Chapter 110: MY MAID OF HONOR

Chapter 111

Lumi

The morning sun came through the bedroom window, filling the room with a warm, golden light.

I blinked my eyes open slowly, my vision clearing as I looked at the man lying right beside me.

Ren was fast asleep, his dark eyelashes resting against his warm skin, his messy hair falling softly across his forehead. He looked so calm, so relaxed, and so completely handsome.

Wow, he really is so cute, I thought to myself, a soft smile spreading across my lips as I took in every detail of his face.

*Of course he is. He’s our mate, isn’t he?*

I froze. Every muscle in my body went totally still. My heart gave a hard thump against my ribs, and my eyes went wide with shock.

I sat up quickly, pulling the blanket up to my chest, my head spinning around as I scanned every corner of the quiet bedroom.

The curtains were still, the closet door was closed, and no one else was in the room except for Ren, who was still breathing softly in his sleep.

Who’s there? I demanded in my mind, my chest heaving as panic started to bubble up. Who said that? Where are you?

A soft, warm chuckle echoed right inside my own head, accompanied by the cozy feeling running through my veins.

*Relax, little one.* the voice whispered again, sounding smooth, ancient, and completely gentle.

*You don’t need to look around the room. I’m right here inside you. I’ve been here all along.*

My jaw dropped as the truth hit me like a splash of cool water. The voice wasn’t coming from the room. It was coming from my own soul.

My wolf? I thought, my mind racing as tears of shock filled my eyes. You... you can talk to me?

*I can finally talk to you because you finally unlocked our power.* My wolf replied proudly.

*For years, I had to stay hidden deep inside, waiting until you were ready. But last night, when our mate was dying, we woke up together. You gave me life, Lumi, and I gave you our strength.*

A deep, emotional breath escaped my lips. For my entire life, people had called me empty.

They had called me wolfless and broken. Hearing her voice so clearly, so close, felt like finding the missing piece of my heart I didn’t even know I was searching for.

Do you... do you have a name? I asked her softly in my mind, resting my palm flat against my chest where her warm energy glowed.

*You can call me Astra* my wolf answered, her spirit curling up comfortably inside my chest like a soft white blanket.

*Astra, the white wolf of light. And as long as I am with you, no one will ever call us weak again.*

Astra, I repeated in my head, loving the way it felt. Thank you for saving Ren last night. Thank you for saving us.

*We saved each other* Astra whispered gently. Now, go ahead and look at our cute Alpha some more. He deserves all the love we can give him.

I let out a quiet, breathless laugh, shaking my head as the warm, golden connection between us settled into a cozy hum.

I stretched my legs slowly under the blanket. Ren shifted beside me, his long arm pulling me a little closer as he buried his face in the side of my neck.

"Good morning, my love," he said softly, his deep voice still thick with sleep. He kissed my shoulder, his warm breath tickling my skin.

"Good morning," I smiled, turning to look into his dark eyes. They were bright with the gentle golden light that now lived inside both of us. "How did you sleep?"

"So well," Ren said with a gentle smile. He reached out and touched my cheek with his thumb. "Every time I look at you, safe and whole, I feel like the luckiest man in the world."

"It’s real, Ren," I said, leaning up to kiss him on the lips. "We made it through the night."

For a few quiet minutes, everything felt perfect. We lay together under the warm blankets, holding each other close.

It felt like the happy ending we had both wished for. The bad guys were locked up, the house was safe, and my wolf was finally awake.

"Ren," I whispered, resting my hand flat on his chest.

"We need to talk about what comes next." Ren looked at me closely, his dark eyes sharp and focused.

"What’s on your mind?"

"First, I want to take Callum and my dad to court," I said, making sure my voice sounded steady and strong.

"I don’t want them punished in secret. I want them to stand in front of the whole room. They need to answer for the people they hurt, the blood they spilled at our doors, and the terrible choices they made." Ren stroked my hair gently.

" They will get the punishment they deserve for what they did to you, to Neve, and to our guards."

"Good," I said, taking a deep breath. "They need to pay for what they did. But there’s something else, Ren. Something that matters even more to me."

"Theo," Ren said quietly, knowing what I was thinking before I even said it.

"Yes," I nodded, feeling tears burn the back of my eyes. "Theo. Sienna still has him. I can’t let her do that anymore, Ren. I want to take him back." Ren’s face grew serious and determined. He held my face gently in his large, warm hands.

"We will bring him home, Lumi," he promised, looking straight into my eyes.

"Sienna won’t keep him much longer. I will send our best men to find out where she is hiding, and we will bring Theo back to live with us where he belongs."

And if she tries to stop us, we will tear her world apart, Astra added fiercely from deep inside my mind, with protective pride.

I smiled inwardly at my wolf’s fire. We’ll get him back safely, Astra. I promise.

"Thank you, Ren," I breathed out, hugging him as hard as I could.

An hour later, the whole estate was busy. Everyone was talking about what happened at the old timber mill last night.

Word had spread quickly that the girl they used to call useless was actually the famous white wolf.

I washed my face, changed into a soft sweater and dark jeans, and walked down the wide hallway with Ren by my side.

When we reached the main living area, the door opened and Neve walked in, followed closely by Julian.

Neve had a small bandage on her neck, but her eyes were bright and full of energy. As soon as she saw us standing there, her face lit up.

"Lumi! Ren!" Neve called out, rushing across the room.

I stepped forward before she could even slow down and pulled her into a warm hug.

"Neve," I whispered, burying my face against her shoulder.

"I’m so sorry. I am so, so sorry for what happened to you. You took a bullet because of me. You were hurt so badly because Callum was coming after me."

Neve pulled back slightly, her hands resting firmly on my arms as she shook her head.

"Stop that right now, Lumi. You have nothing to apologize for. If anyone should be saying sorry, it’s me." I blinked, surprised.

"What do you mean?"

"I was supposed to keep you safe when Ren was away," she said, her voice dropping into a sincere tone.

"I let those men break down the front doors. I let them hurt you and drag you away. So please, don’t ever apologize to me again. We protected each other, and that’s what family does." Tears sprang to my eyes, and I hugged her tightly once more.

"Thank you, Neve. From now henceforth, we’ll protect each other." She nodded with tears.

When we finally broke apart, she smiled, reaching out to take Julian’s hand. Julian stepped up beside her, his tall frame looking relaxed as he wrapped an arm around her waist.

"We actually came by to check on you two," Julian said, his eyes shifting to Ren with a nod of deep respect. "And to share a bit of news."

"News?" Ren asked, leaning back against the wooden table, his arms crossed over his chest. "What kind of news?" Neve looked at Julian, her cheeks flushing a sweet shade of pink.

"Well... Julian and I talked it over this morning. We decided to postpone our wedding until four months from now."

My jaw dropped in shock. I looked from Neve to Julian, completely caught off guard.

"Your wedding? Wait... you two were already planning a wedding?!" Neve laughed out loud, her eyes sparkling with happiness.

"Actually that was why I came back, before..." I took her hand with mine and squeezed lightly.

We’re all trying to move past it and I’m sure we will.

We all make mistakes and are all responsible for the past weeks. But that’s what makes us human and family.

We have issues and settle it together.

"We were originally going to get married next month, but after everything that has happened, we want to wait.

We want time for the whole family to heal, and we want you to be fully recovered so you can stand right beside me as my maid of honor."