Thrown Out

"Yeah, so the alpha told me that he met Lina on a rainy night. He was wounded in the woods and Lina led them back to her pack. While they were there, they were ambushed and Lina jumped in front of a knife to save him. That's when he decided to give her all his love," I heard a servant say.

"Well that's a love story. How could anything with that sour-faced orphan compare to that?" The servants looked at me and burst into laughter.

If I was to believe that story, that meant Lina died the moment she got stabbed — and the skinwalker took over right then. The problem was... why didn't she just eat that nuisance Jason and the soldiers then? Why wait until she got to the pack? Who was really targeting us?

Motherfucker. I couldn't freak out yet. I was still the Luna — for now. I'd get their respect once I proved something was wrong with Lina.

"The least you can do is help out since you have nothing else to do now," one of them scoffed.

I could do that, I guessed. I walked over to the kitchen and started preparing dinner. If I just put some sage into the meal, she'd be exposed for what she was — and everyone would be safe, right?

From where I was cooking, I could see Lina and Jason cuddled up and whispering to each other like teenagers at a bonfire. It hurt deeply to watch them in real time. But I'd survived worse.

I wanted to ignore them, but of course Lina popped up next to me. "Hello, surprised to see me?"

Why was she so bubbly? "I smelled you."

"Not one for banter, are you?" Lina chuckled. "Any recommendations while I wait to eat?"

Yeah — the meal I made, when it's done. "I can cut you some fruit," I sighed. Maybe she smelled the sage and was trying to dodge eating. That's why I had a backup plan.

"Those apples look good."

I took out a bitter apple and washed it. Skinwalkers hated the taste.

Lina eagerly grabbed the apple. "Can we chat while I eat?"

No. "Sure."

"Seeing you here was quite the surprise. It's quite rare that I get to meet a fellow witch," Lina smiled. "I had no idea this bearish man was already taken. But you seem quite calm about all this."

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"Of course, it's because you've already figured me out. You did the first time you saw me," Lina chuckled. "I saw how hard you've been working to keep things afloat, but everyone now thinks I 'found missing money' you lost. No one trusts you at all and you're isolated. Now, we can settle this amicably. You can let me do my thing and I can guarantee your survival, or I can get you thrown out of here right now."

Did she think I was stupid? "The price of my soul isn't up for debate."

If I'd taken her deal, once she finished killing the entire pack, she'd have consumed me too. Any deal with a skinwalker was always a losing deal — and I wasn't so desperate to ignore that.

"Smart girl. You're making a wise decision."

"How'd you get past the protection barrier?" I asked.

"I'm just that good," Lina laughed heartily, shaking her wrist — the protection bracelet I'd given Jason before he left. It warded off spells, not evil.

Not that I was taking any kind of responsibility for this mess.

"You won't get away with this at all, you know. Eventually, someone will notice you, so why don't you just quit while you're ahead? You'll live longer that way," I suggested.

"And you will defeat me or expose me? You and what army?" Lina smirked. "I'm saying we could make one of you become a skinwalker too. You're a beautiful girl with real potential. Do you really want to be caught up with this asshole forever just because some old lady in a robe said so? No one even appreciates that you kept this place afloat for three months, even bringing it into a better state. Yet they all call you names and isolate you for no reason."

Points were made... but the safety of the pack mattered more. "My face—"

"It's fine the way it is. It's genuine and authentic. A fierce look that demands respect," Lina insisted. "I don't see a thing wrong with it. You're actually incredibly beautiful."

Why was a skinwalker being nicer to me than my own pack? "Thank you, but I'm the only one who can save this place, it seems."

"That sounds a lot like you're planning on working against me, Bonnie." Lina crossed her arms.

"Because unlike everyone else here, I'm not an idiot," I said.

"You're far from an idiot, but you're incredibly naive of the world," Lina smirked. Shit. Why did I engage in conversation with her? I'd been tricked, hadn't I?

"What do people do when they get lightheaded?" she asked.

"Faint?"

"Remember that I sincerely tried to help you and you were too weak to accept it, Bonnie," Lina said before taking a bite of the apple. She immediately started choking and fell to the ground, knocking over enough things to make Jason and half the staff come running in.

Seeing Lina on the floor, Jason shoved past me so hard that I crashed into the broken mess of glass she'd made. Pain shot up my arms and legs — sharp, tiny cuts that stung like salt poured on open wounds.

"DID YOU FEED HER THIS APPLE?!" Jason barked at me while checking on Lina. "ARE YOU INSANE?! SHE'S ALLERGIC TO APPLES! I ASK YOU TO HAND OVER YOUR DUTIES TO LINA AND YOU TRY TO KILL HER?!"

"She picked out the snack herself," I said back. "How was I supposed to—"

"SHE CHOSE IT HERSELF?! DO YOU THINK I'M STUPID?! DO YOU STILL HAVE A CONSCIENCE?! WHO HERE DOESN'T ALREADY KNOW THAT YOU'RE JUST COMPETING WITH LINA FOR MY AFFECTION?!" Jason roared.

His affection? Did he really think I wanted that after he'd slept with that creature?

"You know that—" I didn't even finish before a hard slap cracked across my face, sending me straight back down into the glass. My vision went hazy. I turned my head and saw Elliot standing there, his hand still raised.

"What the fuck is your problem?! This isn't a high school! Who the hell even decided it was a good idea to make this girl the Luna? She's fucking insane! That oracle must've been senile!" Elliot shouted.

"The oracle had to have been wrong! Why else would they send us a curse like her!" a servant chimed in.

"This house was much better before she got here!"

"She's not even good at her job! I bet she's been faking doing work this whole time!"

"She never smiles and is always so gloomy! It's unpleasant!"

"She's so mean to us!"

"She obviously looks down on all of us!"

"She even called the head butler illiterate this morning!" someone gasped.

"None of the servants want her here, Alpha Jason! She'll ruin us all!"

I couldn't believe my ears. I gave my salary away so they could have bonuses. I'd worked day and night, alone, to make sure no one went without. I kept the entire pack from starving and freezing and yet they'd been waiting for the chance to kick me out since day one.

"So you think I'm guilty too, Jason?" I asked. I don't know why — maybe I just needed to hear it. Jason looked at me, shocked for a moment, before he looked away.

Message received.

I was guilty. Just like that.

Life was funny like that — building you up just to drive the knife deeper in your back.

I didn't think I'd ever felt so lonely before.

"You just don't need to be around Lina anymore," Jason muttered without even looking at me.

Before I could say anything, Elliot grabbed me by the hair and dragged me away. The staff erupted into cheers watching me get hauled out like garbage.

At the front door, a boot slammed into my back and I tumbled down the concrete steps. Before I even hit the bottom, the door slammed shut behind me.

That bitch got rid of me in less than two days. She was good — but I wasn't going to let her have it all her way.

I tried to stand, but every cut on my body burned... and that gave me pause.

Come to think of it, everything about being the Luna hurt. There wasn't one single thing about that title I'd enjoyed. It wasn't like I was ever suddenly loved by everyone like the stories said. I never really had anything there or in this pack.

So why was I so desperate to stay? My mom's dead, my dad's playing happy family somewhere else far away. Was there even a point to saving anyone here? They'd all chosen their side — and it sure as hell wasn't mine.

As pissed off and humiliated as I was, this might be the best thing that could've happened to me. I didn't even feel sad to leave. With every step I took off that property, it felt like a heavy weight was lifting off my shoulders.

When I was a block away, I suddenly felt like I could run a mile or two

Am I allowed to feel this good about something so terrible like abandoning everything?