The Discarded Luna

Arrival

The moment Alpha Rhydian brought me to his pack, he did not get down from the car with me. Instead, he called one of the maids working in his house and asked her to take me to his private room and treat me well. He said he had urgent business to attend to. Then, after a quick apology, he drove off with his beta beside him, leaving me standing there in front of his large pack house.

I watched his car disappear down the road until I could not see it anymore. My heart still felt heavy from everything that had happened earlier that day, but there was nothing I could do now except follow the maid he had spoken to.

The maid he had given instructions to turned to the other maids standing nearby and began giving them orders of her own. From the way she spoke, calm but firm, and the way the others listened without question, I could tell she was the head maid, the one in charge of the rest.

"Bring her things inside," she said, pointing toward the small bag I had brought with me.

Two younger maids hurried over, picked up my bag, and carried it toward the house. The head maid then turned to me with a soft smile.

"Welcome," she said. "Please, feel at home. This is your pack now too."

Her words were kind, but they still felt strange to my ears. I had spent so many years feeling like an outsider that hearing someone tell me to feel at home almost did not make sense. Still, I nodded and thanked her quietly.

She began walking, and I followed close behind her, my eyes taking in the size of the place. The pack house was much bigger than anything I had lived in before. Tall pillars stood on either side of the entrance, and the walls were covered in old pack markings, symbols that told stories of battles and victories long before I was born.

As we were about to walk through the front doors, a female voice suddenly cut through the quiet air.

"And who is she?"

The voice was sharp, almost demanding, and it made the head maid stop in her tracks. I turned toward the sound and saw a young woman standing at the top of the stairs leading into the house. She had her arms crossed and her eyes fixed directly on me, studying me with an unwanted gesture.

The head maid straightened her back slightly, as if she suddenly felt the need to be more careful with her words.

"This is Alpha Rhydian's mate," the head maid answered.

The woman's eyebrows shot up, and for a second, surprise flashed across her face before it hardened again into something colder.

"His mate?" she repeated, almost laughing the words out. "Since when does Alpha Rhydian have a mate?"

I felt my stomach tighten. I did not know who this woman was, but the way she spoke made it clear she was not happy about the news. I stayed quiet, unsure if I was even allowed to speak first in a place like this.

"Since today," the head maid replied simply, not giving away much more information.

The woman walked down the stairs slowly, her eyes never leaving me. She circled around me once, looking me up and down the way someone examines something they are not sure they want to keep. I stood still, trying not to show how uncomfortable her stare made me feel.

"She doesn't look like much," the woman finally said, more to herself than to anyone else.

I bit my lip to stop myself from responding. After everything I had already gone through that day, the insults from the pack, Kade's laughter, the tears I had cried in front of everyone, I did not have the strength left to defend myself against one more person.

The head maid, however, did not seem to like the woman's comment.

"That's enough, Nadia," she said firmly. "The Alpha has brought his mate. It is not our place to question it."

So her name was Nadia. I studied her for a moment, trying to understand who she was in this pack, why she felt so bold, so comfortable speaking about me like that in front of others. She carried herself with a confidence that suggested she was used to being important here, someone people listened to.

Nadia rolled her eyes at the head maid's words but did not argue further. Instead, she turned back to me with a tight, fake smile.

"Well, welcome, I suppose," she said, though her tone made it clear she meant the opposite. "I'm Nadia. I practically run things around here when the Alpha is busy."

I gave her a small nod, deciding it was safer to stay polite rather than start any trouble on my very first day in this new place.

"I'm Sera," I said quietly.

"Sera," she repeated slowly, testing the sound of my name like she was deciding whether or not she liked it. "Interesting."

Without another word, she turned and walked back up the stairs, disappearing into the house the same way she had appeared, suddenly and without warning.

The head maid let out a small breath beside me, almost like she had been holding it the whole time Nadia was speaking.

"Don't mind her," she said gently, placing a hand lightly on my shoulder. "She has always been close to the Alpha's family. She is not used to sharing his attention."

I nodded, though inside my mind was racing with questions. Close to the Alpha's family. Did that mean she and Rhydian had history together? Was she someone from his past, the same way Kade was from mine?

I pushed the thought aside for now. There was too much happening already, too many new faces and new dangers to think about, without adding more worry to the pile.

The head maid led me the rest of the way into the house, up a wide staircase, and down a long hallway until we reached a large wooden door. She pushed it open, revealing a spacious room with a soft bed, tall windows, and warm lighting.

"This is Alpha Rhydian's private room," she said. "You'll be staying here."

I stepped inside slowly, looking around at a space that felt far too grand for someone who, only hours ago, was being called a runt and a traitor's daughter in front of an entire pack.

The head maid smiled one last time before stepping out and closing the door softly behind her, leaving me alone with my thoughts, and with the grow

ing feeling that my troubles in this new pack were only just beginning.