Human Luna: Marked by Two Alphas

8.

Present

I got so used to passing out and waking up in shabby places that it felt odd when I opened my eyes to the sound of a beeping monitor, white ceiling with dim light bulbs and clean white sheets.

I winced, and my headache worsened when I looked at the window, the bright morning light almost blinding me.

I grabbed my throbbing head only to feel bandages around it, just then noticing the cannula in my right hand.

The events from the other night played in my mind, and I tried to distinguish which was real from false.

That woman. Luna they called her. I can't go back to that house, I need to escape.

Just the thought of her name, coupled with the door opening, had the numbers on the heart monitor going up.

Jesse walked in wearing a white nurse's outfit and my heart rate started to go down. If anything, I knew she wouldn't harm me. She was holding a clipboard and wrote on it as she observed me.

"Patient Everly. How are you doing?"

"Jesse," I called out her name, my mouth felt dry. "What is going on here?"

"You are at the hospital for a skull fracture. But it's all good now. Just a few exams and you will be discharged today. How many fingers?" She asked, putting up three fingers.

"If I said ten, will you let me stay here?"

Jesse chuckled and proceeded to write on her clipboard. "Looks like you are healthy now."

"Have you any idea what happened to me?"

"I have heard all sorts of stories, and I'm trying to stay professional right now, but I'm very tempted to ask for the real gist," Jesse smiled, looking amused.

"That woman. She was going to kill Gracie, and then she almost killed me. And she was so strong. And at the Pack house they kept talking about omega and witches and werewolves. And then there was you who healed my wound that time and probably my head now. I don't want to live here anymore," I wailed, not knowing when the tears started coming out.

Jesse sighed, took some tissue paper from a trolley and sat on the bed beside me, handing me the tissue, which I took and started wiping my tears.

"You had no idea, did you?" she patted me on the back. "Humans are so clueless, thinking you are that exist in the world and everything else is either a myth or an animal," she tsked. "But don't worry, I will tell you all you need to know about werewolves and witches real quick before you are escorted back to the pack house."

*

After a ten minutes lecture and me staring at her like a fool, Jesse stood up.

So, in summary, this place is the wolf lair pack. The alpha and Luna are the leaders and the highest ranking both in strength and authority, which no one can resist. The beta, who is like the alpha's assistant, followed by the gamma, are next in rank. Then there are the regular werewolves and the omegas who are at the bottom of the barrel. Witches like Jesse aren't a part of packs, but due to the recent instabilities caused by humans, witches prefer to live in packs for their own safety and those with talents like healing and foreseeing are put to good use. Ruth included.

"I need to discharge you before they come to check up on us. Sorry, but I don't want to cross anyone here," Jesse said, grabbing her clipboard.

"What if I escaped?" I asked and she stared at me wide-eyed.

"And what's out there for you if you do escape?" she asked and I gulped. How could I forget? I am an inmate on death row. With no evidence that I didn't kill my father, or other suspects, I might as well just stay here.

Not knowing what was running in my mind, Jesse continued. "You will get killed the second you cross the border of this pack. If you manage to get near it, that's it. The number of rogues out there is on the rise, and those vile creatures, they will strip you of all dignity before they end your life," she said, her eyes looking genuinely scared. "I heard humans are worse though, if not the same," she looked at me, and for a second, in her eyes I could see doubt and suspicion.

"Humans aren't even aware of werewolves and witches actually existing," I told her, but she shrugged and scribbled on her clipboard.

The silence felt awkward.

"So if Luna isn't her name," I said, trying to break the tension.

"It's Paige."

"And the alpha?"

Before Jesse could answer, the door opened and someone came in.

He was a handsome guy, at least 6 feet tall, with tan skin and chestnut hair. Wearing a doctor's suit, I assumed he was the doctor, but his face was none the kinder. The glasses he wore didn't hide his stern expression.

"What have you been doing Jesse? You were supposed to discharge her since," he said sending me a nasty look and I inhaled sharply.

I was about to say something, but as if Jesse had read my mind, she stood blocking me.

Her hands dropped to her sides and she bowed her head, answering him in a meek voice. "Sorry Gamma Levi. I have never dealt with a head injury before, so I wanted to check how good of a job I did."

"Whatever. They are here to pick her up. Best not to let Luna Paige wait," he said and my heart sank. What will she do to me this time?