The Lunar Curse: A Second Chance With Alpha Draven-Chapter 76: Hatching Another Plan

~**(Third Person)**~

Wanda was the second to leave the dining hall.

The second the heavy doors closed behind her, her composure cracked.

Her heels clacked angrily across the marble as she marched toward the staircase, every step laced with frustration.

She hadn’t said a word when Draven dismissed her. Not even when Meredith had the gall to sit in the room as witness to her humiliation.

Right in front of her.

Draven had belittled her. Cut her down with that cold, clipped voice of his. Told her—bluntly—that she had no authority. No right.

It wasn’t just the words. It was what they meant.

You are not from here.

You don’t belong here.

Only Jeffery and I have a say here.

Her fists curled as she climbed the stairs.

Wanda was unhappy with Draven. He had forgotten their years of friendship and had spoken to her so harshly in front of that cursed woman she wanted to teach a lesson.

She felt that she hadn’t done anything wrong, that Meredith had been the one to vanish without a trace yesterday, making everyone scramble to find her.

To Wanda, Meredith was the one who broke rules, disrespected Draven, spoke out of turn and acted out of character.

And yet—who got scolded?

Not the runaway wife.

Her.

Wanda was the woman who had stood beside Draven for years. The one who had hosted, managed, organized every bloody aspect of his household here in Duskmoor.

She had defended him both in secret and the open.

And now, all of that could be swept aside because of her.

That woman.

"That... bitch!" Wanda cursed through her teeth.

Wanda’s steps slowed as she reached the second floor. She paused at the banister, glancing back toward the hallway behind her.

The scene from the dining hall replayed in her head.

She remembered that Draven hadn’t even looked angry when Meredith arrived late for breakfast.

He had pardoned her and asked her to sit.

He had let her eat as if she hasn’t broken another rule.

A sharp laugh escaped her throat, bitter and low.

"Draven is slipping," she concluded. "He is letting that woman bend him, pull him and make him forget who he was."

Wanda walked along the corridors of the second floor for her bedroom as she reinstated her plans.

Meredith needed to be removed. Quietly. Permanently. But she wouldn’t do it by herself, Not now with Draven who was probably watching her every move after today.

"For now... there are other ways to start a fire and keep it burning," she muttered under her breath as she pushed the door to her bedroom open.

---

The afternoon sun was mild, warming the children playroom with golden light that stretched across the rug like spilled paint.

Xamira sat at the low table with her crayons, tongue poked slightly out as she shaded the wing of a butterfly. Wanda sat beside her, legs crossed neatly, holding a children’s reader in her lap.

"And what did the clever fox say to the hunter?" Wanda asked in a sweet, sing-song tone.

Xamira blinked at the page, then replied, "He said, ’You can’t catch me if I hide well enough.’"

Wanda clapped softly. "Very good. Clever little girl."

Xamira smiled proudly.

They went quiet for a moment. Wanda brushed her fingers along the child’s curls, her tone softening.

"You know," she said slowly, "your father should be the one helping you with these stories. Not me."

Xamira’s crayon paused mid-stroke.

"But he’s always busy now," Wanda added, voice just shy of bitter. "Always chasing after that woman."

Xamira didn’t speak. She simply put the crayon down.

Wanda leaned forward, careful to make her voice sound gentle—concerned.

"Even yesterday, he was searching everywhere for her. He left you, his important meetings and sent all the guards. He was worried sick."

Xamira’s eyes lowered.

"And this morning?" Wanda sighed. "Your father scolded me. In front of that same woman. All because of her."

The child finally looked up. Her voice was quiet, but her words landed like stones.

"That woman is evil," Xamira said. "She wants to take my daddy away."

Wanda’s lips curled into a subtle smile. "Yes, sweetheart. She does."

She tucked a strand of hair behind Xamira’s ear and continued, "And if you want your father back, there’s something you can do."

Xamira tilted her head, confused.

Wanda smiled again, softer this time. "Let me tell you a little story."

---

"There once was a little girl named Larissa," Wanda began, her voice light. "She had a beautiful father who loved her very much. But one day, he married a woman who didn’t like Larissa. She smiled at the father, yes, but always glared at Larissa when he wasn’t looking."

Xamira was listening, her eyes wide.

"Her father started buying the woman nice things. Dresses. Necklaces. And forgot Larissa’s birthday two years in a row."

Xamira’s brows pinched together.

"One day, Larissa cried and cried. She just wanted her father to love her again. So, she came up with a little plan..."

Wanda leaned in, her tone hushed.

"She knew her stepmother was scared of cockroaches. So she found two and dropped them in her food bowl. When the woman opened the lid, she screamed and ran away."

Xamira giggled a little.

Wanda continued.

"Another day, Larissa hid one of her stepmother’s shoes. She missed an important meeting and cried."

"And one day, Larissa poured oil on the kitchen floor," Wanda said softly, "and her stepmother slipped and fell. Hurt her back so badly, she packed her bags and left the house forever."

Xamira gasped.

Wanda smiled. "And then? Larissa had her father back. All to herself."

She paused, brushing invisible dust from Xamira’s sleeve. "And they lived happily ever after."

There was silence.

Then, Wanda tilted her head and asked, "Do you understand now, darling?"

Xamira nodded slowly. Then she picked up her crayon again and began to colour.

Wanda leaned back, her smile deepening.

"Good girl."

Now, Wanda thought about sitting back to watch the show unfold.

At least, even if Xamira didn’t succeed to get rid of Meredith immediately, the little girl’s resentment will keep growing.