The Sickened Luna's Last Chance novel Chapter 311

Chapter 311

Ella’s POV

The moment Anya and I stepped onto the stage, the whispers began. Everyone was staring at us, wondering why we had switched dresses–especially because they all thought I was supposed to be named Alexander’s Luna tonight. If that were the case, why would I choose to wear a stained dress?

Anya leaned close to me, nervously hugging her arms around her midsection. “Are you sure this was a good idea?” she whispered. “Everyone is staring.”

“That’s the point.” I offered her a smile even though my stomach was twisting inside and gently pried her hands away from her waist. “Don’t cover yourself. You look stunning.”

Anya’s cheeks flushed. “Are you sure? I made the dress for you, not for me. I don’t know if it suits my features…”

“I’m positive.” And I really was. Truly, she looked beautiful; the dress suited her a lot more than it suited me, which was exactly what she needed.

Tonight, Anya was going to be chosen as Alexander’s Luna. Her image had to be pristine, not stained with wine and bruises. I had even quickly helped her cover the red handprint on her face with some foundation and powder, wanting to ensure that everything went as smoothly as possible for her.

I knew what it was like to be scorned as a Luna, back when Alexander and I slept on opposite wings of the house and everyone laughed behind my back. I didn’t wish that kind of scrutiny upon sweet, kind Anya.

In the crowd, I immediately caught sight of Sophia standing near the front. Her mouth was hanging open as she stared at me, clearly confused. She definitely hadn’t expected me to wear the ruined dress if I was supposedly going to be announced as Alexander’s Luna.

The truth was, I didn’t give a damn about public scorn anymore. I wasn’t going to become Luna again, so what did it matter? Everyone would forget about me after tonight and I could go back to the quiet life I had become accustomed to since my rebirth.

Besides, I had bigger things to worry about than pretty dresses and titles. I had a dying friend and a cure that might not exist to focus on.

Anya and I took our places in the lineup of the other finalists, all of whom were staring at the two of us in confusion, while Alexander took his place at the podium in the center. He looked just as handsome as ever in his formal suit, red hair perfectly styled, green eyes scanning the contestants.

When his gaze landed on me and my ruined dress, then flicked over to Anya, his brow furrowed briefly. But he said nothing–just turned his attention back to the papers in front of him.

Once the crowd had quieted somewhat, Alexander cleared his throat and said, “After careful consideration and observation throughout the Luna Trial, I have chosen a winner from amongst the finalists.”

I gently nudged Anya, who lifted her chin and firmly plastered a smile across her face, puffing her chest out confidently,

Meanwhile, my heart ached tremendously. My wolf was howling, desperate not to let this happen―desperate

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not to allow our mate to choose another woman.

I tried my best to force her down, but it was no simple task. She was inconsolable, raging at the inner confines of my soul like a caged animal.

“While each and every contestant exhibited wonderful qualities in her own right, only one can be Luna,” Alexander was saying, although his voice sounded far away and muffled beneath my wolf’s whines. “And that is

There was a pause. The crowd held its breath. Anya gripped my hand and gave it a tight squeeze.

My wolf surged.

“No!”

She came roaring forward with such force that I nearly crumpled to my knees. My vision blurred, teeth gnashed. My entire body felt like it was on fire, every nerve ending screaming as the mate bond that shouldn’t have existed anymore flared to life like flames ripping through a forest.

Alexander stopped mid–sentence, eyes going wide. His head snapped toward me, and for one impossible moment, we just stared at each other. I saw recognition flash across his face, and then I felt the bond snap taut between us as if his own wolf was pulling from his end.

“The winner is…‘

He hesitated, the paper trembling in his hands for a brief moment before his fingers slackened and it fluttered to the ground… the name that was truly written on it momentarily forgotten.

“I choose Stella Night,” he said. 2

Alexander’s POV

The words left my mouth before I could stop them.

“I choose Stella Night.”

What the fuck had I just said?

Anya’s name was on the paper, but it was Stella’s name that came from my lips.

Not Anya. Stella.

In the moment when I was supposed to announce Anya as the winner, the mate bond I once shared with Ella suddenly flickered to life with more force than it had since her death.

That bond should have been gone. Dead with my mate. Buried six feet under. Nothing more than a phantom pain.

But this… This was no phantom pain.

My wolf had suddenly said Ella’s name with clarity, just as he had that night during our date. He said that she was our mate. That the woman standing before us with auburn hair and silver eyes and a too–familiar face was

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Ella reincarnated.

And in that moment, I had said Stella’s name instead.

All of it was impossible and nonsensical and completely dumbfounding, of course. My mate was dead. The bond was severed. This had to be some kind of mistake, some trick my grieving mind was playing on me because Stella looked so much like Ella and I couldn’t let go of the woman I had fallen for.

But what was done was done. The crowd erupted into cheers and applause. Cameras flashed in a blinding array. Confetti was thrown into the air.

Meanwhile, Stella’s face had gone completely white.

She was staring at me in horror, and beside her, Anya’s expression crumpled. Without a word, she turned and fled from the stage, leaving behind a trail of red and golden feathers.

“Anya, wait!” Stella called out. She didn’t even glance at me before she hiked up her wine–stained skirt and chased after her friend, leaving me standing there in shock.

The crowd’s cheering faltered. Confused murmurs rippled through the ballroom as everyone watched the scene unfold. The cameras continued to flash, of course, but for a completely different reason now.

The chosen Luna had just run off the stage.

To chase after the woman who should have won.

Hunter appeared at my side with a furrower brow. “Alpha? What’s happening?”

“I don’t know,” I managed to say. And I truly didn’t. All I could do was stand there and stare at the spot where Anya and Stella had once been standing, the crowd’s roar turning distant in my ears as my mind raced to come up with an explanation for the sensations I had just felt in my heart.

And above it all was one question, piercing through the tangle of thoughts like a poison–tipped knife:

What the hell had I just done?