The Heartless Alpha's Beloved Luna Novel

---- Chapter 84 Avery's POV "So you're Avery." I turned to see a wizened old woman watching me from the edge of the woods. "lam. Who are you?" She just gestured for me to follow and turned to head through the woods. "What did you do to them?" | asked, but she just kept walking. After a moment, | scurried after her. The leaves crunched underfoot as we followed a winding trail through the forest that opened into a broad meadow. At the far end, there was a rather large country cottage. This must be what my mother had circled on the map. "Oh nothing, really." The woman said.

She moved very spiritedly for someone her age. "They will wake up once you return." "So, you're saying I'l be able to return." | said drily. "Oh of course. I'm not going to eat you." The woman sniffed as we trekked across the tilled field. "I'm not hungry." ---- Well that was reassuring. "| take it you know my mother." | said as she marched up to the door of the cottage and scraped the mud off her boots on the boot scraper next to the door. "Oh yes." She opened the door and waved me in.

"I've known your mother since before you were born." "So, who are you" "You can call me Sofia." The old woman said, showing me back to her kitchen where a wooden table sat next to casement windows with cheery half-curtains. "Well, Sofia." | paused, not sitting quite yet, "Why did my mother direct me to you? And is she here?" "| haven't seen your mother in years, but I'm not surprised she sent you to me." Sofia bustled around her kitchen, putting a kettle on for tea. "Lots of women come to me." "Are you some sort of doctor?" "You could say that... | help people with problems.

Sometimes the problems are in their body, sometimes they're in their souls, and sometimes they're not inside of them at all. So which are you?" She peered at me over a pair of half-moon spectacles she'd scooped off the counter. ---- "Well..." | hesitated, but something about Sofia's manner made me feel like | could tell her anything, "I need to get out of an arranged marriage." "Your mother arranged a marriage for you?" Sofia looked shocked "Well, not exactly. My father was threatening to kill me, unless | married someone. My half-sister offered me to this Alpha of another pack...

And | kind of had to do it." Sofia whistled softly, "Well, | remember your mother telling me about your father long ago. | admit, I'm not surprised to hear he's still a troubled man." That was putting it lightly. "So now you're stuck with this Alpha...?" "Gideon." "Alpha Gideon." Sofia nodded, "And you want out." "Yes, but | made a promise not to escape until after the wedding. | need to find a safe place for my mother before then." "Well, if your mother shows up here, | can certainly give her a place to stay. | can help you with your problem as well." ---- "You can?" | gaped at her.

"You make it sound so easy!" "Not exactly." Sofia shook her head, sitting down opposite me at the table with her cup of tea and one for me. She pulled a plate of cookies into the middle between us and gestured for me to help myself. "| would make a deal with you. That's what | do, | make deals." "What... sort of deal?" She paused before answering, chewing slowly. "You have magic inside you, girl. | can teach you how to use it, if you agree to stay as my apprentice." | stared at her, amazed. 'What... are you?" She just smiled at me. "I'm a teacher, if you need one." Her offer was tempting.

An opportunity to get away from Gideon, and to come here, to this cozy cottage and learn magic. But | couldn't help but feel like there was something more to it than that. "What aren't you saying?" | asked, "What's the catch?" Sofia smiled tightly, "That I can't tell you, until you make your choice. Stay with me and | will handle your Alpha. Or return and see where the path you've chosen takes you."