I turned around to look at the woman standing on the steps leading to the main house.
She looked radiant with her designer gown and high heels that highlighted her graceful figure.
I have to say that, even though I don’t like her, Innocent is quite a beautiful woman.
And compared to her, I resembled a beggar more than the Luna.
With my body covered in tattered clothes, wounds, and dried blood, I could never compare to the grace she portrayed.
Now looking at her like this, I couldn’t bla Mike for always running to her bed.
However, that didn’t bother much because I wasn’t interested in being his actual mate anyway.
Her eyes moved among the injured warriors and finally stopped on .
"What is the aning of this?" Her voice held a questioning tone of a superior, sothing I didn’t appreciate.
No matter what, I am still the Luna.
I was overjoyed when no one answered her. After all, she was questioning them like she held authority, but she lost her Luna title a long ti ago.
However, probably to save face for Mike’s sake, Andrew answered her.
"We encountered rogues," Andrew said calmly.
Her gaze flicked to him.
"And you let them injure this many people?" she asked sharply.
A ripple of discomfort passed through the crowd.
"They attacked us twice," he replied. "We..."
"You failed."
The word cut through the air like a blade.
My fingers curled slightly at my sides.
Andrew’s expression didn’t change.
"We completed the mission," he said. "That was the priority."
"And at what cost?" Innocent snapped, gesturing toward the injured being carried away. "Look at them!"
"If it were ," she continued, her voice rising, "no one would have been hurt like this."
Sothing inside snapped.
How dare she? How dare she erase the effort everyone put into this mission with a few words?
Did she really think she was the Luna?
Murmurs began to spread in the crowd. I didn’t want any chaos erupting, so I stepped forward.
"Enough."
The words weren’t loud, but the whole place went quiet imdiately.
Even Innocent turned to look at .
Then, she smiled sarcastically and said, "The Luna has spoken."
I could tell she was jealousy that the people listened to but I didn’t care.
I ignored the mockery.
"You weren’t there," I said calmly.
Her eyes narrowed.
"I don’t need to be there to know incompetence when I see it."
A few gasps echoed.
The insult wasn’t subtle.
And it wasn’t just aid at .
"You think this is incompetence?" I asked quietly.
"I think," she replied smoothly, "that if soone more experienced had led the mission, things would have gone differently."
"Well, you don’t have the right to think like that here. When I asked for a search party to be ford to look for the missing mbers of our pack, you were there and I didn’t see you volunteering. All you do is throw your weight around and belittle other people’s efforts. All these warriors are injured from serving the pack, yet instead of appreciating their contribution, you are stepping on their efforts to plaster gold on your thick skin. Innocent, if you want to be willful, go to Mike. No one is obligated to indulge you here."
I didn’t hold back when I told her off. This was a matter of principle.
Also, I had just started to build recognition and I wasn’t going to watch her trample on my efforts by challenging my authority as Luna.
"What do you an by that? Are you saying that I am worse than you?" Innocent asked angrily.
"Yes, if it were you who went on this mission, things would have been different."
Innocent’s angry face suddenly changed into a smug smile.
"Finally, so self-awareness..."
Before she could finish her statent, I interrupted her.
"You wouldn’t have brought them back alive."
Silence followed my comnt.
The people around us looked at as if they were looking at a foreign species.
The entire courtyard seed to hold its breath.
And Innocent froze on the spot.
However, I didn’t stop there.
"You’re focused on perfection," I said, my voice steady. "On control and appearances."
Her eyes darkened.
"And you think that’s wrong?"
"I think," I replied, "that you’ve forgotten what leadership actually ans."
A few warriors straightened their backs.
"Leadership isn’t about avoiding injuries," I continued. "It’s about making sure your people co ho."
If I had cared about avoiding injuries during the battle, I doubt any one of us would have made it ho safely.
My voice didn’t waver even though my heart was pounding.
Even though every instinct in scread that I was crossing a line I couldn’t co back from.
Especially with the way Mike protects Innocent, but I didn’t stop.
"You weren’t there," I repeated. "You didn’t see what we faced. You didn’t fight. You didn’t bleed."
My gaze locked onto hers.
"But we did."
"Everyone of the warriors who went out fought with their lives to bring our families ho. So, stop with that belittling attitude of yours and know your place. You are not Luna."
I could see the venom almost shooting out of her eyes as she looked at like a venomous snake.
Then she asked, "Tell ," she continued, stepping closer, "how many of them were injured under your command?"
I didn’t look away.
"All of them ca back alive."
"That’s not what I asked."
"It’s the only thing that matters."
I was done being a doormat for anyone. Not even Mike.
I could tell that Innocent was so confident in confronting because of Mike, but I couldn’t care less about him.
And just as expected, she didn’t disappoint.
"Be careful about what you say."
I looked at her straight in the eye and asked, "Why?" I asked. "Are you going to tell I don’t know my place?"
A murmur spread through the crowd and sothing flickered in her eyes.
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