The Return of the Fallen Luna: Rise of the Heiress-Chapter 19 Searching For her Mother

After digging through the compartment, Ashley finally found the first aid kit. She grabbed a pair of surgical scissors and cut away the cloth wrapped around her knee. As expected, the wound looked worse and was inflamed from being hastily bandaged without proper cleaning.

The fabric she’d used earlier might have seemed clean at the time, but dirt had still seeped in, and now the skin around the injury was swollen and raw. Worse, small bits of gravel were still embedded deep in the flesh, which explained the sharp, persistent pain every time she moved.

She didn’t hesitate.

Taking a disposable scalpel, she began picking them out one by one. Her hands trembled, and her breath hitched at the sting, but she forced herself to keep going, jaw clenched tight as she worked through it. When the last fragment was out, the wound bled more freely, the exposed flesh looking even harsher under the light.

There was no time to do this gently.

Ashley grabbed the alcohol bottle, unscrewed it, and poured it straight over the open wound.

"Ugh! Goddess, that hurts!" Ashley groaned, the sound breaking into a half-shout as she turned her face away, neck straining, tears springing to her eyes while the pain tore through her. Still, she didn’t stop. She kept pouring the alcohol until the wound was thoroughly flushed, the excess dripping onto the leather seat beneath her.

Breathing hard, she grabbed a few cotton pads and wiped around the injury, knowing the alcohol needed to be cleared before anything else would work. Once the surface was no longer soaked, she applied betadine, her hands steadier now despite the lingering sting. Then she reached for the gauze and wrapped her knee tightly, securing it in place.

Not satisfied, she searched the car’s storage and found a blanket. Tearing off a strip, she folded it into a thick band and wrapped it firmly over the gauze, adding pressure to the wound. It would help dull the pain, and more importantly, keep it from splitting open again when she moved.

After tending to her wound, Ashley started the engine and pulled back onto the road. She reached for her bag, intending to spray herself again with the masking spray, only to realize the bottle was empty.

A curse rose to her lips. She couldn’t risk moving forward like this, not with the scent of blood clinging to her. Any guard stationed near the dungeons or safehouses would pick it up instantly.

She drove a little farther before pulling over again, but this time, it wasn’t random.

She remembered.

There were herbs nearby, the same ones used in masking sprays. She had seen them before, and more importantly, she had learned how to use them. During her training camp, they had been taught wilderness survival for young werewolves, how to mask their scent without prepared tools, how to survive if war ever broke out and supplies ran dry.

That knowledge might save her now.

Ashley stepped out and quickly searched the area. It didn’t take long before she found what she needed. Grabbing two stones, she used a flat one as a base and crushed the herbs with another, grinding them down until their sharp, pungent scent was released. She kept working until the mixture turned into a thick, green paste.

There was no time to refine it into powder.

So she used it as it was.

Ashley scooped up the paste and rubbed it over her skin, working it into her clothes and around the bandage on her knee, coating herself in the bitter, earthy smell. It wasn’t perfect, but it would have to be enough to dull the scent of blood and keep her hidden a little longer.

After finishing her preparations, Ashley got back into the car and headed toward the dungeon near the granary. Nathan favored that place for a reason. The land around it was wide and open, which meant nowhere to hide or run for the captive who had broken free from the dungeon.

If a prisoner tried to escape, they would be seen instantly, hunted down like prey. And that was exactly how Nathan liked it.

He would even sometimes turn it into a game.

He would give them just enough hope to run, to believe they might survive, only to have his men chase them down, drag them back, and end it when they were at their most desperate. For them, it wasn’t punishment but was entertainment.

It was cruel, yes, but that was how Werewolves are; they loved to hunt.

The dungeon beneath that area was larger, too, built to match the open land above. More space meant more tools, more ways to break and torture a person. And when they died, their bodies didn’t even earn rest. Nathan had once joked, which sounded cold and casual, that they made excellent fertilizer for the crops above.

Ashley knew he wasn’t joking.

Her chest tightened at the thought. Being sent there meant suffering, real suffering. And even though she wanted to believe Nathan wouldn’t go that far with her mother... she couldn’t trust that hope. Not anymore. Not after everything.

If anything, his hatred for her and her mother might be exactly why he would choose that place.

So she went there first.

But as the granary came into view, another problem surfaced.

The Guards who are patrolling and are stationed at the dungeon entrance.

Ashley slowed the car, her grip tightening on the wheel as her mind raced. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Getting there was one thing.

Getting in without being seen... was another.

"We’ll cross that bridge when we get there..." Ashley muttered under her breath, but the words did little to steady her. Her thoughts were racing too fast, spiraling over each other until her head felt heavy and dull, like a fever was creeping in.

Even her body lagged behind her will, sluggish and uncooperative, but she forced herself to keep moving. She didn’t have the luxury to stop.

She steered the car off the road and tucked it deep behind a wall of thick bushes, hidden well enough that no one would think to look twice. Then she got out and erased the tire tracks, scuffing the dirt and covering it with dry leaves until nothing remained.

It was tedious work, but necessary. One mistake now and she’ll be discovered.

Only when she was certain there were no traces left did she move on.

Lowering herself close to the ground, Ashley slipped into the underbrush, crawling carefully through the cover of bushes as her eyes tracked the patrolling guards. Ahead, the granary stood in the clearing, and just behind it, exactly where she remembered, was the dungeon entrance.

Because she had approached from the back, the layout was clear to her view.

Nathan had designed it this way on purpose, so the guards stationed at the dungeon could watch over the granary as well.

Two targets.

One watch point.

Efficient... and less manpower.

Technology had advanced rapidly, but Nathan refused to rely on it too much. He believed strength alone was enough to defend his territory, so instead of installing surveillance cameras, he simply doubled the number of warriors on patrol.

For once, his arrogance worked in Ashley’s favor.

She had suggested adding surveillance before, more than once, but every time, he shut her down. To him, relying on technology was a sign of weakness, an excuse for those who lacked confidence in their own power. It clashed with his pride as an Alpha, and he refused to compromise.

Alpha pride.