The Luna's Revenge

Chapter2

My feet dragged like it was weighed down with stones as I pushed through the sea of dancers, their bodies parting reluctantly under the weight of my gaze. I stopped a few paces from them. Their closeness felt like a claw in my chest.

“What’s happening here?” I demanded, locking eyes with Kaid. “Why is she back? Why are you dancing with her?”

His stare met mine. It was cold, unfamiliar and stripped of the warmth I’d once clung to through every storm. He pulled Ava tighter to his side, her blood-red claws glinting against his chest as he stepped toward me. “How dare you interrupt the Alpha’s dance?”

His voice was a low growl, icy and sharp, a tone I’d never heard aimed at me. Ava pressed closer, her lips curling. “Don’t let her ruin it, Kaid.”

My throat tightened, hands trembling despite my will to stand tall. “You can’t do this to us,” I said, my voice cracking, betraying the calm I fought to hold. “To Lily. To me.”

He leaned in, his breath hot against my face, his eyes blazing with disdain. “Go back to the stronghold. Pack your things. Ava takes the Luna’s chambers tonight.”

It felt like a nightmare. It had to be a dream. I pinched myself, but the nightmare persisted. I lunged forward, trying to hold his arm. Maybe if I did, he would remember it was me - Kaira. The one who had rescued him on that night when he laid gasping for his last breath.

He flung my arm away, throwing me down to the ground in the process. The crown on my head rolled to the floor clattering and pulling the attention of everyone to us. I stared at it, the brilliant silver gleaming in the white light of the hall. The hall was silent now. The music had stopped and the dancing had paused.

“I reject you, Kaira, as my Luna,” he declared, his voice booming through the silence, resonating off the walls. “I banish you from this pack tonight. You’ve never belonged to the bloodline.”

Shame burned my cheeks as tears spilled, pooling on the floor beneath me. “What about Lily?” My whisper barely rose above the hush, a plea choked by sobs. “She needs me.”

Ava’s laugh cut through, sharp and cruel. She let go of Kaid and walked towards me, her shoes clicking on the floor and punctuating the silence that enveloped us. She crouched before me, her finger lifting my chin until our eyes locked. I refused to flinch, even though I was broken. “You still don’t grasp it, do you?” she purred, her smile venomous. “You’re gone tonight, with your useless cub. I told you I’d return. And I’ve brought the true heir.’’ She raised her voice as she stood to her feet, speaking to the crowd. ‘’A son with power in his veins!”

There were murmurings among the crowd. I knew there had been whispers about Lily. even though we had tried to keep her latency within the palace walls, it had managed to slip out of our grasp.

I turned to Kaid, desperation clawing at me. “Lily won’t survive out there. Please. She’s your daughter-’’

“She’s no kin of mine!” His roar silenced me, shaking the air. A loud gasp was emitted from the crowd. “A weakling, like her mother. Get out. Now!”

I knew he was rejecting Lily because she was weak. She had failed to transform into a wolf and she had no special powers. But he had promised me that he would be patient. He had said she was a late bloomer, and she would blossom to become the most beautiful flower, just like her name. Tears blinded me as I reached for him again. “Kaid, please. Don’t do this—”

He pushed my hands away, and struck me on the face with his claws. The pain stung and I saw the mixture of flesh and blood that he had ripped off from my face. I dropped my head on the floor in pain, my body shaking in sobs.

“Guards!” he bellowed. “Remove her!”

Rough hands seized me, dragging me from the hall as Kaid lifted my crown onto Ava’s head, proclaiming her Luna. The pack erupted in howls of celebration, their voices a wall between me and all I’d known.

---

The night was cold. The full moon was our only companion as I stumbled into the wilds. Lily was clutched to my chest, unaware of our fate.

‘’We are taking a stroll into the woods, darling,’’ I had said to her, fighting my shaky voice that was bent on betraying me.

Her breaths were shallow and her short hair danced in the gentle wind. Her small frame was too frail for this exile. I couldn’t return to my kin. Not after I had left them the way I did, and not with a child. Not like this. As we progressed, I suddenly became aware of movements in the bush around us. I stopped walking, holding my breath as I clutched Lily tighter to my chest. I heard twigs snap and the crushing of dry leaves. Something was approaching us, and it seemed to be coming in various directions.

I saw their eyes first. Pairs of brown eyes, glowing in the dark. Then, I saw their jaws snapping with hunger and their full form materialized in front of me. Rogue wolves. My heart raced, and I tried to transform at that point, begging the moon goddess as I stole a quick glance at the moon. We were outnumbered but I had a fighting chance if I could transform.

Nothing stirred in me still.

The lead rogue lunged forward, his claws shredding my shoulder as teeth sank deep. A force yanked Lily from my arms, her cries piercing the night as the pack tore at her. I screamed, clawing at them, but more closed in. Talons dug into my neck, blood pouring hot and fast. My vision blurred and then suddenly there was silence.