Black Moon Rising

Chapter 3

Carter POV

I sat on the bench in the school yard, holding the letter and picture my mother left me tightly in my hand. I had been watching her for a few days now and she was breathtaking. I wondered for a moment why she was sitting alone in the sea of students but quickly decided that I didn’t care. She looked content and that was enough for both me and Fabian. It was my first time ever seeing her but there was something about her that felt familiar.

I see her become more alert, searching the sea of faces, looking for something. After awhile, she stands up to throw away her trash and our eyes meet. She stares for awhile, seemingly transfixed. She eyed me curiously as a blush crept up her neck, spreading across her cheeks. The smell of gardenias rolling off of her as her blush crawls across her skin and I find it hard to contain my wolf.

"MATE!" Fabian howls in my head. "She’s getting away! Go talk to her!"

"I can’t. She doesn’t even know I exist. We need to come up with a plan to break our world to her that won’t make her run away screaming."

"But she’s a wolf!" Fabian argues. "She will love us."

"I know she is, but she doesn’t know that. She has no idea just how special she is, Fabian. For now, let’s get back to the rest of the pack. We need to figure out what to do about the hunters. She may not know we exist, but we will protect her at all costs."

I watched Jasmine’s slender frame walk out of my view. I sighed and walked the other way, making my way towards the forest. Once I was just beyond the tree line, I took off my clothes, putting them in a backpack I hid in the trees. I shifted effortlessly, allowing Fabian to come to the surface.

"Brennan, I’m coming back. We need to talk. You and Petra meet me in my tent in 10 minutes."

"Yes, Alpha."

"I told you not to call me that. I’m no Alpha. Not by a long shot."

Brennan chuckled before cutting off the link.

Fabian pushed the pace, making it back to our encampment in a short time. I could tell he was worried about Jasmine. I thought we would have more time with her but after the letter I received from Sebastian, I knew he would be striking soon. His life mission is to kill off all of the hybrids. He has lived for centuries hunting us all down and his mission is almost complete. According to my mom, Jasmine and I are the last surviving hybrids on the planet, and she has been wrong about so few things in my life that I am inclined to believe her.

I shifted back, throwing my clothes back on before walking through camp. We are less than 100 people making up our makeshift pack. We are technically rogues, none of us having a pack to call home anymore. Brennan and Petra were my childhood friends who left their pack, the one my mother had grown up in, after the previous Alpha was murdered by Sebastian. The rest were wolves who left the pack with them.

I lifted the flap to my tent and walked inside. Brennan and Petra were already seated at the chairs inside.

“Alpha,” they both said, standing up.

“I told you both not to call me that. I am not interested in formalities,” I said, annoyed.

“Carter, Micah was your father and our Alpha. Sebastian murdering him means that the pack is rightfully yours. You are our Alpha.”

I rubbed my hands over my face, I was tired and this isn’t a conversation that I wanted to have right now. “We can talk about that later, right now we need to talk about Sebastian and the rest of the hunters that are coming. I found her. Jasmine. She’s living in town, protected still by my mother’s spell.” I paused for a minute, trying to keep my emotions in check. “She’s my mate,” I said in a whisper.

“Whoa! Really? Congratulations, man! Who would have thought! When can we meet her?” Brennan asked excitedly.

“What’s wrong, Carter? This is a great thing, right?” Petra asked cautiously.

“Since Sebastian sent me that picture of her mother, we know that her mom is dead which means that she is alone now. I don’t think she even knows that yet. Worse yet, she doesn’t know about wolves. She has no idea we even exist and I don’t even know how to break this to her or how she will take it when I do. I can tell that her mom's disappearance has been weighing on her. That's a lot for anyone to handle, what if she can’t handle the news?”

Brennan sat in his chair, speechless. He never did handle these types of situations well. Petra came around and put her arm around my shoulder. A low growl emanated from Brennan. “Oh, shut up, Brennan.”

“Sorry, Orion got jealous for a minute. Stupid mutt,” Brennan muttered.

Petra rolled her eyes. “Carter, if there is anyone on this earth who could figure this out, it’s you. The moon goddess would never put you in this position if she didn’t know you were strong enough to figure it out. And knowing everything Jasmine’s mom went through to keep her safe, everything that she gave up for her, don’t you dare underestimate her strength. She may be broken now, but I just know she will surprise you when the time comes.”

I smiled at her gratefully. She’s probably right. Jasmine has been through enough and she has a long, confusing road ahead of her. She needs me to be strong and have faith in her.

“You’re right. She needs me to be strong for her.” I let out a deep breath. “Next thing we need to tackle are these hunters. That picture of Jasmine’s mom proves that he isn’t far behind. He could strike at anytime and we need to be ready when he does.”

“You’re right,” Brennan agreed. “We need to coordinate some sort of patrol around her house to make sure that she is never left unguarded.”

“That would be a great idea, but look around you. We don’t exactly have warriors to spare here.” Petra said.

“I think we are going to have to do this with just the three of us. I can’t ask anyone else to risk their safety protecting her, they have already given up so much just leaving the pack and coming with us. Is that something you are willing to do?” I asked seriously.

“Of course, we are!” answered Petra for the both of them. “Jasmine is our future Luna, and we will do everything in our power to make sure she is protected.” Brennan nodded his head in agreement.

“Brennan, can you take the first patrol?” Petra asked. “Carter looks like s**t; he needs to sleep for a few hours before he is in any shape to watch her. This is going to be her first night without her mom and I have a feeling that it’s going to be a long one for them both.” She glared at me pointedly, expecting an argument.

I raised up my hands in surrender. She wasn’t wrong. I had stayed up all night guarding her house and watching her at school. I wasn’t in any shape for anything feeling like this.

“It’s settled then.” Petra grabbed Brennan’s arm and dragged him out of the tent. “Let’s let the Not Alpha get some rest.” She laughed as I rolled my eyes.

I took my shirt off and laid on my cot. I closed my eyes and went over the day’s events in my mind. Jasmine’s eyes haunted me as I tried to find sleep. It would become my life’s mission to breathe life back into those. Hold on baby, I’m coming.