Accepting Fate (Moonlight Trials Series #3)

Moonlight Trials #3 – Accepting Fate.  Chapter 1 Freybelle’s POV I walked slowly through the dark woodland, my feet bare and barely wearing clothes. The stones and sticks were grazing the bottom of my feet, and I knew there was blood trailing behind me, but I trudged on with one purpose in mind. The short white dress I had been wearing was tattered and had pieces missing from it. There were grazes up and down my arms and legs and my long brown hair was dishevelled and tangled. The weather was cold and biting into my skin, but I couldn’t think about that now. Something was guiding me through the woodland, a pull that I couldn’t explain. I began thinking about what had led me here and tears began to form in my eyes. My mother, grandmother, sister and… I wiped my eyes. I wouldn’t remember them with sadness but bitterness. I tried to harden my resolve and remember what I was doing. The wind was beginning to get stronger, blowing what felt like needles into my skin. The sky was getting darker, but my vision didn’t darken. I knew my eyes would be glowing with the spell I had cast to enable me to be able to see clearly in the woodland. I knew my power would be waning by morning when I needed to rest but I would worry about that then. I looked around, feeling for the pull again. That way… “Come on Frey, you can do this.” I chided myself as I felt my power draining from me already due to not eating for hours. I stood still, focusing all of my energy into the vision I had had before I left everything behind. A man, tall, black haired with dark green eyes, standing in a stream with only his low-rise jeans on. Tattoos streamed up his arms and onto his broad shoulders. In the vision he turned towards me then everything went black. I didn’t know who he was, but I felt my heart pull me to him and even though I had no idea where I was, I knew I was going in the right direction. There was only one problem, in my vision there were fallen leaves and snow on the ground. However, it was only just autumn here, nowhere near winter for snow to be on the ground and the leaves were only just beginning to fall. I knew my journey would take longer than I wanted to admit but I pushed forwards, hoping that time would pass quickly. Nathan’s POV “You have got to be kidding me.” I snarled through my clenched teeth. I closed my eyes, wondering why the hell my Alpha had called me here, and now wishing I had turned down his invitation. “No, I’m not. There were reports from Alpha Leer a few weeks ago but we couldn’t confirm it. However around three days ago a huge magical eruption happened somewhere down in the valley. We cannot pinpoint where it came from but it’s the same energy that attacked our Luna all those years ago. I frowned remembering that horrific day. “And you can trust Alpha Leers reports?” I asked. Annoyed that we still had something to do with that idiotic pack. “Despite your hatred for them, yes.” My alpha, Fenn answered. “They’ve been close allies and despite their… transgressions over their son. They keep to themselves.” “For good reason.” I said under my breath. The pack in question were the Blue Iris pack. They had lost their son over 10 years ago and had done some… questionable acts to try and find him. There had been reports of torture, kidnap and even abuse on a grand scale. Despite that, they treat their pack horribly. Omegas were completely looked down on and the only people who were treat right were the ranked members. Alpha Fenn looked at me with a frown but pretended he hadn’t heard my comment. “Look, I know they have…questionable… techniques on raising their pack but they have been invaluable with information because of their search for their son. They have found out more that anyone else we communicate with over the attack on the Luna. When…” He paused and I saw him fighting with his emotions. “When Spence was killed in the attack, you took on the role of protecting the Luna. You are our greatest fighter and her best protection. I’m so grateful to you and hate to ask this of you again but…” “You want me to go investigate?” I huffed, knowing exactly what was coming. Spencer was his Gamma. The role of a gamma was to protect the Luna but also to act as mediator to the pack. I had partly taken over that role when he was killed as Fenn was unable to replace him due to grief still being very present in his heart. “I do…” He took a deep breath and looked at me. “I know we have drifted apart Nate… but you’re still one of my best friends. I appreciate this and if I trusted anyone else, I would send them instead…” I shrugged. He was right that we were no longer close, for many reasons but I still cared about him, so I nodded. “Ill set off tomorrow, once Ive eaten, slept and handed out the training rota to everyone whilst I’m gone.” He nodded; his face serious. “Thank you, Nathan.” I left his office, annoyed but feeling proud too. Despite pulling back from the pack I was the best fighter and his closest friend now Spencer had died. His Beta, Jack, whilst a great Beta, was useless when it came to being dependable outside of his role. He had found his mate early and was wrapped around her little finger. She was from another pack and her loyalties lay there meaning Jack was actually stretched between two packs. I sighed again. Mates… I was 31-year-old and still hadn’t found mine. I hadn’t given up hope, knowing she was out there somewhere but I must admit I was wondering whether I should give up hope of finding them in this lifetime. “Nathan?” I heard a sweet voice call me from the Alpha’s corridor. “Luna Sylvia.” I greeted, bowing my head. She huffed and I felt a hand on my arm. “Just Sylvia Nathan, please.” I looked up to her and gave her a nod. She had beautiful dark brown eyes and long black hair except for a long streak of Grey that came from a large purple scar that marred the left side of her forehead and left eye. I sighed, hating that she carried that scar because of us. “I hear you’re heading out to investigate the power that erupted. The same…” She drew in a breath, and I interrupted her. “I am… I will catch them… You’ll be safe. I promise.” I said, my eyes looking into hers with concern and resolve. She nodded but didn’t answer. “Ill be heading out tomorrow, I just need to plan my route into the valley.” “Oh…” She looked around and then drew a large brass key out of her dress pocket. “Here, there’s a cabin at the bottom of the mountain before it turns into the thicker woodland. I used it when I was hiding out the first time. Please use it.” She handed me the key and I nodded. “I’ll mark it on a map for you and get Dawn to bring it you.” I nodded. Dawn was her handmaid omega and also a friend. She was 55 and had lost her mate in the battle that had affected our Luna. I nodded a thanks and mumbled a goodbye before turning away with a ridiculous number of thoughts in my head. Freybelle’s POV I kept walking, pushing forwards despite my body screaming for me to rest. I had managed to find a stream for water and a few raspberries on bushes, so I had eaten but my legs were ready to give out. Finally, I collapsed against a tree, sliding down it, its bark scratching at my already raw back. Tears threatened to leak down my face as the memories at what had happened a few days ago came creeping back in now I wasn’t concentrating on just staying upright. “No Frey, don’t think about it.” I said to myself, anger in my whisper. Flashes of my families faces appeared in my minds, tipping the tears over the edge and I cried until there were no tears left. My throat was hoarse, and I hated that I hadn’t stumbled across a village or anything yet. I needed a proper bed, water, clothes and food. I sighed, standing up again despite my legs and back groaning in agony. I continued walking on, the air getting cooler as I walked further into the forest and higher up the mountain. Nathan’s POV I trudged down the mountain in wolf form as I knew I would have better footing against the uneven forest floor. My backpack was firm between my teeth as I headed to the cabin that Luna Sylvia had marked on the map for me. The air was cold, and the leaves were beginning to fall from the trees with their beautiful yellows and oranges. The only trees still green were the pine trees that stayed green all year round. I had only been a few days since I set off, but I knew that despite it being the middle of September, the illusion of winter would be upon us quickly. Further up the mountain, home, it would probably already be snowing. Living so high in the mountains meant that despite their being four seasons, we only generally got two… spring and winter. The weather was warm during summer, but we had plenty of rain and wind that made it feel like it was still spring. Then autumn quickly became cold, snowy and even more wind. I smiled, realising once I hit the bottom of the mountain, I might feel some heat with it being Autumn. A few days passed, with me stopping for slight breaks to eat and drink before setting off to the cabin again. When I stumbled across it, I had flashbacks to when Luna Sylvia would have been holed up here. I hadn’t seen her here, but I remembered being in the valley, holding back the hordes of humans that had been sent to capture her. I sighed, not wanting to think back to that, it had been the worst time in our pack’s history so far. I opened the cabin door, and it creaked loudly. It was clear it hadn’t been used for years. I found dead flowers scattered in vases around the living area and smiled, knowing the Luna would have put them there, wanting the room to feel homier. The pack house was often decorated with fresh flower arrangements one by her. I noticed the cabin was only two rooms. There was a door which I assumed was a bathroom and then the main living area, which was split into three areas, a kitchen, a front room and then another area with a pull-out bed. I knew the cabin wouldn’t have electricity, but I knew it should have running water from the stream that ran down the mountain. I headed out and found the pipes that ran towards the stream. Sighing, I knew straight away that there was a problem as there was no water in them. However, there was a slight amount of water in the tank. Enough for cleaning but I would absolutely have to fix the pipes from the stream later. “Great!” I growled to myself, heading back into the cabin. Instead of dealing with that first, I found a pile of wood for the fire, and it wasn’t damp so I threw it into the large metal wood burner so I could heat up the cabin. Then I set to work, cleaning it. The cabin was at a prime location for me to return to every night if I didn’t find anything out. If I needed to go further out, then I would find somewhere else if I needed to. I threw out the dead flowers and aired out the bedding and blankets by flapping them in the wind before hanging them over the broken fence. I noticed the air was turning cooler and frowned at the sky, wondering if the usual snowfall would reach further down the mountain sooner. As if reading my mind, it began spluttering out tiny flakes of snow. If I hadn’t grown up on these mountains, I would think it was rain but they were definitely ice crystals. I decided that the water pipes were defiantly more important than anything else. If there were blizzards in the next few days, because of the wind, I would need the water. I threw everything into the house and closed the door, knowing no one dare break in after scenting me there. Then I headed to the stream. Freybelle’s POV I felt it before I saw it as I exited the thickest part of the woodland. I looked up the mountain, frowning at how high it went. How far would I need to climb before I found the mystery man? As I was staring up the beast, I felt the needles hitting my skin. I blinked a few times thinking it was rain before realising there was ice crystals landing on my bare arms. I couldn’t hold back the smile. If it was snowing, that must mean I was getting closer to where I needed to be. Despite the biting cold at my skin, the pain in my feet, legs and back and the growling hunger in my stomach I practically ran into the more open woodland. The pull I had been feeling in my mind and heart seemed stronger somehow and I pulled myself towards it. “Nearly there.” Nathan’s POV The snow was falling heavier now as I unclogged the pipe. I was glad that as a wolf I didn’t feel the cold as much. I had thrown my t-shirt, boots and socks under a tree to stay dry and I had pulled up my jeans to my knees. The water wasn’t deep, but it was flowing fast down the mountain. The dead leaves and moss had clogged the pipes, and I groaned at how disgusting it was. I wasn’t scared of dirt by any stretch, but the leaves were decaying and spongy. I finally managed to clear the pipe and sighed heavily, looking at the grime now smeared on my hands, arms and trousers. I bent down to wash my arms and hands when I heard a noise from the brush behind me. Slowly, I turned, wondering if it was an animal but the scent that hit me was human with something else mixed in. A scent of sage and herbs. I noticed a bright silver light glowing before a woman, small and dainty with long dishevelled brown hair and piercing blue eyes stared at me. She smiled, hugely before collapsing just before the stream, the silver light dying with her. I ran over to her, noticing her bruised figure and then noticing the blood all over her legs and feet. Her clothes looked like they had been shredded by a wild animal. I picked her up and felt the unmistakable feeling of sparks shooting through me. Mate bonds? I questioned but my wolf said nothing back to me. Shaking my head I lifted her easily to the other side of the stream, and, gathering my belongings, took her to the cabin.