The Luna objection

SOLANA

"I want the contract dissolved by the end of the month, Ezekiel. Draw up the papers."

I pressed myself against the wall outside Braun's office, one hand clutching my stomach and the pregnancy, my other hands clenched in a fist. He was on the phone with his lawyer.

Braun sounded tired. "This arrangement isn't working. I need to end it properly."

End it.

The words repeated in my head as I couldn't breath but trembled where I stood.

Perhaps...I was wrong again, to open my heart to a man who'd only see me as nothing but a wife on paper.

I pushed myself off the wall and ran.

My vision blurred and soon the tears started leaking from my eyes. 

If he wanted a divorce so badly, that meant he would ask me to abort the baby since he wouldn't want anything attached to him and I could not have that done. I wanted to keep the child growing within me.

The baby had been a surprise. Six months ago, on the Harvest moon, I was drunk and so was he. 

That night we fell into each other's arms and he looked at me like he loved me. But it was clear now that I'd been deceived. 

He was ending the contract early and I understood why. 

He'd done his duty and the Brace Pack was stable. His father's dying wish was fulfilled. There was no reason for him to keep pretending.

I made it to my room and locked the door behind me. Goosebumps held me as I reached for my phone on the nightstand while trying to wipe my tears with the other hand.

Kai River.

He's the only one I need now...

We'd met at a pack gathering two years ago, back when my parents were still alive. He was a rogue wolf, someone who'd left his birth pack to travel and a childhood friend.

I hadn't spoken to him since the wedding. But he'd given me his number and told me if I ever needed help, I should call.

And now...I needed him.

"Solana?" He sounded surprised. "Is everything okay?"

I was hesitant to answer with my eyes staring at the door like braun was already there, banging at the door.

My wolf cowered inside me, like a woman shattered yet trying to be resilient.

"I need to leave." I blurted out in a cracked tone "I need to disappear. Can you help me?"

He was quiet for a moment, and then he asked. "Where are you?"

"Ashwood City. The Steele estate." I replied swiftly panting softly as it felt as though I might pass out from the shock.

"Can you get out without being seen?" He suddenly asked in a concerned tone.

"Yes," I said. "I think so."

"Pack only a few things, I'll cover the rest. I'll meet you at Greyhound station in two hours. Carry some amount of money with you."

I heaved as I moved to sit on the bed to recollect my thoughts. This was going way too fast. "Yes...yes I can."

The call didn't last long and when I hung up, I cried a little because my marriage with Braun wasn't exactly a bed of roses and it all started the night my parents died.

 The police said it was a car accident. My father died on impact. As I opened the door of the hospital ward to see how my incapacitated mother was when she took her last breath.

I was twenty one and completely alone.

Uncle Victor showed up at the funeral with his wife Morgana. He told me not to worry, that he would take care of everything, that the pack would be fine under his guidance.

I believed him because I didn't know what else to do.

For two years, I tried to help run the pack my parents had left behind. But I was so lost and I watched feebly as Uncle Victor made bad decisions that put the pack in a serious debt. And then he had the guts to blame it on my late father.

"Bad investments," Victor explained to the pack council. "Your father was brilliant in many ways, Solana, but business wasn't his strength. We're hemorrhaging money."

The creditors gave us six months to pay what we owed or they would foreclose on the pack lands. These lands belonged to the Brace family for generations. With it gone, we would all be homeless.

They all looked up to me to proffer a solution but I just couldn't and that's when Victor came to me with the solution.

"The Steele Pack has money and power," he said. "Alpha Braun Julie recently lost his father. Garrett Julie and I were old friends. He made Braun promise to look after our family if anything happened to him."

"What does that have to do with our debts?" I asked.

Victor smiled. "Braun needs to fulfill his father's wishes. We need financial backing. A contract marriage would solve both problems. Two years, Solana. Just two years of playing house with the Alpha, and the pack will be secure."

I wanted to refuse. But I had to bear the responsibility and so I said yes.

The wedding was torture. I could see the hate in Braun's eyes when he said, "I do."

The hate was throughout the marriage. We never spoke. He was always working, always busy with pack business and his company. Steele Industries was one of the largest construction firms in the Pacific Northwest.

Until the Harvest Moon ceremony, where we made love under the moon and the bond between us clicked. Things started to change and I started to believe that he truly loved me.

Then suddenly, three weeks ago, he became so busy again that I barely saw him around. That was the time I took the pregnancy test and it came out positive. There was no time to tell him face to face, and the news was too important to text it over phone.

Now there was no point, he wanted me out and I would not trap him with a baby he never asked for.

I snapped back the memory as I needed to leave and so reaching out for a few things, I packed quickly, taking only clothes and a few personal items. 

I waited until I heard Braun's car pull out of the driveway. He always went to the office on Thursday afternoons for board meetings. I had at least three hours before he returned.

No one saw me leave through the garden door, the safest route. I've learnt this estate like the back of my palm even though I'm trapped in it.

I walked quickly through the woods that bordered the property. My wolf stirred beneath my skin, confused by my distress. She didn't understand why we were running. Why we were leaving our mate.

I decided that this was better than him calling me to a dinner, where his stepdad and mom would be present, where he would tell me all the reasons we could not work out and why the marriage would be annulled and I would break down in front of him. At least this way, I had my dignity.

Kai was already at Greyhound Station by the time I got there.

I felt all tired and weary while my sadden heart breaks at the sight of him.

He straightened when he saw me. He took in my pale face with worries eyes as he rushes towards me.

"Are you alright? Solana?" He whispers in a subtle way as though afraid to hurt the name as his eyes danced in their sockets.

"No," I said honestly. "But I will be."

"Have you gotten a way to get me out here?" I asked intrigued while my eyes dart to and fro, tensed not to get caught by the man who terrifies me.

He nodded, still curious as took my bag, tossing it in the truck bed. "I've got papers for you. New ID, social security card, birth certificate. Your name is Solana Merrick now. You're from Seattle originally. You work in interior design." He pulled a manila envelope from the truck and handed it to me. "Everything you need is in here."

I stared at the envelope. This was real. This was actually happening.

I lifted my head to meet his tensed brown eyes, never leaving me.

"There's an apartment waiting for you in Portland," Kai continued. "First month's rent is paid. I know someone who runs a small design firm there. She's willing to take you on as an assistant, no questions asked."

I widened my eyes at him as it was way too much, he didn't even pressure me to know the truth yet he was helping.

"Kai, I can't pay you back. Not right away." I proposed in a sober tone as I just didn't know how to thank him enough.

"I'm not asking you to."

He paced to the passenger seat and got the door opened. "Get in. We need to go before someone notices you're gone."

I climbed into the truck and buckled my seatbelt still staring at him but with a faint heart. My hands were tightened around the envelope as my future depends on this now.

Kai started the engine. "Last chance to change your mind."

When he had said that, the world paused for a moment and all I could see was braun eyes, piercing into mine like he'd burn me. There is no need of going back...I'm doing this...to protect my baby.

"Drive," I said.

I looked out the window and watched Ashwood City disappear behind us.

There was silence between us as I cowered close to the window, my eyes were clouded with tears, but I vow not to let them drop.

"Why are you running away?" Kai asked quietly, breaking the silence. "I thought you were happy here."

I shifted my gaze to rear mirror, and I realized he was staring at me and drawing a long breath, I said;

"Don't ask."