The rejected Luna

She’s still here

Riven slowly clapped his hands once.

The guards immediately released my mother.

“Luciana,” he said coldly, “go reflect in your chambers. Since your daughter is so eager… she will take your place.”

The two guards turned and seized my arms.

My mother cried out my name, but I only gave her a small, tired smile as they dragged me toward the doors. I didn’t want her to see me break.

Behind me, I heard soft laughter.

Riven and Clarissa.

The sound followed me all the way down the stone corridor.

The dungeon was not a cell.

It was a deep underground pit.

The guards shoved me over the edge without warning. I hit the ground hard, the air leaving my lungs in a painful rush. Cold, damp stone pressed against my cheek. The only light came from a small opening high above.

I barely had time to push myself up before something moved in the darkness.

A low, ragged growl echoed off the walls.

A massive beast stepped into the faint light—fur matted, eyes glowing an unnatural yellow. It didn’t attack immediately. It circled me slowly, as if studying its prey.

My wolf whimpered inside me, weak and terrified.

I tried to run.

It was on me in seconds, heavy paws slamming me back down onto the stone. Claws scraped across my arms and shoulders, not deep enough to kill… but deep enough to hurt. Every time I tried to crawl away, it dragged me back.

The attacks never stopped for long.

I didn’t know how much time passed. Hunger hollowed me out. Thirst cracked my lips. The darkness pressed in until I could no longer tell when I was awake or dreaming.

Only later would I learn the truth.

Time moved differently inside that pit.

What felt like an endless nightmare outside was only five days.

Five days of being hunted, pinned, clawed, and released… only for the cycle to begin again. It never killed me. It only played with me. As if something—or someone—was controlling it.

At some point, the tears stopped.

I had none left.

Somewhere between the hunger, the darkness, and the silence, they had all dried up.

I lay on the cold stone, blood drying on my skin, and made a quiet vow.

If I ever left this pit alive…

Every feeling I had ever held for Riven would be dead.

Completely.

Riven’s POV

Riven reclined against the headboard of his bed, Clarissa curled comfortably against his side. Her fingers traced lazy patterns over his chest.

“Riven,” she murmured, “I think I need a handmaid. Will you give me one?”

He smiled and pressed a kiss to her hair. “Of course, my future Luna. I’ll give you anything you want.”

His voice softened with something almost reverent.

“Besides… if it weren’t for you, the curse that was placed on me as a child would never have been lifted.”

Clarissa’s hand paused for a fraction of a second, but she said nothing.

Riven continued, staring at the ceiling. “I still remember the night you healed me. That was the night I decided I would spend the rest of my life making it up to you.”

He turned his head to look at her, eyes warm.

“As for a handmaid… how about your former lady? She can serve you now.”

Clarissa blinked. “You mean Elara? You want her to serve me?”

He nodded without hesitation. “Of course. She’s of no real use right now… but she’ll be of great use to you.”

Riven glanced toward the door and raised his voice.

“Maid.”

A young servant girl quickly dropped to her knees. “My Alpha.”

“Go get Elara.”

The maid’s face went pale. She kept her head bowed as she spoke.

“My Alpha… Elara has been in the pit dungeon for five days. No order was ever given to bring her out.”

Riven shot up from the bed so fast Clarissa nearly fell off the mattress.

“What did you just say?”

The maid flinched, still kneeling. Her voice trembled.

“My Alpha… Lady Elara is still in the pit dungeon. She has been there for five days. No one ever ordered her release.”

For a second, Riven simply stared.

Then he was gone.

He tore out of the room without another word. Clarissa called after him, but he didn’t slow down. She scrambled to follow, bare feet slapping against the stone floors as she ran to catch up.

By the time they reached the entrance to the dungeon, Riven’s face was dark with something between anger and disbelief. Two guards stood at the heavy iron door.

“Why didn’t anyone tell me she was still in there?!” he shouted.

One of the guards lowered his head. “My lord… we did. But you were with Lady Clarissa at the time. You said her matter no longer concerned you.”

Clarissa finally caught up, slightly out of breath. “Riven, why did you run off like that?”

He ignored her.

“Open the door.”

The guard hesitated. “My lord, the pit is filthy. It stinks. You shouldn’t—”

“I said open the door!”

The key turned with a heavy clank. The moment the door swung open, a thick, foul smell rolled out. Riven stepped inside and immediately covered his nose. Clarissa wrinkled her face but followed closely behind him.

At the far end of the pit, a small figure was curled against the wall.

Elara.

Her dress was torn and stained with dirt and dried blood. Her hair hung in tangled clumps. Fresh and old claw marks covered her arms and shoulders. She looked half-dead.

Clarissa’s eyes lit up for the briefest second before she schooled her expression into pure concern. She rushed forward and grabbed Elara’s hands.

“I’m so sorry, Elara,” she cried, already forcing tears into her eyes. “This is all my fault. I didn’t mean for it to go this far. If Riven didn’t love me so much, he never would have done this…”

Elara lifted her head slowly.

A weak, bitter laugh left her cracked lips. She leaned in just enough for only Clarissa to hear.

“How is he still falling for this fake act of yours?” Her voice was barely a whisper. Then, louder, but still flat: “He loves you. And you’re stupid enough to think he ever cared about me.”

She pulled her hands free.

Clarissa immediately let herself fall backward onto the filthy ground, eyes wide with practiced shock.

“Elara! Why did you push me?!” she cried out. “I was only trying to console you! What have I done wrong?!”

Riven’s temper snapped.

“Elara!” he barked. “You still haven’t learned your lesson? You’ve been down here for days and you’re still this stubborn?!”

Elara pushed herself up on unsteady legs. Dirt and dried blood smeared her skin as she stood. She looked at Riven for a long moment, her eyes empty of the soft affection they once held.

“I regret wasting my time with you, Riven,” she said quietly. “I regret sharing my soul with you.”

The words hung in the foul air.

“When you were dying as a child… I was the one who shared half my soul with you so you could live.”

Silence.

Then Riven let out a short, disbelieving laugh.

“Oh, wow. So now you’re trying to take credit for Clarissa’s deeds? How shameless can you be, Elara?”

Clarissa quickly stepped closer to him, eyes glistening again. “I know I was only your handmaid when we were children, but taking credit for what I did is just cruel.”

Elara stared at the two of them. Another dry, humorless laugh left her.

“You’re such a perfect couple,” she muttered. “Truly made in hell.”

Riven’s expression hardened.

“I don’t want to argue with you.” He turned toward the entrance. “Guards!”

Two men stepped forward.

“Take her to her room. Make sure she cleans up. After that, bring her down to the hot spring. There’s a party tonight, and I don’t want anyone asking questions about her condition.”