LET GO OF ME STEPBROTHER! I'M NOT YOUR LUNA

Gathering up the little strength left in her body, Carol made her way inside the cellar to confront him. Her anger boiled over when she saw him drinking leisurely.

"What are you trying to do? You hate me, so why stop me from leaving?"

Noah turned to her, his eyes blazing with intensity.

"If you are bothered that I might have taken things that don't belong to me in the house, then you can inspect my bag and see for yourself," she went on, breathing hard.

"I left everything behind," she told him, assuming it could be a reason he was keeping her.

Noah raised his eyes away from his glass the second time, his face held the usual cold demeanor, and he got close to her faster than Carol's brain could process her escape from the room.

He stopped an inch close to her, and she held her breath.

"Go back to your room, sister."

The word hung in the air like a challenge, and Carol's heart skipped a beat from the fear of getting hit.

Noah stepped away from Carol when he was sure she got his message and strode towards the door with the bottle still in his hand.

A loud sound from Carol's stomach defiled the atmosphere.

"Remember to eat something before going to bed," he added, and Carol's mind whirled.

Was this a trick? Or had his grief momentarily softened his heart? He even called her sister-twice!

Carol made her way back to her room and collapsed onto the bed, exhausted.

Her packed bag remained beside her.

Once Noah came back to his senses, he would throw her out in the cruelest way possible.

It would be a hassle to unpack before then.

Ignoring her grumbling stomach crying to be fed, she let the darkness claim her.

Noah made his way into the large office, the bottle of wine still in his hand, and he dropped it on the big table before proceeding to sit in his father's seat he had been occupying for a few months now.

Picking his glasses from the table, he put them on and turned on his computer. Numerous messages filled his email.

He had left work for the past three days to attend to a lot of other emergencies that came with Lockhart 's death.

He had been dealing with issues regarding the company for a while, so it wasn't much work, but the pack issue required more.

Lockhart 's leadership had maintained peace among the various factions.

He needed to carry on that duty now along with maintaining order at the company and controlling several other outlets.

Noah's phone beeped to notify him of an incoming call, and he answered it quickly.

"It appears the Shadow Pack is really responsible," Cole said immediately the call connected, and Noah nodded knowingly.

It wasn't a coincidence that his father was poisoned, and no cure could be found to save him after a hunt with the Alpha of the Shadow Pack.

If it was really the doing of the Shadow Pack, then he couldn't let them go scot-free with their actions.

"I will deal with them when things are settled down in the pack," Noah told Cole, then added,

"Make sure you follow everything that goes on in the Shadow Pack from now on," he instructed and went quiet for a while.

"Should I arrange a meeting with the shareholders tomorrow?" Cole asked, sharing his concern about handling everything all at once, and Noah affirmed, then ended the call.

His stomach grumbled in protest of the alcohol he had fed it for two days, and he stood to find something good he could eat from the fridge in the room and found doughnuts.

As he took a bite, his mind contemplated what Lockhart could have possibly left in his will for Carol, knowing how much he adored her, especially after losing her mother.

He almost felt like the stranger in the family.

Whatever it was, he wouldn't hesitate to throw Carol out once it's clear.

---

Carol woke up in the middle of the night from dreaming of a memory that had now turned into a bad memory for her.

She couldn't believe Noah would even come to torment her in her dream. She shook her head furiously as she remembered the content of the dream again.

Maybe it was because that night was her first and last night with a man, she couldn't get it out of her mind, and as always, every time Noah taunted her, she ended up dreaming about the night they shared together, but it always ended in a way that terrified her.

Her wolf had never harmonized with anyone, even her ex-boyfriend, but it easily accepted Noah that night...

like he was her fated mate.

Carol's body shuddered as she thought of it now that she was awake and immediately shook it off and got out of bed.

Feeling thirsty after such a nightmare, she walked straight to the fridge to get some water to clear her head.

She was probably too hungry.

Carol gulped down some water, but after drinking, the images refused to clear from her head.

Deciding not to go back to sleep again or she might end up having a heart attack in her dreams, she grabbed the remote and sat down to find something on the television to distract herself.

It only took a few minutes before the television started to watch her instead, and she dozed off till daybreak on the sofa.

The noise of plates being set on the dining table and feet moving woke Carol from her slumber four hours later.

She opened her drowsy eyes to see it was morning. She looked over her shoulders and saw that the maids were back in the house again,

including Riki, whose voice she could hear giving orders in the kitchen.

It seemed the house had changed in the few hours she was asleep.

Carol got up slowly, ready to return quickly to her room, but was taken aback to see Noah standing near the fridge.

"You are awake," Noah muttered, and Carol rubbed her ears to be sure she didn't hear wrong.

His gaze on her was different from last night when he threatened to lock her in.

"Morning," she responded, knowing there was nothing good about this morning, and turned to see Jane and Mary bowing respectfully to greet her.

"Carol," she heard another voice and turned to see Paul, Lockhart 's best friend and beta, sitting on another couch.

"Seems you had a good night's rest," Paul greeted with a smile, and Carol returned the same gesture.

"Good morning," Carol greeted.

Everyone that went away immediately after Lockhart 's death seemed to have returned.

Picking up the bottle of water she didn't finish before falling asleep, Carol turned to leave the room.

"I will be in my room," she said, but Paul stopped her.

"I am here to speak to the both of you," he told her, and Carol raised her brows, puzzled.

"Both of us?" she repeated, and Paul nodded positively.

"I will get dressed first then," Carol replied and went up to her room, brushing her teeth and washing her hair before taking a shower and picked a shirt from her packed bag, with a black trouser.

She returned looking quite different from earlier, and the little water in her hair made them dampen and lie flat on her face.

Carol noticed prying eyes on her as she made her way down and saw Noah staring sharply at her.

His eyes followed her moves, and she almost mistook the look in them for tenderness, but his icy stare followed, and she hurried over to join Paul on the couch.