Finally Finding My Luna

Chapter 8

{Enslee POV}

I started to come back to consciousness, but I had no idea where I was. I tried opening my eyes, but the light was too bright.

“Alpha, she’s waking up I think.” a female voice said from across the room. 

She spoke again just a little quieter this time. “I should go and give you two some private time.”

Suddenly, a male voice spoke up. “No, she might need a female presence. She has no clue who I am, and I don’t want to scare her.” My heart skipped a beat at this voice. I could feel my wolf starting to wake too, and she was extremely happy hearing this man talk. 

I brought my hand up to my face to shield my eyes from the light overhead. I could feel something in my hand, and I realized it was an IV. As all of my senses starting coming back, I realized that I was surrounded by beeping machines and must be in a hospital bed. 

I fully opened my eyes and looked to my left, where I saw a pretty blonde girl standing by the door and a handsome man sitting in the chair next to my bed. His hair was jet black, and he had the most intense gray eyes I have ever seen in a human. 

“Hello.” he said softly. My heart jumped again, and I took in a deep breath. Rain. He smelled like rain. I had never smelt something that good. Then realization hit me. It all came rushing back to me. 

I started remembering what had happened and why I was so sore. I was being beaten by the Gamma. He had me on the floor of the room behind the dining hall and was punching me in the face so hard. My eyes had swollen shut and I couldn’t see what was happening, but I heard his pants unzip. I was naked and he was about to…

The man in front of me had a worried look on his face that stopped all train of thought in my head. I immediately focused on his distress rather than my own. Why was I so entranced by this man? 

The memory finished unfolding in my head, and the last thing I heard was his voice telling the Gamma to get away from his mate. His mate? I am his mate? Oh my gosh, that’s right. The smell, the intense connection with a stranger and the sparks I felt last night when I was unconscious. He must have been touching me. 

This is my mate. No wonder I am so mesmerized by him. Why is he upset? I c****d my head to the side and had a concern for him. 

“What’s wrong?” I asked quietly. My voice was raspy after being choked so much. 

“You’re asking me what’s wrong? You are the one laying in a hospital bed.” I took my eyes from his and looked down at my own body that was indeed laying in a hospital bed. 

“Oh, yes. I suppose I am.” I looked back at the handsome stranger and attempted a smile, though it was a little sore.

“Are you okay?” he asked gently. 

I realized that I wasn’t really okay. I was hurting, but I mostly felt violated. After what happened to me, I felt naked. I knew I had clothes and blankets covering my body, but I still felt exposed. I looked down at my hands and saw the bruises that were slowly fading but weren’t completely gone yet. 

I felt dirty. 

“I need a shower…” I blurted out. I didn’t know what else to say. I never felt particularly clean having to shower outside, but it was better than how I felt right now. 

“Yeah, sure. There’s a shower in the bathroom. Let me call a nurse so they can assist you with the IVs and all.” he said calmly. 

I sat there while he pressed the button on the side of my bed and asked that a nurse come help me bathe. I watched as he concentrated on his question and nodded when the head nurse said she’d send someone in right away. I suddenly realized that I didn’t know his name. 

“What’s your name?” I said and covered my mouth. I never do that… I am always polite and carry intelligent conversation. 

“My name is Zader. I am the Alpha of the Black Mountain pack and your mate. It’s nice to officially meet you.”

I covered my mouth in embarrassment and nodded at his statement. I didn’t know what to say or do. Luckily, my mate knew what I was thinking.

“It’s okay. You don’t have to say anything. I know you must be overwhelmed with everything that’s happened in the last 24 hours. Is there anything I can get for you?”

I shook my head no, but my body betrayed me. My stomach growled loudly and Zader noticed. 

“When’s the last time you ate?” he asked me. 

I looked up at the ceiling trying to remember my last meal. I wasn’t allowed to eat at all yesterday due to the Ball being held. I had to go to bed without dinner the day before due to Alisha lying about me breaking a vase in the living room. She had knocked it over while taking selfies and blamed it on me instead. 

“Um, breakfast two days ago.” I mumbled in response. Zader growled and I could feel the anger radiating off of him. I flinched at the loud noise and scooted back in the bed away from him. 

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I’m not angry at you. I am just angry with the people that did this to you.”

I was shocked. Did he know about Slade and Melani? Did he know about my parents’ deaths?

“What do you know?” I asked. I was scared that he might reject me. If he thought I was the one responsible for my mother’s death, then I couldn’t blame him for not wanting me. Why would he want the weak wolf that was beaten for most of her life and starved half to death? Why would he want the girl that was so violated last night? The girl that was broken.

I started hyperventilating from the anxiety and reached out for something to hold on to. My hand landed on his, and the sparks were back. I grabbed his hand and immediately calmed down a bit.

“I know that Slade is the one who killed your mom. I know that he convinced the pack that you were somehow responsible for her death, and he used that as an excuse to beat you and hurt you for the last ten years.”

My heart started racing, and I searched for any disdain in his eyes. I didn’t know him well enough to know if there was anything there. 

“You don’t want me anymore do you?” 

My heart felt like it was shattering. I lost both of my parents. Most of my pack hated me, and my mate was about to reject me. 

“What are you talking about? You are the most important person in my life now. I will always want you. You are my mate, and I will do anything to protect you.”

I hadn’t realized that I’d shut my eyes until I opened them. I realized that he wasn’t going to reject me, and my heart leapt at the thought of being happy for once. I was still too scared to fully believe that this man in front of me could be mine forever, but I allowed myself some hope. 

“But I’m weak? Alphas want strong mates.” One single tear slipped from my eye, and I quickly wiped it away in embarrassment. 

“Weak? You are the farthest thing from weak. It takes incredible strength and courage to go what you have gone through and still be a decent human being. You are incredible, and I am lucky to have you as my mate. You never have to wonder if I think you’re strong or if I want you.”

He was sincere, but I couldn’t stop the tiny feeling in my heart that told me he would leave me. He gave my hand a squeeze to comfort me.

“Slade also killed my father.” 

Zader’s eyes opened wide, and I told him the whole story of how I found out about my father’s death. He was fully enraged by the end and had to walk to the other side of the room. I could see that he was struggling with his wolf. His bones started to break and reform as he fought against the shift. 

I looked at the girl as she rushed to try and soothe Zader. I didn’t know who she was, but he must have trusted her to let her be in the room. 

“What’s his wolf’s name??” I screamed at her. 

She looked up at me and said “Arlo.”

I knew that Arlo was struggling for control, so he’d be able to hear me. 

“ARLO! I am your mate and Luna, and I am demanding that you give control back to Zader. I need him right now, and you’re scaring me!” I yelled. 

The blonde girl stepped back against the wall and bowed her head toward me in submission. I was startled. No one had ever submitted to me before. Zader started returning to his human form and he settled on the couch.

His shirt was torn a bit at the seams from almost shifting, and I could see his biceps. My heart fluttered, but my attention was quickly diverted. 

“How did you do that? My wolf has never submitted to anyone but me. I sometimes can’t get him to.”

I shrugged my shoulders. “I don’t know. I just figured that if he would listen to anyone, it would be his mate.”

Zader nodded his head in disbelief. He rubbed his face with his hands and walked back to my bedside. 

“Well alright. I guess we should talk about your future huh?” he said.

I nodded my head and patted the bed for him to sit down beside me. He cautiously lowered onto the bed and sighed. 

“You are the future Luna of the Black Mountain pack, if you so choose. I would like to take you home with me tonight after you’re released from the hospital. I think your friend went and got your stuff from the pack house, but it was only one bag from what Analia told me.”

I looked at the girl who was standing on the wall. 

“Hi Luna. My name is Analia. I am your Beta Female, and it is a pleasure to meet you.”

I smiled at her and Zader continued. 

“Enslee, did you only have one bag of stuff?”

I shrugged my shoulders. “Honestly, I didn’t think my stuff would fill up a whole bag. I only had three changes of clothes and a few personal items.”

Zader sighed and lowered his head. “Okay then, that solves that. Are you okay to come with me to my pack?”

I thought about it for a minute and nodded my head. 

“On one condition...I want everyone who supported me to be given shelter when I burn the rest of this pack to the ground.”

Zader agreed, and I think I saw a proud glint in his smile. 

“Then I would be more than happy to come with you.” 

Harley started howling with pure joy, and Zader smiled even bigger. After a couple of hours of getting to know each other and beginning to get comfortable with him, Audrey came to visit. 

“Oh my gosh! This is your mate?? He’s hot!” 

Audrey didn’t have a filter, which sometimes got us both in trouble. 

“Audrey! You can’t say that, he’s an Alpha!” I nervously looked at Zader who was only smiling. I was used to alphas who hit people when they were insulted. 

“It’s fine. She’s right, I am hot.” he laughed. Audrey rolled her eyes and got us up to speed on what was happening at the packhouse. 

“Alpha Slade now knows it was you who was beaten last night, and he knows you’re Alpha Zader’s mate. He has declared that you were the one who killed the Gamma after Zader walked in on you sleeping with him. He says that you tricked Zader into thinking that you were being sexually assaulted. There are guards outside of the hospital that have orders to imprison you when you get released tonight.”

Zader growled again and paced back and forth in front of the door. 

“How many?”

“About 12.” 

I shook my head. “No one else needs to die. Those are technically my pack members out there. They are just following the orders of the man that they think is their Alpha. They have no idea what really happened. We have to sneak out tonight.”

Zader looked at me and nodded. “She’s right. Not only that, but Rylan and I can’t take them all. Analia can’t fight since she’s pregnant, and you’re still recovering. Audrey, can you help us escape tonight without being noticed?”

“Yes. My mom is a nurse here, and she can sneak us out in one of the medical vans they use to transport the equipment. Meet us at 8:00 at the loading dock in the basement. We’ll get you out under the cover of night.”

Zader, Analia and I all nodded, and Audrey had to leave to get back for the dinner rush. After she left, we all started getting stuff together. Zader called Rylan to get the driver and car that he’d hired to meet us on the outskirts of the pack territory, and we waited for Dr. Wilson to come release me. 

“Good evening Enslee, I am happy to report that all your tests came back clean and you are free to go. I will just need to go over the medicine protocols with you and get you to sign some paperwork.” 

After learning about all the meds and signing the release papers, I finally got to change into my own clothes that Audrey had brought me.

Audrey came back into the room and lead us down the hallway to the elevator. Zader carried my bag, and I followed closely behind him. Analia stayed behind me, and we all made our way to the basement. Audrey’s mom, who had treated me like her own daughter, was in the van waiting for us. 

We all climbed in the back, and Audrey started to close the doors. “You’re not coming with us??” I asked. 

She smiled with tears in her eyes. “I can’t leave yet. There are a lot of wolves here that still support you, and they need to know that you’ll be coming back for us. Plus, I have to distract the guards so you can get away.”

I started crying as I realized I was going to have to leave the only friend I knew. We hugged for a few minutes before she pulled away.

“You have to go. The guards will know that you’ve been released, and they won’t wait long before they come in looking for you.”

We said our final goodbyes, and she shut the doors on the van. I started sobbing hysterically. I normally didn’t cry, but the only friend and home I truly knew was being taken away from me. I didn’t regret my decision to go with Zader, but that didn’t mean I would miss the few people who loved me over the years and the pack that was truly and rightfully mine. 

Zader held me in his arms as we started driving away, and he stroked my hair. 

“It’s okay. We’ll come back for her. It won’t be long. You’ll see her again, and she can come back to Black Mountain with us when the time comes. We just need to get proof of what Slade did so the Elders can formally charge him for his crimes. Audrey might be our only way to get the proof we need.”

I nodded, but it didn’t hurt any less at that moment. I knew Zader was right, but I also knew that going to a completely new place all alone was slightly terrifying. A big part of me did trust Zader, but there was a tiny piece that was still nervous. I always had to have my guard up. It was how I survived the last ten years. 

We drove for about ten minutes when the van pulled over. Audrey’s mom, Emily, hopped out of the driver’s seat and came around to the back. She slung the doors open and helped us get out. 

Rylan was standing across the road leaning on the hood of a dark SUV. He rushed over to help Analia, and we all got our things into the back of the car. 

Emily’s head snapped toward the dark road behind us and her eyes went wide. 

“Hurry. They’re coming. They’ve found us. Once you get across the territory line, they can’t do anything. Keep going south on this road, and in about a mile you will be out of the territory. You have to be fast though.” she whispered. I was guessing that the guards had shifted into wolf form to track better and run faster. 

Analia and Rylan got in the third row of seats, and the driver started the car. Zader grabbed my hand to pull me towards the door, but I couldn’t leave without giving Emily a hug. She had been the closest thing to a mother to me since my own had died. 

I reached out and enveloped her in my arms with a tight squeeze. She hugged me back and whispered in my ear. 

“You were meant for more than this life. Your parents wanted you to grow up loved and to rule with a fair kindness. You have that same spark that your mom did, and I know you will be a great Luna. Even if you couldn’t do it here. I love you Ens, and you will always be my daughter.”

She started sniffling as she pulled away and quickly ran to the van and drove off in the direction we had come. I watched until her taillights disappeared around the curve, and Zader squeezed my hand.

“We really need to go. We are severely outnumbered and I am catching their scent. They’re close, and they could potentially outrun our car if we don’t get a headstart.”

I listened to him and climbed into the car. Zader got in next to me and the driver took off. I watched the trees go by out the window and the moonlight shone through them. I held onto to Zader’s hand and contemplated how much everything had changed for me in a short 24 hours. 

I was on my way to a brand new life, and I had no idea what that looked like. All I knew is that I didn’t want to ever come back here again until the day I returned to avenge my parents and all of the pack members who still stood for my claim. I didn’t want anything more to do with this place, this hell hole. 

After a few moments of silence I felt a terrible pain rip through my chest and it started growing. I grabbed at my chest and started screaming from the intensity.

“What’s wrong??” Zader frantically tried to figure out what was causing my pain and grabbed my face between his hands. 

“It burns. My chest is burning!!!” I screamed in terror. I could see my pain reflected in his eyes as he continued to search for a wound of some sort. 

I felt the car slow down, but Zader turned to the driver. “No! Keep going. We haven’t crossed the line yet. We have to get out. They are right behind us. DRIVE!!”

Rylan and Analia were talking to Zader over my screams trying to come up with a solution. As we drove further, the pain got more intense.. 

“It’s getting worse!!! Make it stop!! Zader please make it stop!!” I begged my mate to help me, but I knew there was nothing he could do. 

His gray eyes grew darker as tears brimmed on the surface. “I am so sorry baby. I don’t know why you’re hurting and I can’t fix it. Breathe through it with me.  Come on, deep breaths.”

I tried to pace my breathing with him, but the waves of pain kept crashing into me at the wrong times. The driver sped the car up as Rylan screamed that wolves were now on the road behind us. I grabbed the door handle with one hand and Zader’s arm with my other. With one final scream, the pain ceased. 

The driver came to a stop slowly as we realized that we’d crossed the territory line and the guards had come to a halt on the asphalt a few hundred feet from us. Rylan looked at me and realization hit him.

“Luna, what were you thinking about right before the pain started?”

I blinked my eyes and thought back to before the searing pain that ended just as abruptly as it started. “I was thinking about getting away from here, about how I want nothing more to do with this place.”

Analia, Rylan and Zader all turned and looked at me with an expression I couldn’t really place. “She broke her bond with the pack.” Analia gasped. 

I c****d my head towards Zader for a clearer explanation. 

“When a high ranking wolf breaks their connection with their pack, it can be very painful for that wolf. If the decision is made because of pain, hatred or anger, it can be even worse. You made that decision based off of unpleasant emotions, and you’re the rightful Luna of this pack. When a Luna or Alpha makes that choice, it could potentially kill them. You shouldn’t be alive right now, let alone standing and talking.”

My mouth dropped. I didn’t know I was even making a life-threatening choice. I just wanted far away from the place that caused me so much misery. “Why am I okay? Why am I alive and okay?”

Analia perked up and said, “You’re special.”