Her Own Luna

Chapter 12

By the time the Alphas were set to depart, Anna was exhausted. Damian had kept his sights on her, but only just enough to cause her to be wary. Nothing inappropriate. Christian was tense, watching her and Damian. The meetings were long and they caused her to worry. Her world seemed to be crumbling, sand slipping through her fingers. She was scared to lose it all. She loved her life, but it seemed like it was about to all change forever.

After the Alphas left, it was back to normal life. Except with more security.

Christian seemed colder, more distant. Anna wanted to think it was the stress of the current situation, but the rumors about him and Vera hadn't stopped. Even worse, Vera had been pushing her way back into the packhouse. Christian wasn't doing much to stop her and when Anna spoke up, he painted her as the bad guy. "I'm not talking about his again, she's just a normal pack member now. You have to let your jealousy go."

"I'm not jealous..." she argued.

"Aren't you? You're isolating a poor girl who lost her mother. That's not the Luna this pack needs!" Christian stormed out.

Anna sat down and sighed. She put her head in her hands. Even if she was jealous, she had reason to be. She wasn't the wife that goes through her husband's phone, or that needed to constantly know where he was. But this? This was reason to be upset.

She slammed her hands down and got up. She needed to clear her head. She went down the stairs and walked straight outside. She found her way to the trail she liked to walk and just kept on going. She needed to clear her head.

On her way back she saw Vera in the path ahead. She stood with her hands on her hips. Anna rolled her eyes. She walked straight up to Vera. "What do you want?" she asked.

"I hear you've been screaming at Christian again. You know, if you want him to be happy you have to stop being so controlling."

"My marriage is none of your business," Anna replied. She tried to walk past Vera, but Vera blocked her.

"Excuse you, I'm talking."

"We're done talking."

"We're done talking when I say we are," Vera said. Her eyes had turned dark. "You're disgusting. Taking Christian when you had no right to him and treating him like garbage? You're a vile creature and you don 't deserve to be the Luna."

"Well, I am the Luna because he chose me, now if you'll excuse me." Anna tried, once again, to push past her. This time, Vera shoved her back hard.

"I said I'm talking! You get to wait!"

Anna was shocked. No one put their hands on the Luna.

"You're not used to being put in your place are you?"

Anna looked around, no one was close enough to be a reliable witness. "I'm going to walk back to my home and you're going to walk to yours. Understood?"

Vera laughed. "Have it your way, but understand, if you don't start treating Christian well someone else will."

Anna walked away in silence. Vera's agenda had been made clear, but Anna had a feeling there was more to it than just wanting her old boyfriend back. Vera had a bigger plan and Anna needed to figure out what it was.

When she arrived home, Christian was out. She sat in his office and waited. It took a couple of hours, but he finally returned.

"What do you want?" he demanded. "Haven't you done enough?"

"What do you mean?"

"I was just at the hospital with Vera. I know everything."

"The hospital?"

Christian's eyes flashed. He slammed his fist on the table. "Don't play stupid with me! How dare you? You are the Luna! You have to be above this sort of thing."

Anna stood. "Speak to me with respect and explain what the hell you're going on about," she said calmly. She felt anything but calm, but she needed to keep her cool.

"Respect? You don't deserve it!"

She crossed her arms and c****d an eyebrow at her husband.

"You put Vera in the hospital! She was just out for a walk and you hunted her down and beat her. I won't talk to you with respect because I don't have any respect for you."

Anna's mouth dropped open. What had Vera done? "She confronted me and when we parted she was fine."

"Now you're going to lie to me?"

"I have never lied to you. Why do you trust her over me?"

"Because she has physical proof."

"Proof she's been injured. Tell me, how did she say it happened?"

"You pushed her down and punched her until you got tired. You walked away and told her to leave the pack. I assume you tried to find me to get ahead of the story."

Anna held her hands up. "I punched her enough to cause physical damage but my hands have no injuries? What do you think my hands are made of?"

He looked unsure for a moment, but quickly recovered himself. "Maybe you had gloves on... or you used a weapon."

"But she said I punched her. So, no, no weapon, if we're going with the story. Call her, ask her for more details."

"Why would I do that?"

"Because you accused me of lying and assault. Your wife, that has never done anything like that or lied to you in my life. That's why."

He sighed and picked up the phone. He called the hospital and they connected the call to Vera's room. Her voice carried across the line. "Hi sweety, what are you calling for?" she said in a husky voice.

"I just want more details about the... attack..."

Anna crossed her arms and listened as Vera described the conversation, the entire fictional story, but she smiled when Vera said Anna had attacked her and beat her with her bare hands. Punching until her cheek bone was broken and her jaw was dislocated. She'd even lost a tooth. Bare hands.

Christian ended the call soon after.

"So? Nothing on my hands. No wounds from her defending herself. Could I really have done this?"

Christian sat down. He ran his hands through his hair. "No, you couldn't have..."

"You accused me of lying and assault, Christian." Now, her calm was cracking. "You believed another woman, that supposedly means nothing to you, over me."

"I..."

She cut him off. "What you're going to do is get ahead of this. She's already told everyone she came in contact with I'm sure. Nurses, doctors, the squirrel outside her window. You're going to make sure everyone knows their Luna did not attack anyone. You're going to stand up for me, as you should have to begin with."

"Anna... come on."

She bent over the desk to look to him in the eye. "You will do this, Christian, and you will do it well. If you don't I will make your life a living hell."