The Alpha's Regret: Return Of The Betrayed Luna

Chapter 323: Chapter 323 Trauma

Only then did Addison notice something she had missed before: Zion had laid a blanket beneath her while she was sleeping. Seeing it still spread out, waiting for her made her chest tighten with a quiet warmth.

”Sit here,” Zion said softly, guiding her down onto the blanket. She obeyed without protest, and his lips curved into a contented smile as he opened the bundle and set the food neatly in front of her.

But before she could touch it, Zion reached into his magic bag, pulled out a towel, and dampened it with water. With gentle care, he took Addison’s hands in his and wiped them clean one at a time.

Addison watched Zion wipe her hands with meticulous care and felt a small, amused urge to chuckle. He was treating her the way she treated their children. The thought of their two little ones made her heart lurch; suddenly, she was nervous.

She still hadn’t told him about the twins; the fact that he was already a father was his right to know.

Her lips trembled as she met his gaze.

Was now the right time?

Guilt flared in her chest for keeping such a crucial secret, but fear tightened her chest more. Zion’s past failures had left her unable to trust completely; she wasn’t hiding the truth to punish him, but because she worried he might not be able to protect the twins the way she needed.

With danger closing in on them and they having no clear idea who their enemies were, or what they wanted, Addison could only think of one thing: first, she had to find out how far Zion would go to keep their children safe.

Addison pressed her lips together, willing her racing heart to calm. But with their closeness and his keen werewolf senses, Zion could hear every rapid beat. He mistook it for nervousness, even shyness, and a faint smirk curved his lips as he listened to the frantic rhythm gradually steadying.

”You can start eating now, or would you rather I feed you? Hmm?” Zion teased, nudging the banana leaf closer.

Addison didn’t reply. Her cheeks flushed, and she ducked her head, choosing to eat in silence. The guilt weighed on her, leaving her unsure of how to face him.

Then Zion spoke again, almost casually. ”I saw Greg...”

The moment that name left his lips, Addison froze. Her body trembled as flashes of the memories in the dungeon resurfaced in her mind. Her breath hitched, her heart seemed to stop, and a suffocating dread seized her chest.

Just hearing that man’s name was enough to reignite Addison’s trauma. She could still remember how close she had come to death at his hands, back then, with her children already in her womb. 𝑓𝑟ℯℴ𝓂

Zion, watching her closely, immediately noticed the way her entire body stiffened. He regretted bringing up Greg, but he also knew she needed to hear what he had seen; it was too important to hide.

Without hesitation, he drew her into his lap, holding her gently yet firmly. The moment he scooped her up, he felt the faint tremors running through her body, how rigid she was, as though she had even forgotten how to breathe.

”Addie, breathe,” he murmured, his voice low but steady. ”Don’t worry, I’m here. I failed to protect you before, but I won’t let him touch you again. Not this time. He’ll have to go through my dead body first.”

He stroked her hair slowly, soothingly, his touch tender even as his eyes burned with guilt and a murderous resolve.

”Shh. Addie... I’m sorry. This is my fault, please don’t shut me out, okay? I won’t let him get away with this.” Zion’s murmurs were meant for her, but they felt more like promises to himself.

He hated that Greg had hurt his Luna right under his nose. How could someone be so brazen as to ignore the hierarchy and wound the woman he was supposed to protect? The thought of what Greg had done, how close he’d come to killing her, set Zion’s blood on fire.

”But... wasn’t his action permitted by you?” Addison’s voice came out hoarse, almost breaking. In that moment, it felt as though she were reliving that day all over again, her body remembering the agony of the whip lashing against her back while cruel laughter echoed around her.

The searing pain of her flesh tearing as it clung to the silver whip... it had been so unbearable that she had blacked out more than once.

Just the memory alone left her cold and trembling. She hadn’t realized until now how deep the damage ran. She had never stopped to examine the scars in her soul, never paused to confront the trauma festering inside her. She had always thought she was fine, until this moment proved otherwise.

Seeing her like this made Zion’s chest tighten painfully. His eyes reddened as guilt consumed him; his own actions had led to his Luna being treated worse than an omega. Worse still, it was his own Beta, his second-in-command, who had taken the lead in tormenting her.

The very people who should have protected her had instead humiliated and brutalized her.

Zion’s jaw clenched, his teeth grinding as a murderous aura surged from him, raw and suffocating. But then, Addison’s words reached him, halting his fury in its tracks.

”Addie, listen to me.” His voice broke as he drew in a shaky breath, his chest heavy with the weight of her words. Hearing her say it aloud hurt more than any wound he’d ever taken, but worse than his own pain was feeling hers radiate through the bond.

It made him hate himself all the more, knowing how deeply he had failed her as a mate.

”Yes, it was my actions, my negligence, that allowed my pack to treat you that way. I know no apology can ever undo it, and I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to redeem myself.”

”But never, never, did I give Greg permission to hurt you. I would never allow him to torture you.” His voice trembled, cracking under the force of his emotions.

”I may have wanted to hurt you before... but only in the pettiest way, by making you jealous with Claire’s presence. That was the extent of it.” Zion’s voice shook with raw honesty, the words dragging against his pride.

”But even that, I couldn’t keep up for long. I crumbled the moment you said you wanted to end our mate bond...”

It was the first time he had ever bared his feelings to Addison so openly. His arrogance and pride had always kept him silent, always hiding behind control and dominance. Back then, instead of admitting his weakness, he had dragged her back to their chamber and taken her, hoping the act would soothe the storm inside him.

But now he knew, everything he had done was wrong. That was why he was trying to make amends, even though he understood the damage was already carved too deeply to be erased.

That redemption wouldn’t come easy, but so what? He had already vowed to spend the rest of his life earning it, no matter how long it took, until Addison found it in her heart to forgive him.