The Runaway Luna's Daughter

Heartaches

Laura's POV

Jenine had left the house in the morning. Her exact words, “to clear my head.”

She did it a lot—taking off into the woods to stroll. I bet it made her feel better since she did it frequently.

I really didn't care what she did with her time.

I wasn't against her taking walks in the woods but you know how things get around here.

It's surprising that she used to be so scared and jumpy and suddenly now, she enjoyed taking walks in the woods. It was almost like the woods called out to her.

This same woods where she had almost been mauled in. She was getting more confident and that was a really good look on her.

But then, it'd been five hours since she left and confident or not, fearless or not, it was a very long time to be out ‘taking a stroll.’ So you can imagine my restlessness when she didn't come home yet.

The sun was still bright and burning when I left the first time to go look for her. I had told her to holler if she needed me and I'll be there but she never did. Safe to assume she was safe. But even then, my heart couldn't rest with her still out there.

“She'll come back when she's ready,” I muttered to myself as my eyes stared out the window.

There wasn't much to do today. The Blood-rink festival was three days away and I'd already made pretty much all the preparations I had to make.

Would I get a mate this time? Not that I was keen on getting one. Just curiosity.

My eyes strayed to the clock and I remembered Jenine again.

The rays from the sun had already started casting a long silhouette on everything it touched. I wasn't going to wait for it to get entirely dark before I went to find her.

I had already worn my sports bra and a pair of joggers over my hiking boots, tied a scarf over my head and was ready to head out when I caught her scent. Maybe if I had paid more attention and maybe listened, I would have known she wasn't alone.

I swung the door open, chiding her for staying out too long when I saw him, standing right behind her.

There was something about the way they contrasted each other.

Jenine's petite frame with her clear eyes and freckles contrasted heavily against his tall build and fiery eyes.

“The wolf and his prey,” I remember thinking.

“It's been a while,” he said as his lips curled up into a smile.

That familiar smile. The smile that used to be my undoing. The smile that melted the rage I used to feel for him. And it happened countless times. The rage.

It was the smile he had on his face when he twisted that guy's hand, breaking his arm. I still remember his heart rending screams filling the air. The smile that made me break up with him.

Elisha had gotten me my favourite drink at the club—a martini mixed with orange and lime syrup just the way I loved it. Sour.

I had only taken a sip when the guy bumped into me drunkenly, spilling the whole thing on my dress.

“Watch it, b***h,” he growled as he staggered to join his friends at their table. I saw Elisha's eyes spark with rage as he clenched his fists.

“Don't,” I whispered, holding his hand when he made to move forward. He smiled at me with his lips but his eyes, I'd never seen anyone have that much fire and brimstone in their eyes.

“You okay, babe?” he had said as he touched the wet dress, his eyes occasionally glancing over his shoulders to the table where the drink spiller was seated.

I turned his face to mine with my hand.

“Let it go,” I said, my eyes staring into his.

He smiled again. That f*****g smile that never left his lips.

“I'll go clean up,” I said as I noticed them getting up and leaving. Elisha's eyes followed them.

“Here,” I handed my bag over to him. Something to make him wait for me. Or so I thought. His eyes still strayed to the door.

“Promise me you won't go after them,” I pleaded, pulling up my best puppy-eyed look. I knew what he could do. I knew what he was capable of.

He nodded.

“Promise me,” I cooed. “Say it.”

“I promise,” he had said.

So tell me why I came back out of the bathroom after cleaning up and my f*****g boyfriend was nowhere to be found.

“Where is he?” I asked the barman. He nodded towards the door.

I darted through it quickly fearing the worst.

“Elisha,” I had called out loudly, turning every which way as I stood in the parking lot. I knew he could hear me. He was a f*****g werewolf and definitely not a deaf one.

And that was when I heard the screams in the distance.

My heart hammered against my chest as I raced towards the commotion, silently wishing it had nothing to do with my hotheaded boyfriend.

“Elisha!” I screamed with widened eyes when I saw him.

The guy that had spilled my drink hung in his hand as he held him up by the neck, his legs flailing wildly as he choked.

He glanced at me for a moment before shifting his attention back to him, his grip tightening around his neck.

“You're going to kill him, Elisha!” I screamed frantically, my feet slapping against the floor as I ran to him.

He pushed me away with his free hand, sending me sprawling on the floor. I winced as my knees grazed against the hard floor, the top skin layer peeling off.

I got up slowly, dusting myself. So much for cleaning up earlier. I felt numb as I watched my boyfriend growl, his eyes cold and his teeth gritted as he held onto him.

“Elisha, please,” I whispered.

He seemed to hear me. He threw the guy down and picked up my bag from the corner where he stashed it and tossed it over to me.

“It's finally over,” I thought as I turned, thinking he was right behind me.

“No– no– please!” I heard the guy scream. I turned around speedily to see Elisha bent over him as he lay face down on the floor, twisting his right arm behind his back.

“Don't do it, Elisha,” I said my voice taut as my body quivered. The sick sound of bone cracking filled the air, his tortured screams accompanying it.

“No,” I whispered as I saw his face contort uglily in pain.

My eyes shifted to Elisha who stood over him, his lips curled up in a smile as he watched him wriggle and writhe, whimpering in pain.

“What a monster,” I remember thinking.

I moved swiftly to fix him, to put his arm in place so his wolf could heal him but Elisha barred my path.

“Don't f*****g touch him,” he growled, his eyes darkening the way they had when he twisted his arm.

“What? Are you gonna break my arm too?”

I tried to move around him but he stepped in my way again.

“He's hurting!” I screamed.

“That's what he gets for spilling your drink.”

“It was just a drink! Does breaking an arm equate to spilling a drink? Who breaks an arm because his drink was spilled?”

“I do,” he growled again.

“Please, let me help him, Elisha,” I pleaded, trying to move around him again.

His hand clasped around my arm roughly, jerking me away from the injured guy.

“You're hurting me,” I screamed as his grip tightened around my wrist, dragging me along with him.

When I tried to pull back, he doubled down, scooping me off my feet onto his shoulders walking away like he owned the place. Like he was untouchable.

It was after that I had decided to break up with him. He had broken his promise to me and hurt someone badly. Very badly.

I knew he was possessive and had issues battling his rage but I'd been helping him work on them. I called it quits.

So seeing him with Jenine got me really scared for her. When she had mentioned Elisha as the guy she met at the mall, I had hoped and prayed endlessly to the Moon Goddess that it would be a different Elisha and not the devil I had dated.

“Are you seeing him?” I asked as he walked away.

I knew he could hear me. I knew he was listening. He was that sort of person.

“Yeah?”

“Okay,” I said as I shut the door walking into my room.

I could hear Jenine's footsteps behind me.

“I remember asking if you knew him and you said no. You lied to me.”

“How was I to know he was the one?” I replied her as my bed creaked under my weight. I undid the laces on my boots.

“How do you know him?” Jenine asked, lowering herself onto my bed, sitting beside me.

“We– we dated,” I blurted.

“And you didn't deem it necessary to disclose this piece of information to me?”

“Like I said, I didn't know he was the one,” I groaned, pulling the second boot off my leg. I tossed it into the corner.

“So now what?” she stared at me, her hands folded across her chest.

“Stay away from him. He's bad news.”

“You're mistaken,” she shot back startling me. “He's the sweetest wolf you'd ever meet. I can vouch for him.”

“Don’t vouch for him. Don't do that. I did and it didn't end well. When he's not sweet, he's mean and wicked. He's a possessive fucker who listens to no one but himself.”

“He listened to me,” Jenine replied, her cheeks glistening.

I stared at her face. She was already lost—in love. How do you convince a girl in love that the one thing she loved would bring her nothing but heartaches?