you at first, but once they get you hooked, bam! The other shoe drops… is this what you told your friend Tyla?”

 

​“Sion?” she asked, her voice laced with doubt.

 

​“Yes, it’s me. You blocked my number. What did you think? That I wouldn’t be able to trace you?”

 

​“Why does your voice sound different? Are you drunk?” she asked, ignoring his accusation.

 

​“My boss is a dick. He has a heart incapable of love, the least a gentleman,” he said, quoting her words back at her.

 

​“So you’ve been tracking my phone this whole time when I thought of you as a gentleman?” she countered, her anger rising.

 

​“Gentleman? I show my gentleman side to beautiful ladies. You’re ugly from the heart, a wolf in sheep's clothing who went on a date behind your husband's back. Why should I be ethical with you? Yes, I tracked your calls so you wouldn’t go behind another man,” he declared, his voice tight with rage.

 

​“How many times do I have to tell you, Levis is just my friend?” she shot back. “Will you spy on me with every man I speak to? You're not in your right mind right now. Let's talk about things when you're sober.”

 

​“Well, I couldn’t sort things out sober, so I got drunk,” he said, his voice slurred. “I know what I did to you was a mistake, but what you did to me is no less a blunder. You decided to leave our marriage and your husband for a simple fight.”

​“A mistake?” she roared, her own voice no longer soft. “Slapping your wife every time you get angry is a mistake? I hate you, Sion Canes. You’re an animal with no culture and no sophistication, just a suit-clad, hoity-toity business wolf. Don’t come back. I’m not returning with you. You’re a monster," Safia hissed, her voice shaking with a fury that mirrored the storm brewing outside the window. 

Closing the drapes of the window she continued rashly. "Werewolf, a beast hiding in a man’s skin, right. You can take your pathetic apology and your filthy money and go to hell."

 

​She slammed the phone down, her chest heaving. The silence that followed was deafening, broken only by the crack of thunder and the pounding of her own heart. A tear slid down her cheek, but she wiped it away with the back of her hand, refusing to let him see her weakness, even from a distance. She was free. She was safe.

 

At least that was what Safia thought. 







Chapter 40

The Alpha's Claim

 

A hollow laugh erupted from Sion, laced with a grief he couldn't express. A woman could weep, could let her pain spill out, but a man? He was expected to be a rock, to bury his sorrow. "I was just wondering at what point you'd finally show your true colors," he scoffed, his voice tight. 

 

"Frankly, did you ever love me at any point during our short marriage?" Safia asked him sincerely.

 

Sion would never give her his weaker side. He is an Alpha and expected to be stone cold with no emotions. Shutting down his pain, he triumphed, "There's no point in being civil. You are my mate, but that bond works both ways. From the beginning, this has been a one-sided claim."

 

"Ha!" Safia's  laughter was a bitter echo. "You should be a comedian. Love was one-sided? There was no love! A man who loves his mate doesn't make her run herself ragged just for a cup of coffee. He doesn't go to his office and seek the scent of another woman. You did everything to desecrate our sacred vows."

 

Little did she know, his "infidelity" was an act, a brutal game to make her fight for their bond. He had married her for revenge, to right a past wrong he believed she had committed. But he hadn't accounted for the truth: his love for her was alive, a fierce, primal thing, stronger than any emotion he'd ever known.

 

Safia stayed true to him but it was bloody game both their father's played which broke them off. Now there is no point of return for Safia to everything she suffered marrying Sion. She is blinded by his cruelty, believing his atrocities on her. She didn't know the full story, and didn't know the truth about Guild. "You're a prick who not only copulates but defends his actions! I never saw a glimpse of love for me in you. It's best we part. Don't worry, your money is safe. I'm not a billionaire like you, to pay it off as a whole but I'll pay off my family's debt to you with interest. Now don't ever show me your face again."

 

Why does she keep repeating the same phrase again and again - don't show me your face? Her words were a poison, scalding his insides. He blinked, fighting back the tears of a grieving Alpha. She was the one bitter pill he could neither swallow or spit out. He vowed to himself he wouldn't love her again, a promise he knew was a lie. She was like blood flowing in his veins which can't be subtracted.

 

He decided to deal with her the same way he dealt with his business rivals. "Since you've already painted me as a villain, then from this day forward, our arrangement is purely business."

 

Safia Ignored his warning. "You can posture it the way you want, but you don't scare me anymore. Gone are those days. It'll only take me 60 days to get my license back. You think you can crush me? That's a pathetic dream, Mr. Canes. I'm a self-starter. Number one at girl scout cookie sales three years in a row. High school valedictorian. I even nailed my sommelier exam at 22, which is unheard of. And last but not least, I do the New York Times crossword puzzle in ink."

 

Sion smiled. He already knew all this. He had always been proud of her, even since their college days. But there was one thing that must be added. Now, he would use her pride against her. "Empty vessels make the most noise, Mrs. Safia Canes. Be careful what you brag about. You graduated from London School of Business not completely on your own. You needed help. The help of Guild Wade. Anyways the past is history, and the future is a mystery. If you don't get back to my home by tomorrow morning, your father will be in the newspaper as an insolvent failure, behind bars. And it will be your fault."

 

That was a nerve he had caught of her bringing Guild again between them. There are no hopes for this man. "So you're back to being the blackmailing asshole you really are!" she spat.

 

"Don't you dare call me that! Your mouth is sharper than a knife, and it’s why we’re in this mess. If you ruffle my feathers, I can crumble you like garbage. The fault is yours for bringing up our marriage agreement." He ended the call, a smirk on his face. He had two days before he had to return to New York. Why not enjoy the time while he could? Afterwards, it would be back to the prison of his own making, a prison she helped create. She had to find a way to escape him, and his debt, once and for all.

 

Safia took a long, calming breath and called Tyla. "Get ready, we're going motorboating in the Mediterranean." She booked tickets to Rome.

 

"Is everything okay with the boat?" Safia asked the technician.

 

"Perfect, ma'am. It just needed some oiling. You're safe to go."

 

Tyla took a boat beside Safia's . "This is awesome!" she yelled over the wind and waves.

 

"It really is!" Safia yelled back, raising her hands in the air. In a moment of pure, unadulterated joy, she lost control.

 

Tyla watched helplessly as Safia's  boat veered off course, and she went flying into the water. "Help! Somebody help! She's drowning!" Tyla screamed. There was no one around. They were lost, consumed by their fun.

 

Safia thrashed in the water, the weight of her clothes and the depth of the sea pulling her down. This couldn't be how she died, not here. Not now. Her lungs burned, and her vision began to blur. As darkness crept in, a powerful arm wrapped around her waist. She was pulled upward, a strong body a shield against the water. She was dragged to shore, her body limp. 

 

"Safia, open your eyes. Look at me," Sion’s voice was low and rugged of pure terror. He slapped her cheeks, but she didn't respond.

 

He checked her pulse, then started CPR. "Her pulse is weak! We have to save her! The medics won't get here in time. Rub her hands and legs to generate heat!" He commanded Tyla.

 

"Safia, you have to come back to me. I can't be alone," he whispered, tears in his eyes as he performed chest compressions. He thought he had lost her forever. Finally, after what felt like a lifetime, she began to cough up water.

 

"Who told you to go to the northern side? Can't you read? There was a danger sign!" he roared at Tyla. "You can't even take care of your friend!"

 

"I'm sorry," Tyla said, guilt-ridden. "We didn't see it. We were going so fast, blinded by fun."

 

"Speed thrills, but it kills," Sion scolded. "You were screaming like a maniac, but there are no guards out here."

 

"But you were here," Tyla said. "My yells helped. You heard me and saved Safia. Let's forget the rest." Tyla clutched his arm, a silent plea.

 

Sion immediately pulled out his phone. "I'm sending you our location. My wife almost drowned. She's unconscious."

 

"How are you here?" Tyla asked. "Safia said you weren't coming back soon."

 

Sion wiped his face with a towel. "A smart businessman always keeps an eye on his debtors."

 

Tyla shook her head. "Is that why you followed us all the way out here and risked your life to save her? You're the worst liar. I saw you, you were almost crying. I've been telling Safia this from the beginning. Your eyes tell a different story. Who are you, really?"

 

Sion’s gaze never left Safia's face, a thousand emotions warring in his amber eyes. His muscles were tense, his body coiled with a primal energy that Tyla had only glimpsed before. He had followed Safia, not just as a businessman, but as her mate. He had tracked her scent across countries, his instincts screaming for him to protect her. And now, as Tyla's question hung in the air, he knew there was no more running, no more hiding.

 

He looked at Safia's  pale face, her life hanging by a thread, and then back at Tyla, whose eyes were filled with anticipation on him. She wanted her answers. The man she knew, the cold, ruthless businessman, was gone. In his place was a creature of moonlight and instinct, a protector who had no choice but to reveal his true form.

 

The full moon was a silver coin in the sky. Sion let out a low growl, the sound a mix of pain and fury. His bones began to shift. Tyla's gasp was the last human sound he heard before the change consumed him.

She watched him, paralyzed, the sight of his body twisting into something monstrous seared into her mind. But the horror didn't end there. Tyla saw a new shape emerge from the tree line, his eyes glowing with a similar, predatory light. A massive black wolf, padded silently toward the unconscious Safia, its teeth bared in a snarl. This wasn't a rescue. This was a battle for his mate, a battle Sion was about to fight.

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