Luna Revealed

Chapter Thirty Two

The ride back to the house goes by in a flash and Phoenix helps me into the shower before I tell him to leave me alone. Erland was left reeling from my revelation, but I didn't get a chance to explain before Phoenix and Mikhail dragged me off to the car. My mind is buzzing with the new information and my exhausted wolf pleads with me.

This can wait, stupid girl. We don't even know where he is.

I ignore her as I scrub the blood and dirt off of my body. I don't care if we don't know where Magnus is. He murdered my mother. I know this for an absolute fact. All of the memories and dreams suddenly make sense. The white fur and amber eyes – it wasn't me I was seeing in them; it was him.

Viktor was right. I was made in his image. My father and I look almost identical in wolf form, the only difference being our size. He always resented me for our similarities. He could never get away with claiming I wasn't his daughter because anyone with eyes and a brain can see the relationship.

My skin begins to burn from how hard I scrub to get the remnants of Viktor's blood off of it. I stop and the weight of the execution hits me with full force. I killed him. I killed Viktor Sokolov. My abuser, my rapist, a murderer, a liar. I did it and I wanted to do it. When he said he knew who killed my mother, I wanted to tear him apart for saying her name. I look at my hand, the one that pressed into his chest and drew blood, and feel tears begin to mix with the water on my face.

No sobs accompany the tears this time; they come alone, in trails down my cheeks. I continue to clean myself, gently and with more care. Once I am completely free of blood and dirt, I turn off the shower and open the door, grabbing a white towel to wrap around myself. As I dry off, I constantly check the towel for signs of blood, paranoid that I may have missed some.

I then dress and brush my hair and teeth. I scrub my teeth just as much as I did my body, the coppery taste of blood refusing to leave my mouth. Once most of it is gone, I leave the bedroom and walk downstairs. The pack house is still and quiet, even though I know most people have already made it back from the training grounds. Even the kitchen is empty when I walk in, only the remnants of people's rushed breakfasts left behind.

I begin to clear away the plates and bowls left on the counters and bar, desperate to keep my hands busy. I am scrubbing the counters when Phoenix finds me, his voice low.

"How do you feel?"

I don't answer him as I continue to scrub at a stubborn stain in the marble. He walks over to me and places a hand on top of mine, stopping my movements. When I look up, his eyes are liquid seas, filled with concern. I feel a pang of guilt at his expression and sigh.

I put the sponge down and dry off my hands before speaking. "I'm okay."

"I don't believe you," he says bluntly. He doesn't try to touch me again, instead leaning against the bar. "How do you really feel?"

I let out a sigh and slump against the counter, placing my head in my hands. "I'm a murderer, Phoenix."

Phoenix shakes his head. "No. You did a job that was assigned to you. That's all."

"Didn't Viktor do the same thing? Didn't he just do the job Magnus assigned him?" I ask the questions in a rhetorical way, but the potential answers dig at my heart. I look up at Phoenix, desperate for a reassurance I don't know I deserve. "How am I any better than him?"

"Viktor Sokolov raped you. 103 times if I read the council minutes correctly. He deserved to die." Phoenix leaves no room for me to argue, instead changing the subject. "Caine is putting together a search group for Magnus Hemming. We're in no rush to start, since it doesn't seem like he is planning a retaliation. We have a couple of rogue contacts who have seen him over the last few days. He doesn't know we captured Viktor and we really want to keep the news about the execution from him as long as possible. I'm working with Aurora to put together a new council for Akemi Hemming's murder investigation. It'll be difficult to piece together evidence from so long ago, but this is a priority for me." He pauses and takes a deep breath, allowing me to process his words.

A council for my mother's death? We have to go through all of this again? And that's only if they find Magnus. He might be long gone now and who knows what kind of shape he's in. Phoenix catches my attention again when he clears his throat.

"In the meantime, Julian is trying to piece together the mess in Aurora. He still doesn't have a Beta and some of the younger guards are starting to fight back, saying that he isn't a fit Alpha." Phoenix pauses again and shifts slightly. "I actually wanted to talk to you about that."

Happy to be distracted from my thoughts about Viktor and my parents, I motion for him to continue. He takes a deep breath and takes a seat in one of the bar stools. "What do you think of Artem diplomatically acquiring Aurora?"

I blink rapidly at the question. "Acquire? What does that mean?"

"If Julian and other members of their high ranks agree, I can completely take over Aurora. They would cease to exist and Artem would gain control of the territory, the same way I would if we were at war. Julian would be deranked, as would all of the other high members, and they would fully integrate into Artem under my control." He looks at me as I take in the proposal. When he sees my concerned expression, he says, "It wouldn't be immediate. The Elders would have to agree first. This kind of takeover only happens every few hundred years, especially since the territories solidified in the north."

"What would that mean for you?" I ask. "Wouldn't that give you a massive responsibility? Aurora isn't a small pack. You'd be taking on hundreds of members all at once."

"We. We would be taking on hundreds of members," Phoenix retorts, giving me a dark look. "I can't do any of this without you agreeing to it. Without your support, Artem would collapse under the weight of Aurora's forces."

I swallow and nod. "Of course." I pause and furrow my brows. "Wouldn't that also mean that Artem would take on Aurora's land disputes? My father was known for inciting wars between ally packs. I can't imagine many people are happy with them."

Phoenix smiles at my question. "This is why I wanted to discuss it with you. Emir – as much as I hate him – was right. We underestimate your intelligence." He motions for me to come to him and I do, letting him wrap his arms around me. "We can discuss all of the logistics later. Right now, I just want to sleep for a month before I have to even think about another council meeting."

I giggle as he nuzzles his nose against my neck, placing small kisses along my collar. I pull away to look into his blue eyes. "Let's go get some rest. I think we deserve it."