CHAPTER 6: KAYLA AGAINST THE WORLD

***CALEB***

"Alpha Derek of Ravenclaw wants to discuss a treaty?" I asked as I paced in my room alongside my best friend and right-hand beta, Nate.

"Yes, and he wants us to fix a date soon," he answered.

"Fix a date? What about the venue?" I asked.

"He has offered to come here, to Crescent Pack," Nate answered.

"Alpha Derek is a cunning one, more cunning than his father; there's something he wants, something that he can't reach unless he comes inside our territory," I deduced.

"So what are you going to do Caleb," Nate asked.

I paused for a while to think through what to do, "do you perhaps think he could be after the moonstone?" I asked.

"The moonstone? Why?" Nate questioned. "He only has half of it, and so do you, and no one has chased after it since the Cold War; why want it now?" He added.

"Because Derek has always been a power-hungry fool," I hissed out.

"Tell him we'd be coming to Ravenclaw instead, he doesn't have to come here," I decided.

"And tell him, this time around, he doesn't need to prepare two separate rooms; I won't be going with Carla, but with my new bride, Kayla." I explained to Nate, who took note of everything I was saying, "Make sure to stress the bride part, he needs to know I got my Luna before he did," I stressed.

"Got it, I'd pass this information to him and get back to you on his reply," Nate said as he began to walk out the door, then from the entrance, I caught sight of Kayla, standing in the doorway, her face pale as though she'd seen a ghost, Nate bowed to her as he left and I rushed to her side immediately.

"Hey, you okay? You look as white as snow; anything wrong?" I asked her as I slowly led her to the bed. She was mute, trembling as though something bad had happened.

"Kayla?" I called, holding her hands in mine, trying to offer some comfort, but she took her hands from mine slowly and then turned to look me in the eye.

"Caleb, there….is so….mething you need to know," she stammered, her voice trembling more than her hands.

"Okay, what's that?" I asked in a very calm tone.

"I am from Ravenclaw," she declared, but I already knew that much about her.

"Yes, that's no news, well, at least to me. Is that why you're worried? You must have heard my conversation with Nate; it's totally fine; if anything, you'd know your way around your people," I reassured her; I knew she was now an outlaw, but what could she have done, gotten pregnant without a husband?

Well, that was a forgivable offense.

"No! I….I," she stammered, I squeezed her hands tighter to reassure her it was nothing to be worried about.

Then, at that moment, Nate arrived back in the room, "I spoke with Derek's beta, and yes, the date is tomorrow, and he's expecting you and the Luna and your escort," Nate reported.

"Tomorrow?" I asked.

"Yes," he curtly said.

"So we might have to leave today?" I asked.

"Yes, I'll get the others ready," Nate said and disappeared through the door.

I turned back to Kayla, "what were you saying?" I asked.

"I can't go to Ravenclaw," she declared standing to her feet. "I'd barely escaped, and now you want me back in that place where I'll be hunted? I'm sorry, but I can't accompany you back there," she added as she began to pace around the room.

I stood from the bed and walked up to her, "what exactly is wrong with going back home," I asked.

"I'm a murderer, Caleb," she burst out as tears began to fall freely from her eyes; she squatted and lowered her head.

"A…A murderer?" I asked.

"Like you killed someone? A fellow wolf?" I asked again just to be sure I'd heard well.

"No, no, I didn't kill anyone," she blurted, raising her head, "I don't know how it all happened, this baby," she pointed at her stomach, "it's Derek's," she said.

I ran my hands through my hair and breathed in hard, "The baby is Derek's? You mean, you were with Derek?" I repeated.

"He is my mate, or he was; he rejected me already; he felt I was weak, and Kylie, my best friend, a beta, was more fit to be his Luna," she explained, and I didn't know if to feel relieved or not.

"And, well, he marked my best friend, Kylie, and somehow, she died and the last person she was seen with was me or something, I'm not so sure, but I ended up becoming the prime suspect, the murderer and I only made it here with the help of my sister, who alerted me on time," she explained rushing her words and somehow, I could understand.

I believed her; I knew she was telling the truth; the woman before me couldn't hurt a fly, I was sure of it, so she couldn't have killed anyone, and as weak as she was, she couldn't have killed a beta.

I ran my hand through my hair one more time, contemplating what to do.

"We are going back to Ravenclaw," I said finally and she rushed towards me.

"You don't understand Caleb, I can't. I'd be hunted, killed, and that would be the end of me, of my baby," she sobbed harder.

"Well, you are not going as Kayla of Ravenclaw Pack; you are going as Luna Kayla of Crescent Pack," I answered.

No alpha could touch the Luna of another alpha let alone have her killed.

"Uh? Is that possible, would the title shield me?" She asked.

"Yes, and when we do get back, we will be clearing your name, and you will be coming back to Crescent Pack with your sister," I assured her.

***

We arrived in Ravenclaw, and as we entered, we were ushered to a large hall where a wedding ceremony was taking place. I looked at the groom, and it was alpha Derek, the bride I didn't know, but she was grinning ear to ear, probably love-struck by Derek. I gazed at Kayla who stood beside me, but her gaze was fixed on the couple getting married, particularly the bride. She had a mixture of emotions on her face as she watched them, tears began to well up in her eyes.

"What's wrong? You know her?" I asked; of course, I knew she knew the lady; she had been a member of Ravenclaw up until some 16 days ago.

"Yes," she answered, I turned back to look at the couple. "That is my sister, Sheila," she added, I immediately looked back at her, my eyes wide as though they'd jump out of their sockets anytime from now.

The tears in her eyes dropped freely now as she ran out of the hall, thankfully, no one noticed.