The Rejected Luna

Chapter 3: The Name They Feared

Selene had never seen wolves bow before.

Not to an Alpha. Not to an elder. Not even to the Moon Goddess during the sacred ceremonies.

Yet under the enormous full moon, fifteen wolves stood around her with their heads lowered, their bodies rigid with submission.

She could barely hear her own breathing.

"What did you call me?" she whispered.

The stranger's eyes remained fixed on her.

"Moonborn."

The word sent a strange chill through her.

Kael stood several feet away, watching everything with an expression she couldn't understand. His wolf had gone completely still. The golden eyes that had frightened the rogues were now fixed on the pendant in Selene's hand.

"What does Moonborn mean?" she asked.

The stranger didn't answer immediately.

Instead, he looked toward the tree line.

"We have to leave."

Selene shook her head. "You're not taking me anywhere until someone tells me the truth."

"You want the truth?" Kael asked quietly.

She turned toward him.

"I've wanted it my entire life."

Something hardened in his face.

"Then come with me."

Selene almost laughed.

"Why should I trust you?"

"You shouldn't."

The answer caught her off guard.

Kael walked closer but stopped before reaching her.

"You shouldn't trust me. You shouldn't trust him. You shouldn't trust anyone who suddenly appears tonight claiming to know who you are."

The stranger frowned.

Kael continued, "But you should trust your instincts. Your wolf recognized something tonight that none of us expected."

Selene looked at the wolves.

"Why did they bow?"

The stranger finally answered.

"Because your blood carries an old power."

"What power?"

"The kind packs once killed for."

Before Selene could press him, a howl sounded from the north.

Kael's entire body tensed.

"They're coming."

"Who?"

"The Black Ridge hunters," the stranger said.

Kael looked at him sharply.

"You know them?"

"I know what they want."

Selene's fingers curled around the pendant.

"And what do they want?"

The stranger looked at her.

"You."

The word seemed to drain the warmth from the night.

Kael stepped forward.

"Get behind me."

Selene glared at him.

"I don't need you to protect me."

"You may not need me," Kael said, "but your wolf does."

She hated how easily he could silence her with a look.

A distant howl answered the first.

Then another.

The wolves surrounding them began backing away.

Selene had never seen fear like that in a wolf's eyes.

"Kael," she said softly.

"I know."

He looked toward the darkness.

"Run."

They moved through the forest.

The stranger led them between narrow trees while Kael stayed behind Selene. She could feel his presence even when she couldn't see him.

Branches scratched her arms. Her lungs burned.

For the first time in her life, Selene understood what it meant to be hunted.

Then something struck the tree beside her.

A silver arrow buried itself in the bark.

She froze.

"Keep moving!" Kael shouted.

Another arrow flew past.

Kael shifted mid-stride and crashed into the attacker hidden among the trees.

Selene heard a growl and a heavy impact.

The stranger grabbed her wrist.

"This way."

She followed him until they reached a small stone structure half-hidden beneath vines.

"A ruin?" she asked.

"A sanctuary."

The stranger pushed open the door.

Inside was a circular chamber covered with faded symbols.

Selene stepped inside.

The moment her foot touched the stone floor, the symbols began to glow.

She stopped.

"What is happening?"

The stranger looked terrified for the first time.

"I was afraid of this."

Kael entered behind them, shifting back.

"What?"

The stranger pointed toward the wall.

A symbol had appeared there.

A crescent moon surrounded by a crown.

Kael stared at it.

"I've seen that mark."

Selene looked at him.

"Where?"

"In the archives of Blackthorn."

The stranger nodded.

"Because your mother came from there."

Selene's heart slammed against her ribs.

"My mother was from Blackthorn?"

"No," the stranger said. "She was more than that."

A sharp pain suddenly tore through Selene's head.

Images flashed through her mind.

A woman running beneath a full moon.

A baby crying.

Blood on snow.

A man holding a newborn child.

Her mother screaming.

Then a voice.

Hide her.

Selene gasped and fell to her knees.

Kael caught her before she hit the floor.

The moment his hands touched her, the pain vanished.

Their eyes met.

Neither spoke.

The bond between them pulsed like a living thing.

Kael slowly released her.

"Your memories are waking up," the stranger said.

Selene stared at him.

"They aren't memories."

He looked at her carefully.

"They belong to your mother."

The door suddenly shook.

Someone was outside.

Kael moved in front of Selene.

The stranger's face went pale.

"They found us."

Selene looked at the glowing symbol on the wall.

"What happens if they get me?"

The stranger's answer was barely a whisper.

"They won't kill you."

Kael's eyes narrowed.

"Then what?"

The stranger looked at Selene.

"They'll make you remember why your mother ran."

The door exploded inward.

And standing beyond it was a woman Selene had never seen before.

But the woman was staring at her like she had been waiting eighteen years to find her.