Luna’s Second Chance

Jayden was stifled for what seemed like eternity…

He stood there nestling my lifeless flesh in his arms, blood soaking through his shirt. My blood — the blood of his mate, and that of his son.

His only son.

A mixture that made his jaw clench and release as the room blurred at intervals.

Voices.

Echoes.

The scent of betrayal and cringe lies… of silver, burnt fur, and rust.

And then… silence.

“Zoe…” His voice cracked as he gently brushed a blood-matted curl from my cheek.

“Please…” he begged. But I was gone.

They’d killed me.

And his son.

Jayden’s knees hit the floor with a thud, the walls of the once-hallowed Hall of Wisdom closing in around us — the place where justice was supposed to be served had failed us.

Sara — who was holding Jayden’s arm minutes ago now inched backward, her lips somewhat trembling. Perhaps she had realized that he now knew the truth. Wolfsbane could only mask it for so long…

“You LIED TO ME!” Jayden erupted like thunder. His wolf surged forward, claws ripping out of his skin, bones snapping violently mid-scream.

Whenever an Alpha was roused like that, only one thing followed — chaos, destruction, a bloodbath…

Just then, a thought crossed me.

Why could I still see these things when I was dead?

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My eyes peeled open to a seemingly soundless world, bright light piercing into my brain…

“Zoe!”

I looked around. My vision was still blurry and the only thing I could recognize was my hands. They were still quivering from the dream. I wondered how I was still alive. I had been butchered like a cow. Even my body was still shivering from the excruciating pain of the knife, my mind torn from the emotional trauma.

As my vision cleared I noticed something different.

It was my skin — it looked younger, brighter, way sleeker than I last remembered…

“Be alert, Zoe. They’re coming!” A figure appeared before me, dragging me up from where I lay under the sun.

I recognized the voice and looked up.

“Sara?”

“Zoe, I’m serious,” she whispered harshly, pointing at the distance.

“It is really you!” I exclaimed, then puckered my eyebrow in a puzzle. She looked younger — way too young. Not the Sara that had me sliced up.

“You—”

“Zoe, I don’t have the time for this. You’d better put yourself together. They’re here already,” she pointed at a distance.

I looked and saw a couple approaching. A man with a white beard, a solid frame, a clean tuxedo, and an aura that was enough to show his position as the Alpha. Beside him was a tall, exotic-looking woman. She appeared classy, elegant, and somewhat sophisticated in her dress.

Before I could understand what was going on, other solid figures encircled us. Betas. Their scent betrayed them.

“When my people told me they had found some trespassers, I imagined some more… harmful people. Not two young, naive girls like you.” Alpha Gabriel began. I recognized him instantly. His voice had that familiar monotone that made me want to submit to him.

“Oh, come now, dear.” the woman intoned, patting her mate slightly. “Let me handle this.”

Gabriel smiled. “As you wish, darling.”

She turned to us, her sea-green eyes piercing. “Hello, I am Courtney. The Luna around here.”

I exchanged glances with Sara but said nothing.

“What are two young wolves doing so far away from their pack on a hot noon like this?” Courtney took a few steps forward.

“We were attacked,” Sara asserted.

“By who?”

“We don’t know, but they destroyed our territory. We had to run away.”

“Hmm,” Courtney passed her gaze to me. “And you, what’s your story?”

My throat tightened.

My story?

How could I tell her I was murdered a few minutes ago, then suddenly woken up by a nightmare in a world years behind my true reality?

“She does not speak?” Gabriel barked from behind Courtney, and I snapped back to actuality.

“The—the moon goddess has messed with the timeline…” Were the stutterings that escaped me.

“What did you say?” Courtney’s brows crumpled.

“Sorry. I mean… We—we are from the same—same place,” I quickly reiterated, pointing at Sara.

“Hmm…” She passed her gaze between us, then turned to her mate. “Up to you, darling. I know these hunters would not dare encroach into our territory for the fear of you.”

“Nevertheless, they draw ever closer. Perhaps it’s high time we sent them a warning.” Gabriel inched closer, wrapping his arms around her. “I will call for an Assembly of the Chiefs.”

“Perfect, my love. But what about these girls?”

“Kill them—”

“No, please. My love. Look at them. They are helpless and innocent kids. Help them instead.”

“But they are strays.”

“I beg you, my darling.” She cuddled up to him. “Show your strength yet again by doing what no other Alpha would do. Show them compassion.”

“That would be sacrilege! Their blood would taint the pack.”

“It doesn’t have to.”

“Sweetheart, this is a hard thing.”

“Yes, something only the strongest Alpha can do.”

He shook his head stubbornly but she pressed her body against him.

“You see, this is why the elders chose you. And why we — the Shadow Pack — support you,” her voice had become a sweet melody. Soft, yet purposeful. I could tell Gabriel was smitten by her, and perhaps by how she massaged his ego. I could perceive instantly that he loved her more than himself.

If only he knew what would happen to her…

“Fine,” he nodded. “But they are your responsibility. Make them useful.”

“Trust me, honey.” She kissed him.

“Alright. And make me proud.” He concluded, planted a kiss on her cheek, then swaggered away, followed by the other Betas.

Courtney turned to us, arms akimbo. “Welcome to the Shadow Pack.” She beamed. “What is your name?”

“Sara—”

“Not you,” she shot a sharp glare at Sara, smile vanishing, then slowly looked at me with… tender eyes. “You.”

I hesitated.

“Yes?”

“I’m Zoe.”

She ambled closer, and slowly pulled me into a surprisingly soft hug, for reasons I could not comprehend. Perhaps she had seen my teary eyes and quivering fingers, or peeped into my very soul. Either way, she whispered words of affirmation,

“You will be alright now,” she said — words that tore something inside me.

I burst into tears, weeping bitterly. And for a moment, time stopped. Soft winds sizzled by, and the clouds hid the sun.

“I see you,” she added, and I cried even more, like a mother who had lost her baby, and a wolf who had lost her mate. Perhaps she understood that most wolves who lose their mate don’t live much longer.

“I know how it feels to lose people you love, your parents, perhaps a child…”

My heart stopped!

Who is this woman?

“I have a son too,” she continued, “and I cannot imagine losing him.”

She broke the hug and wiped my tears.

“…His name is Jayden,” she added, words of madness.

At that point, reality hit me.

The moon goddess had smiled at me. Courtney was Jayden’s mother. And this day was supposed to be the day I met my beloved mate’s family again. A second chance at life — to right my wrongs and prevent the misery to follow.

“Come on, let’s get you cleaned up. School girls should be in the classroom, not out here in the woods.”

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