Chapter 5
1143 Words
Eleanora's pov
My descent to the lowest of the low was a quick and painful one.
From having to eat sumptuous meals and sleeping on a masterbed draped with expensive tapestries to sleeping in the Omega quarters at the back of the estate — a place where the beds were damp straws and the air reeked of pit sweat and resentment. And the very resentment clung to me like a second skin. Infact, I was at the centre of it all.
I remember the first day I stepped inside there, their eyes on me, their faces filled with sympathy, their words mixed with pity and something far crueler — amusement.
“Look who finally found her place.” One of them sneered.
“Not much of a Luna anymore, are you now?” Another chimed in.
Their laughter grated against my skin like stone on metal.
I didn't flinch. I refused to.
I had swallowed enough humiliation to last a lifetime. Why was it a little more?
But then —
“Dame Aurora must be turning in her grace right now.” Someone whispered.
Dame Aurora…
I whipped around sharply. That was my mother's name.
“Who said that?” I asked in a whisper.
No one dared to reply. They were still murmuring among themselves.
I couldn't tell who said that.
Maybe it was the girl dusting the pillows or the one folding the thin linen. Maybe… it didn't matter. Someone had mentioned my mother's name and something inside of me had snapped.
“Who spoke my mother's name!” I said with a growl this time, sending silence throughout the room.
“You think you're better than us?” one of the maids said with a scoff. “Damm Aurora was nothing but a —”
“Say my mother's name again and I'll cut your tongue and feed it to you!” I barked, feeling a Storm rising inside me.
The maid was not defiant.
She chuckled and snorted. “What? You’re going to what? Haven't you forgotten, sweetheart? You're not Luna anymore!”
Rage clawed at my throat. After months, tears of keeping my rage at bay, clouding it with pitiful silence and letting people walk over me, I told myself I was done playing nice. The fire of the rage roared in my veins and I let it all out.
The anger builded a feeling I couldn't give a name and the next thing I knew I stretched my right hand and c***k! My fist collided with the maid's jaw, the impact sending her to the wall.
Silence.
Then a collective gasp echoed around me.
Then chaos.
“She raised her hand on Kayla!”
“Eleanora hurt Kayla!”
“Make her pay!”
Those last words drowned out the roaring in my veins and the ringing in my ears.
Oh no. I had messed up.
Suddenly, the room.began to fill with familiar faces and soon, half of the servants closed in.
“No…” I whispered.
But the shadows were quick. Their hands reached out to me.
“Let me go!” I tried to pull free but their grips were tight. Their snarls, curses and collective rage daring me to fight back knowing that I couldn't. Knowing that I wasn't outnumbered. Knowing that I wouldn't win.
I couldn't stay here anymore.
In one quick sweep, I shoved the hands on my left hand and pulled free, my blouse ripping at the side and their nails grazing my skin so hard it drew blood. I was wounded but I was glad I was alive.
I began to run through the courtyard and past the towering gates.
I ran further beyond the cries of my name, and those who wanted to see me on my knees.
My lungs burned and the cold was on my skin but I didn't stop.
I ran straight into the forest.
They said no one who entered the forests never returned but the same doom awaited me back at the estate. They had said something monstrous and ancient lurked in the shadows of the forest but between the angry wolves looking for me and the monster, I’ll take my chances with the monster.
I kept running, my breath coming out in deep pants when suddenly, I stilled.
Something shifted in the air.
Before I could discover what it was, my knees buckled, making me hit my back against the bark of the tree behind me.
Warmth pooled between my legs and my lower body ached.
“No, no, no, no,” I whimpered. “Not now.”
I was going into heat.
I tried to fight it off by gritting my teeth, keeping my legs tight in a lock but my efforts were useless.
Primal need clawed at me.
Desperation had her hooks around me as my breaths came in ragged breaths.
Dear Goddess, please, stop it.
A sound, a low, guttural sound, filled the air.
I froze. Who was that?
The growl was followed by quiet footsteps.
I waited with bated breath and my eyes went round.
The whispers were true.
The monster in the forest was real. No, I wouldn't call it a monster. It was a nightmare, a behemoth of doom.
Towering. Crimson eyes glowing in the darkness like they were carved from rubies, war and violence, it's black fur shining like ink.
It bared its teeth at me, possessive and dangerous.
Panic clawed at my throat and I screamed as the realization hit me.
“No..” I shook my head, too weak to run, too overwhelmed to process what happened.
Darkness swallowed me whole when he moved in closer and the last thing I remembered before I slipped away was his low whisper behind my ears.
MATE!
The following morning came quickly, enveloping me in warmth and light.
I leaned back and hit something firm, something solid.
What is going on? I wondered and opened my eyes.
When I fully awakened, I realized three things were wrong with me.
It aches all over, especially the lower part of my body.
My scent was different.
And My skin…
My hand flew to my neck and I gasped. I had been marked.
A ripple of shock rushed through me as I shot up, only to feel an arm tighten around my waist, pulling me back against a chest, broad and unmistakably male.
A soft exhale escaped my lips. Oh no.
A low growl rumbled in my ear, sending shivers down my spine.
“You ran,” the voice was rough and edged with possessiveness. “But you ran straight to me.”
I swallowed hard.
A soft kiss pressed against my bare neck and up to my jaw. “I'm glad you're here.”
My voice is trapped in my throat.
What in the Goddess’s name have I done?
- Writer
