Hope Is Not Optional — Manuel Flores 57
Chapter 57
Selene
If looks could kill, I’d have been ten feet under already.
The way they all glared at me, as if they wanted nothing more than to see me torn apart. The elders’ faces were so red they looked like overripe tomatoes, ready to burst. And instead of feeling scared or guilty like the old Selene would have, I was amused.
One of them finally found his voice, his hand trembling as he pointed at me. “What on earth are you saying. Selene? Do you dare go against the elders?”
1 tilted my head, smirking. “Would you dare go against the Moonborn?”
Silence.
Their mouths hung open, and I could almost hear the collective gasp in the room.
“How dare you old people raise your voice at me,” I said calmly, my tone sharper than before. “And then have the nerve to tell me what to do.”
The room went still, too stunned to speak. At this point, they looked like they were about to have a collective heart attack. and honestly, if they did, I wouldn’t even feel bad about it.
They had never been kind to me. In my past life, they were among those who made my existence a living hell, their self- righteous decisions disguised as wisdom. When Sienna spread the rumor that I had stolen her white wolf, they hadn’t even hesitated. They believed her instantly and demanded that I be locked in the dungeon, punished for something I hadn’t done.
I hadn’t fought back then. I just accepted it because they were elders. Mira had been furious with me, so much that she refused to speak to me for days, choosing to sleep in silence until her anger faded.
This time, Sienna couldn’t use that same lie. Everyone had seen my transformation. The white wolf was mine. But I wasn’t stupid. Sienna didn’t need that lie anymore. She could twist things differently now, play the innocent, the fragile sister wronged by the cruel one. She’d probably manipulated them already, filling their empty heads with her pitiful words. As foolish as it sounded, they’d believe her again.
“That’s it!” one of the elders roared, slamming his hand on the table. “Guards! Seize her and take her to the dungeon! Perhaps she will reflect on her words after a few days in the dark!”
I noticed the way my stepmother’s lips curved into a satisfied smile, her eyes gleaming with triumph. My father said nothing. The so-called head of the family just sat there, silent, letting them decide my fate like a puppet without a will. And Sienna didn’t move. She just stared at me, her eyes sharp and assessing, like she was trying to figure out what had changed.
The guards stepped forward hesitantly, their boots echoing against the floor. But a low, dangerous growl echoed through the
air.
Mira.
The sound was deep, vibrating through the walls. The guards froze immediately, their eyes wide with fear.
“Step back,” I said coolly.
Instantly, they obeyed. They stepped back, bowing their heads, trembling slightly under the pressure of Mira’s aura that pulsed through me.
My eyes moved from one terrified face to another.
12:54 Tue, Dec 23
Chapter 57
“I told you,” I said, my tone almost casual, “don’t raise your voice at the Moonborn.”
For the first time, I watched as the elders looked at me with something they’d never shown before. They were scared.
They wouldn’t meet my eyes. They sat still, their wrinkled fingers clenched in their laps, their gazes fixed anywhere but on me. Even my stepmother kept her mouth shut for once.
How amusing.
All this time, they thought power would make me cautious, that because I had been dumb and obedient before, I’d still be too weak to use it. They thought wrong.
“Anyway, I only came to tell you that whatever you’re planning, stop it. Because no matter what you decide, I won’t listen or obey. If you want to give orders, go find someone else to command. I’m done playing the obedient fool.”
No one answered me, and I didn’t expect them to.
“From this moment,” I said slowly, letting my gaze sweep across the room, “I won’t tolerate disobedience from anyone, especially from servants. I don’t care what anyone thinks of me. As long as I bear the white wolf, I am the true Moonborn. And that means I will not accept any form of disrespect.”
My words were calm, but my eyes found Sienna’s.
It was a warning.
eyes flickered, and she looked away first. I knew she wouldn’t stay quiet forever, she was being careful, calculating, and biding her time. That was fine. I wasn’t after her yet. Right now, I wanted peace. But when the time came for revenge, no one in this room would find peace.
I turned my gaze to my father. He met my eyes, raising a brow, his expression tight.
“According to tradition, Father, when I turn twenty, I have the right to become the head of the temple.”
My father’s face froze. His jaw tightened.
“That means,” I continued, a faint smile curving my lips, “in two years’ time, you will step down from your position and hand it over to me.”
One of the elders slammed his hand against the table, his face red with fury. “You-!”
Another elder quickly reached out and grabbed his sleeve, whispering something that made the man fall silent immediately. My father didn’t speak. But the way his fists clenched on his knees, the veins bulging in his hands, told me enough. He was furious.
Still, I knew he was also rational. Because no matter how much he hated hearing it, what I said was law. He wasn’t supposed to hold that position to begin with, it belonged to my mother. But after her death, he became the head. In my past lives, I had let him keep that position. He ruled for decades, and when he died, he left it to Sienna. And under her rule, the temple fell into ruin.
Even if I didn’t care to sit on that damn throne, I wouldn’t let them have it.
It was obvious my mother loved the temple, and I also needed power.
The title of Moonborn alone wasn’t enough to survive, I couldn’t be Luna of the Mooncrest pack, so I had to carve my own path, one that would make me far more powerful than any Luma could ever be. Because if I didn’t end up with Adrian, Sienna would. And I refused to let either of them stand above me.
I turned to the people seated in the temple hall.
Chapter 57
“That’s all I came for,” I said coolly, brushing an invisible speck of dust from my sleeve. “You can go back to whatever nonsense you were discussing before.”
With a flick of my wrist, I gestured for them to continue, then turned on my heel and walked out.
No one dared to stop me.
When I stepped through the doors, not one maid dared meet my eyes. Even Emma and Hannah bowed. Their respect was fake, and forced, but it didn’t matter. I smiled anyway, humming softly under my breath.
I turned and there he was. Arthur leaned against the wall, his face still mottled with bruises from the beating Silas had given him. His eyes burned with resentment, but the moment our gazes met, he bowed his head.
Good boy.
He’d learned his place. Next time, he’d think twice before laying a hand on what was mine.
Without sparing him another glance, I brushed past him, barely containing the excitement beneath my calm exterior.
At last, I was going to open the box beneath my bed.
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12:55 Tue, Dec 23 DMG
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