Marked By The Moon

Chapter 2 - Wondering

Olive – POV

I woke up in a cold sweat, my back sore from sleeping on this old mattress and my hands and feet paining from all the hard work I had done the previous day. My cracked phone screen said it was 02:20. I was so hungry, I didn’t eat a thing at the mixer, because the help doesn’t eat in this pack. I knew that the pack house, was empty by now, and that because it was Saturday, the pack house would be empty for most of the day. I got up and headed to the shared showers at the end of the hall. I knew that at this time, the water would be hot at least. Sometimes we didn’t have hot water down here for weeks. The hot water poured over my tired muscles. I got out of the shower and put on an oversized t-shirt that I had saved from the dump, and some faded denim shorts. I made my way up quietly up the stairs and into the massive pack kitchen. I made a turkey sandwich and cleaned up before anyone could find me. I walked towards the door and collided against a brick wall.

Jace – POV

I tossed and turned; the sheets tangled around my legs. Jaxx had been restless again.

“Jaxx, seriously…” I groaned.

He didn’t answer—just paced inside me like a caged beast.

I hadn’t been back long—only three months since returning from the Royal Alpha Training Institute. Two years of leadership courses, battle strategy, and nonstop training. Tobi—my cousin and Beta-to-be—had gone through it with me. We’d learned everything we needed to rule a pack.

Everything except how to sleep when your wolf won’t shut up.

“Fine,” I muttered. “Let’s go run it off.”

I got out of bed, pulled on a pair of shorts, and padded toward the back of the house. The halls were quiet, just as they should be at this time of night.

But the kitchen lights were on.

And I heard it—soft footsteps. A heartbeat. Small. Rapid.

Then I saw her.

She looked at me like I’d struck her. Pale, wide-eyed, frozen in place with a sad-looking sandwich clutched in her hands.

We collided. The sandwich dropped. She dropped.

She hit the floor like glass shattering, and I lunged forward, catching her head just before she struck the tables edge.

“Omega,” I breathed.

Her scent hit me instantly soft earth, mint, something older… something ancient. It coiled around me like smoke, grounding and unshakable.

She trembled in my arms. Even semi-conscious, she looked terrified.

Why?

I cradled her carefully, one hand bracing her head. She flinched in her sleep.

My chest tightened.

Jaxx growled low—not in warning. Not in aggression.

In protectiveness.

I stiffened.

She was just an orphaned omega. She didn’t even have her wolf yet. Practically invisible to the pack. She had no claim. No rank. No reason to draw attention.

So why did her pain feel like it belonged to me?

I lifted her—light as a feather, skin and bones wrapped in exhaustion—and headed straight for the medical wing.

“Alpha!” the night nurse gasped, rising from her seat as I entered.

“She needs care,” I said flatly. “Now.”

She led me quickly to a room. I laid the girl down gently, noticing her cracked lips, her bruised arms, the deep shadows beneath her eyes. She didn’t stir.

I turned before I could start asking myself the wrong questions.

She wasn’t mine to protect.

So why did it feel like I already had?

________________________________________

I ran after that. Hard. Fast.

Jaxx pushed faster than usual, and no matter how far we went into the forest, we couldn’t outrun the image of her lying there—frail and forgotten.

Why the hell was I so bothered by her?

Was this some twisted side effect of alpha instincts?

I made it back to my suite just after dawn. Exhausted, I showered and dressed quickly. I had breakfast with my parents and Zoe. Or at least, I was supposed to.

My mind was elsewhere.

“Did you hear anything I said, Jace?” Zoe asked, glaring at me over her coffee.

“I’m sorry,” I muttered, rubbing my temple. “I just have a lot on my mind.”

“Well, clearly,” she huffed.

“I have to go. Paperwork.”

“But baby, we just started eating,” my mother said gently.

“I know, Mom. I’ll come over for dinner this week, I promise.”

I kissed her cheek, mumbled another apology, and left. I needed to check on her. That’s what a good Alpha would do. Right?

Right.

I headed straight for the pack hospital.

The nurses bowed as I passed. Polite. Submissive. Respectful.

One of them pointed me toward her room without even needing to ask.

I knocked once and stepped inside.

An older doctor stood by the bed, reviewing her chart. His nametag read Dr. Melendez.

“Oh—Alpha,” he said, startled. He bowed his head. “I didn’t see you there.”

“How is she?”

He hesitated before answering. “She’s severely malnourished. Hands and feet are raw—likely from overuse and lack of proper care. She has several untreated bruises and old scars that haven’t healed properly.”

I said nothing, my jaw clenched.

“She just needs food, rest, and time,” he continued. “But more than that... she needs to be safe. Her body’s in survival mode. She’s been running on fumes for too long.”

I looked at her lying there—so small under the white sheets.

“She has no one?” I asked.

“No guardian on file. No relatives listed. She’s alone.”

I nodded slowly. “Make sure she’s not alone anymore.”

The words left my mouth before I could stop them.

Dr. Melendez gave me a long, curious look. “Of course, Alpha.” He nodded. I walked out towards my car and drove myself to the packhouse. I went up to my office and started working on a pile of paperwork on my desk. The girl ran through the mind non- stop. I couldn’t understand why. I also couldn’t understand why she was malnourished, everyone who lived in the pack house ate right? I didn’t know, I had to find out.