The Things The Moon Whispers

A Powerful Visitor

“Hannah, wake up,” a voice whispered in her ear. “If you don’t get up right now, Mrs. Blackmon will whip you!”

It took Hannah a moment to recognize Emily’s voice. With a pained groan, Hannah pulled herself up off the cold tile floor, her bones and joints popping painfully from the short nap she’d taken on it.

Her eyes scanned the dark room until she met her sister’s wide brown eyes. Emily grabbed her arm and helped haul Hannah to her feet. “What time is it?”

“It’s almost four,” Emily whispered. “Go change and clean up. We only have fifteen minutes before we have to head to the kitchen.”

Hannah scanned her sister’s face. Emily was beautiful— with her sandy-blonde hair and wide, doe-like brown eyes. There was a kindness behind those eyes that had always softened Hannah.

“Where’s Ryan?” Hannah grumbled. She didn’t care, not really— Ryan had made it very clear he disliked Hannah and Emily, but she tried to look out for him anyway, even if he was spiteful towards her.

“He’s on landscaping duty outside the packhouse today,” Emily told her. “He’s already left. Come on, let’s get up.”

With some coaxing from Emily, Hannah hauled her tired body up and forced herself to go change her clothes. She rummaged through the bin of clothes she had shoved next to her small mattress and managed to find a clean dress and apron for the day. She glanced around the tiny, closet-like room she shared with Emily in disdain. Two paper thin mattresses held up by rusty bed frames and scratchy, torn sheets and blankets— the plastic tubs they kept the few articles of clothing they had in. The grey paint was chipping off the walls and stained. The room looked more like a jail cell than a room— but when she’d tried to decorate it with drawings she had made when she was younger, Susan had ripped them off the walls and whipped her. She said there was no room for disorder in her home.

Hannah quickly changed into the faded blue dress with frayed seems and tied the apron around her waist before making her way to the bathroom to run a brush through her hair.

Hannah stared at her reflection. She was pretty, and she knew that— she’d always been told she was a pretty girl. From her chocolate brown hair that fell in loose waves down to the small of her back, to her eyes that were the color of sapphires, to her small, delicate, feminine features and petite, slender frame— she knew she was a pretty girl.

But being pretty didn’t get you very far when you were an omega. If anything, it made you a bigger target. A weaker target. Pretty, Hannah thought, but just not good enough, not strong enough.

With a shake of her head, she splashed water on her face and ran a brush through her hair. The dark circles were prominent under her eyes, making her too-thin face look even thinner.

We don’t eat enough, Iris murmured sleepily in her head. If we could eat more, maybe we’d be stronger.

Hannah sighed. We eat what we’re given, Iris. That’s all we can do.

One day, we’ll find our mate, and they’ll have no choice but to let us leave this place. We’ll be happy, Iris whisepered.

Hannah wasn’t so sure. She knew her mate wasn’t in Crescent Moon, that was for sure— but she wasn’t sure she even had one. It wasn’t uncommon for omegas to never find their mates. They weren’t allowed at mating balls or to leave their home pack— it slimmed the chances down to none. She didn’t even know if she wanted a mate— the chances of him rejecting her because she was an omega were high, and Hannah had had enough disappointment to last herself a lifetime.

“Hannah?” Emily hissed, poking her head in the door. “We’ve got to go, like yesterday, before Susan wrings our necks.”

As exhausted as she was, she forced her tired feet to push her forward. She knew she couldn’t handle more lashings. Her body was weak from a lack of proper nutrition and sleep, and she’d never survive it. She needed to behave and stay on Susan’s good side.

A manly cough sounded from the bedroom down the hall, and Hannah met Emily’s worried eyes. “Eugene is up. Let’s get out of here before he realizes we’re still home.”

The girls rushed out of the house, shutting the front door quietly behind them as they made their way up the dirt path that led to the packhouse.