Marked By The Moon

Chapter 9 - Boundaries Blurred

Jace - POV

The clock ticked past two in the morning.

I lay on my back in the massive, cold bed of the Alpha's quarters, my eyes fixed on the ceiling. Sleep didn’t come. It hadn’t come for nights.

I could still see the look in Tobi’s eyes—that quiet, simmering anger the Beta barely contained when he'd mentioned Olive. I had grown up with Tobi, he was my cousin, my best friend, I actually saw him as my brother. There had been something else there too. A disappointment that pierced deeper than any blade. I had never seen that look in his eyes before. It gnawed at me now, like acid seeping through skin.

“How could I not have known?” I muttered to myself in my empty room.

Because you didn’t want to know, Jaxx growled in my mind. My wolf had been volatile for days now—pacing, snapping, unsettled.

I rolled onto my side and clutched my pillow, pressing my forehead against it. But no matter how hard I tried, the silence was filled with echoes. Deafening echoes. I just imagined her, small, her bruised figure standing in front of me, her eyes hollow.

Olive.

My mother had always handled “disciplinary matters.” From the time I was a kid, she’d insisted: “Let me deal with the weak ones. You need to focus on strength. On strategy.” She had said it like it was a kindness. A favor. A mother protecting her son from the filth at the bottom.

I squeezed my eyes shut, bile rising in my throat. I remembered the harsh punishments for the omegas. The whispered sobs. How lower-ranking wolves always looked down when my parents passed. I’d chalked it up to respect.

It wasn’t respect. It was fear.

I sat up suddenly, breath catching, eyes wide.

I had been part of it.

Not by action.

But by silence.

“Jaxx…” I whispered. “I think we let it happen. We let it all happen.”

Jaxx didn’t answer at first, but I felt his rage. And his shame.

By late morning, I was driving without direction. My hands gripped the wheel tighter than necessary. The trees blurred past me, green and gold, but my heart beat a dull, heavy thud that echoed in my ears.

I wasn’t ready to face her. Olive. Not yet. What was wrong with me…I am an Alpha for goddess sake…

But I needed to do something.

So, I parked a few hundred meters from Dr. Melendez’s hidden cabin and got out, holding a yellow box in my hands. Inside, I had placed:

• A soft, cream-colored cashmere sweater—simple but warm.

• A pair of real pearl earrings and a matching necklace.

• A fresh set of coloured pencils, wrapped in twine.

• And finally, a small ivory envelope with clean handwriting:

If I could undo the past, I would.

I hope this helps you create a better future.

– J.

I set the box down gently by the cabin’s wooden gate, just within sight but far enough away to remain unnoticed if someone glanced through the window. I stood there a moment, unsure if I should knock. But my chest was tight and my feet frozen.

My courage failed…

Later that night, I stood at the very edge of the pack’s territory. The air was crisp, stars scattered like salt over a deep navy sky.

I looked up, eyes burning. The trees around me were still, the forest holding its breath.

“We failed her,” I said aloud, voice low and raw, “and so many others in the pack.”

Jaxx stirred. “Then we fix it.”

There was silence again. I nodded, jaw clenched.

Then, barely a whisper:

“…Why do I feel this way about this girl?”

I waited.

But Jaxx didn’t respond.

Olive – POV

Allan and Jennifer had gone to work, and I was home alone for the first time ever. Before leaving, Jennifer had gently reassured me that no one really came out this far on the pack territory and that I’d be perfectly safe. Still, I double-checked every lock after they left.

I started my morning by making myself breakfast—scrambled eggs with cheese, two slices of toast, and some strawberries. It felt so strange to prepare a meal just for myself… to take my time without being ordered around.

After eating, I read for a while, did some online schoolwork, and even tidied up the cabin a bit. When Allan sent me a text saying, “Proud of you. Keep going, Olive,” my heart squeezed. His words made something ache deep inside me—something I hadn’t let myself feel in a long time.

It reminded me of my parents.

I hadn’t thought about them in days. Not properly. Their voices, their faces… they were starting to blur in my mind. The realization made my chest tighten. I didn’t want to forget them.

By midday, the cabin felt warm and still. A good kind of quiet. I decided to step outside into the massive garden. The sun kissed my skin and the breeze smelled like lavender and earth. I picked some wildflowers along the edge of the path—white, yellow, and purple ones—and smiled at their softness in my hands.

And then I spotted it.

A bright yellow box resting just inside the wooden gate.

My stomach dropped.

I froze, scanning the tree line. No one in sight.

Was it a trap? No… it couldn’t be.

Maybe Tobi? He had dropped by before.

Slowly, cautiously, I walked over. I crouched beside the box and placed my ear against it. Nothing. No ticking, no whispering. I picked it up with both hands and backed away, heading quickly across the garden. Up the steps. Into the house.

I locked the door behind me and carried it to the living room. My hands trembled as I lifted the lid.

Inside… was the most beautiful sweater I had ever seen.

Cream-colored, soft as clouds, with delicate stitching along the edges. I slipped it on immediately. It felt like a hug—warm, secure… like I mattered. I couldn’t explain it, but it made me want to cry.

There was a small velvet jewelry box underneath. I opened it carefully and gasped.

A set of pearl earrings and a matching necklace.

I wasn’t an expert in jewelry, but I knew pearls. Pearls were expensive. Very expensive. Way too much for someone like me. Tobi should have known better. This was—

I stopped when I spotted the envelope.

I ripped it open quickly, heart racing.

The note inside read:

“If I could undo the past, I would. I hope this helps you create a better future. – J.”

I blinked.

Alpha Jace.

No. No, no, no.

He couldn’t buy my forgiveness with pretty things and poetic words. Not after everything.

I let the note fall onto the floor, and I stood there, sweater still wrapped around me, unsure of what to feel.