THE GIFTED LUNA

CHAPTER 4

“My lord,” Garrett said, catching up to Edwin.“Yes, Garrett,” Edwin answered.“This may be our best hunting season yet, huh?”Edwin smiled, “Yes, maybe. I’m proud of everyone.”“Um…”“You have something to say, Garrett? Don’t tell me you’re getting a big head because you’ve been hunt king five times in a row,” Edwin teased.“Far from it, sire,” Garrett replied with a small smile.“So what is it?”“It’s about the maiden you were with earlier, sir,”“Ah, that. And what about it?”“I saw how you looked at her, sire. I have never seen you like that with anyone else. Could she be the one?”“Never mind that,” Edwin responded dismissively, “You’ll find out soon enough.”And with that, he parted ways with Garrett, retiring to his quarters. Garrett, on the other hand, with a few other men, took their now smoked spoil to the storage centre. Later that evening, the people gathered to celebrate the success of the hunt. The instrumentalists played a lively tune and a delicious array of food was spread out.“Everyone,” Edwin said, tapping his glass with a spoon, capturing their attention, “I have an announcement to make.”“It is my greatest pleasure to let you know that I have found my fated mate,” he began, “You’ll all be meeting her soon enough. But the important thing here is that we will soon have a Luna. Beside the success of our hunt, this is why I have called for this celebration,” he beamed.There were whispers…and then applause. “Congratulations, sire!” a person yelled from the crowd.“Yeah, we all look forward to meeting her,” another person added.“Thank you, thank you,” Edwin said, smiling so wide his face was starting to hurt, “Please. Let the festivities continue,” he added, returning to his seat.“My lord,” Garrett said walking up to him.“Ah, Garrett. I trust your visit is regarding my announcement?”“Indeed it is.”He noticed his friend’s solemn expression.“Something the matter?”“It’s just-““Garrett are you not happy that I have found a mate? Do you not want a Luna?”“No, that’s not it, sire.”“What is it then?”“I don’t think she’s fit to be Luna,”He felt his indignation rise in him.“You don’t get to decide that, Garrett,” he said through clenched teeth.“Sir, you must be reasonable,” Garrett began,” The Luna position is not a small one. There’s a lot she doesn’t know about us. We don’t even know that she’s a werewolf.”“I didn’t choose her. Fate did. Are you asking me to defy destiny?”, Edwin asked, raising his voice and drawing the attention of a few.“I’m only asking you to think things through. If you married the wrong mate, we would all suffer the unimaginable. I’m asking you to be careful, Edwin. As your second-in-command and as your friend.”A small crowd had now formed in person.“We will continue this conversation in private. Goodnight,” he said, getting up to leave.“Sir, the celebration cannot go on without you!” Garrett called after him.“Do what you like. I’m done celebrating,” he replied.“Sir! Sir!” Garrett called after him but he was gone. A tense silence overtook the place as the people stood awkwardly.“Please. Continue the festivities,” Garrett said with a forced smile. The music continued, slowly easing the tension. When everyone had resumed partying, Garrett slipped out of the gathering and went home. As he walked through the door, his daughter noticed his troubled expression.“What’s wrong, father?” she asked, concerned.“It’s Edwin.”“What about him?” She probed, her concern growing.He says he’s found his Luna. A dark expression overtakes her face.“What? How’d that happen?”“I don’t know! She’s not even from our pack,”“Is that even allowed?” She questioned, c*****g an eyebrow.“I don’t know. But there has to be a way to stop their union.”“What did you have in mind?”“I asked him to reconsider and he seemed pretty upset about it. But I got a reaction out of him so that’s a good sign.”“How so?”“He saw reason in my words and that’s why he took them to heart. If he had no regard for everything I had said to him, he would not have left the celebration. With any luck, he’s thinking my words over as we speak.”“But we can’t just leave everything to luck, Daddy. I have trained my whole life to be Luna. I won’t let it all go to waste.”“Patience, my dear. No one said anything about leaving things to chance. We’ll give him some time. See if he’ll come to his senses on his own. If he doesn’t, we’ll have to knock some sense into him.” Meanwhile, back home, Tiara was losing her mind. She had been inclined to trust Edwin but who was he? Or what was he? There was only one conclusion to be drawn from the incident she had witnessed. Edwin Stone was a werewolf and not just any werewolf, the Alpha male. But that was impossible. Werewolves only existed in movies and books. Maybe he was just a hunter…with a group of hunter friends…that called themselves a pack…and served him too. The more she thought about it, the less sense it made. What if he was a wolf? The dumbest thing she could’ve done was show him where she lived in the forest where he came to hunt…and that was exactly what she’d done. She felt a panic surge. In the books she’d read, werewolves in their true form were blind to reality. They recognized no one and attacked whatever they considered food. What if he considered her food and attacked her? There was nowhere to hide as she had shown him her safe place and with her luck, that would probably be the first place he’d go What had she done?You’re being ridiculous. Werewolves don’t exist, she told herself. But she couldn’t shake off the dreadful feeling in her gut. The feeling that she had opened some kind of Pandora’s box when she’d met Edwin and she would face the consequences soon enough.