4. Fake Luna

Ivy’s POV

I must have drifted off to sleep after all of the emotions around the pregnancy and the loss of my babies. In my sleep, I hear loud shouting and I wake to find Jonathan, my ex brother, pulling back the blankets and grabbing my arm.

“What are you doing?” I ask him.

“Get up you lying bitch!” he shouts as he drags me from the hospital bed, yanking out the IV from my arm. Blood spurts out around the room; he ignores it.

“Leave me alone! You can’t do this!” I try to fight him but he’s too strong.

“I’m tired of you telling evil lies about my real sister: Tiffany! I’ll teach you how to behave when in the presence of a genuine Luna if I have to beat you to death to do it!”

His nostrils are flared, his ears have pointed, hair on his face has grown. “How did I ever think that I loved you, that you could be my sister? It makes me sick to even remember that!”

He yanks me to my feet and slaps me hard across the face. The force of the blow leaves me breathless but I don’t let him see the pain I’m feeling. I won’t give him that.

He drags me out of the hospital room as if I weigh nothing and down the hallway.

“Come!” he shouts to the people as he passes them. “Come and see this piece of shit apologize to our beloved Luna! She must make amends for her crimes against the pack!”

In the waiting room Tiffany is there with some of her entourage. She smiles when she sees Jonathan pushing me towards her.

My hospital gown is pulled up and I’m nearly naked. I’m covered in blood from my still bleeding wound from the IV. She is rejoicing in my sad state and in what is coming.

Jonathan pushes me to the floor. “You bow before your Luna, you disrespectful bitch!”

From the floor, I look up and Tiffany is standing above me. The evil that fills her heart is in full display on her face. I know then that she encouraged Jonathan to do this.

“My Silver Claw sisters and brothers, this woman is a disgrace to our pack. She lived among us knowing that she was a liar, that she was not the heiress, while the real heiress was out in the world, hungry and cold and unloved. Our dear Tiffany has been horribly abused by this cheat and liar!”

The crowd boos. Some shout. “Kill her,” someone yells.

“Now she is telling even more lies. She claims our Alpha impregnated her. As if our majesty could mate with such a dirty thing as her! She has abused our Luna telling terrible lies about her, saying that she tried to kill her by running her off the road and crashing her car. She even says that the non-existent pups died in the crash! Can you imagine?!”

The people around me laugh. Someone kicks me from behind.

“Now, Ivy, you lying little bitch, you will admit that you are a pathological liar and you will apologise to our Luna!” Jonathan’s wolf has emerged fully. He holds me with muscled arms that I cannot fight against.

“I will not. I am not a liar!” I say. “She is the liar and you will see that one day!”

Jonathan pulls me to my feet and punches me in the stomach. He throws me back to the floor. “Apologize! Now!”

I say nothing. A woman comes forward and spits on me. My anger is is rising. I deserve none of this. Fury fills every corner of my body.

“What did I say?” Jonathan raises his foot to kick me, I see Tiffany is enjoying this.

“Stop!”

A voice bellows from down the hallway, Jonathan puts his foot down on the floor.

I stand up and look. It’s Theodore shouting as he quickly comes toward the gathering.

“What are you doing, Jonathan?” Theodore asks.

“She needs to finally, once and for all, learn her place,” Jonathan says, annoyed about being challenged.

Theodore moves closer, his eyes glow green. Jonathan must take care, the Alpha wolf is near. “So you’re the one to do that? Is that what you think?”

“You’ve been unable to do it, so someone needed to.”

Theodore steps even closer. He growls and shows his teeth. Jonathan is pushing him.

“I am the Alpha. You’re nothing to me and you would be wise to remember that. I will decide if and when any pack member needs punishment. Me alone! Despite what you may think, Ivy is still my wife. You will not touch her again. If you try, I will punish you in a way that you will not return from. Leave the hospital now!”

As Jonathan leaves, Tiffany falls to where I lay on the ground.

“I couldn’t stop Jonathan, I’m so sorry, Ivy. You didn’t deserve that,” she says loudly so everyone can hear.

She attempts to help me back to the room and I pull my arm away from her.

She leans close to me, whispering softly, “I failed to kill you, but I’m happy to hear that I killed those bastard pups of yours.”

I step away from her.

“Did you hear that?” I ask the people standing around. They quickly disperse. I turn to Theodore. “Did you hear what she just said?”

“I heard her trying to help you, trying to save you from Jonathan,” Theodore says.

“No! After that! She admitted she tried to kill me. Did you not hear? She said she was happy she killed our babies!”

“Ivy! How could you say that? I would never. I love you,” Tiffany says. “Here, let me help you. Nurse! Come and stop the bleeding. I think the loss of blood it making our Luna delusional.”

The nurse helps get me back to the hospital room. Tiffany follows us. Once in the room the nurse says, “Please watch her a moment. Let me go and get the equipment for reinserting the IV.”

Tiffany nods and the nurse leaves. We are alone and Tiffany moves in closer to my ear. “It’s over Ivy. Stop fighting. You thought those babies were your way back, now they’re gone. I’m the Luna, the rightful Luna. You best learn that or I’ll succeed in my mission next time.”

Theodore comes into the room just as I rush out of the bed and grab Tiffany by the neck. My anger makes me extraordinarily strong. Tiffany cannot remove my hands and at first even Theodore can’t.

He finally does and Tiffany steps back holding her neck, trying to breath. She’s frightened and I’m glad.

Theodore holds me on the bed. “Leave now, Tiffany! You’re making things worse by being here. Go home immediately! Take the security guard with you.”

Once she’s gone he lets me go. “What’s the matter with you, Ivy? Can’t you control yourself for one minute? You make everything worse for yourself!”

I glare at him from the bed. How is he so stupid? Can’t he understand? “If you heard what she said you’d kill her yourself.”

“What did she say, Ivy?” he asks, but it’s clear he has no interest in hearing.

“She was gloating, rejoicing in killing our babies. That’s the woman that you want to take my place as Luna. Know that. Be ready for what’s coming! What she’s bringing to you!”

“You’re talking craziness, Ivy. And she’s not taking your place. But to return to my house and to the pack, you need to get better first.”

“Better? I’m nearly healed from the car accident.”

“No, better in your head. Something’s not right, Ivy. It’s clear now. You need help. Now your crazy wild allegations about Tiffany have turned to dangerous violence. If I hadn’t walked in Tiffany could have died just now.”

“ I wish I would have succeeded!”

“Ivy! I need to protect her and I need you in a place where you can be safe too. Jonathan is furious, he might still come after you.”

Just then I see three big men enter the room behind Theodore. He moves to the side to let them pass. They have a straightjacket. Two of the men hold me down while the third forces me into the restraint.

“What are you doing Theodore?! You can’t do this to me!”

“You’ve left me now choice, Ivy. They’re taking you to the mental hospital in the countryside. There you can rest and heal.”

“Rest and heal from what? From trying to protect myself and you and our babies from that psycho Tiffany? She’s the one who should be in this straightjacket, not me!”

He ignores me. “When you’ve recovered, you can return.”

The three men carry me out. I’m kicking and biting and trying anything I can to get free but it’s futile and I know it.

“Theodore, you are making a terrible mistake! You’ll pay for this!” I shout as they take me out to the ambulance.

They lock the doors and we drive away.