005~ RIPPED APART

Vaelra

My heart jumps in my throat as I look away, quickly lifting a hand as though it can somehow hide me.

Not that lunatic again.

Against my better judgement, I glance back again. And yes, he is still staring.

The infuriating bastard even has the nerve to smirk when he catches me looking.

Then his lips move.

I swear he mouths the word 'pervert'.

It takes geniue effort not to give him the middle finger.

That's when I finally notice he is sitting at the spot reserved for Alphas.

It takes me another second to realise he is the Alpha of Blood Moon.

The man I was alone with last night was the same man who drinks his pack blood?!

A shiver runs through me.

The girls beside me continue whispering. "His Luna is beautiful."

My attention shifts to the woman sitting beside him.

She sits with perfect posture and a charming smile.

Her dress is elegant and I can tell it costs more than everything in our cottage combined.

She has the type of beauty that turns heads without even trying.

For some reason, the sight irritates me.

Maybe because she looks like she belongs beside him.

I frown.

Why do I even care?

The man is an arrogant lunatic who enjoys tormenting people.

Good for him if he found someone willing to put up with him.

When I glance back toward him, his eyes are still on me expect now they are glowing and he is gripping his armrest a little too tight.

The wood breaks apart under his grip.

Several Alpha's look toward him.

He doesn't seem to notice or care his attention still on me.

A strange unease crawls down my spine as I quickly turn my attention back to the dancers.

Whatever his problem is, it has nothing to do with me.

Still, I can feel his eyes on me.

My gaze sweeps through the crowd in search of Zane and lands on my father.

He is sitting with the rest of the Alpha, Taliana his Luna beside him.

She leans toward him and whispers something. A smile spreads across his face before he presses a kiss to her lips as he looks into the crowd.

I fucking knew who his eyes were on.

Turning to the crowd I see mama standing at the edge of the crowd, one hand pressing against her chest as she watches them.

My jaw clenches.

That scumbag.

I hated that her mate bond had her looking... pathetic. And I hated myself more for being the reason she has to put up with him.

I turn away before the anger boiling inside me spills over, and I cause a scene.

I'm already halfway out when someone grabs my arm.

"Hey."

Zane.

"I've been calling your name."

I press my lips together.

The tears threatening to form must show on my face because his smile disappears.

"What happened?"

I shake my head. "I don't want to be here."

He doesn't ask any more questions. He simply intertwines our fingers and pulls me away.

Away from the music and crowd.

Soon, we're running through the forest, laughing breathlessly as branches brush against our clothes.

The farther we get from the festival, the easier it becomes to breathe.

That's what Zane was to me. My safe space.

I met him when I was seventeen during the moon festival. It was love at first sight for me.

When neither of us found a mate at eighteen, I was secretly relieved. I couldn't imagine him being mated to anyone.

I know it's selfish but I just can't.

We eventually stop in a small clearing. I collapse onto the ground, trying to catch my breath while Zane settles beside me.

For a while, we just stare up at the stars.

I wish I could stay in this moment forever with him.

"Feeling better?" He asks quietly.

"I hate it here," I confess.

"Leave with me then."

"I can't."

"Or you won't."

I look away.

He gently turns my face back toward his.

"You keep tying yourself to this place because of her."

"I'm all she has."

"No." His voice is firm but gentke.

"You deserve your own life."

My heart aches because a part of me wants exactly that.

To run away to a place where nobody knows me. A fresh start where I can just be... normal.

His fingers brush my cheek.

"I'd take care of you."

I know he means it.

But I also know the moon goddess can take him away any moment, all in the name of fate.

The thought makes my heart ache. So, instead of answering, I lean in and kiss him.

Because it is better to just live in the moment.

He kisses me back, deepening it as he shifts over me.

The rest of the world disappears in that moment, and it's just us.

In seconds, my gown is gone, then his pants. He trails open-mouthed kisses down my chest, over my stomach, then returns to my mouth just as he pushes inside me.

I arch hard off the ground as I let out a moan.

"I love you," he says, his eyes holding mine as he keeps moving.

My heart swells so painfully that I think it might burst.

"I lo—"

My words are cut short as something warm sprays across my face. The sharp, metallic smell of blood floods my nose next.

I open my eyes and see him... headless.

His body collapses onto me a second later.

Beind him stands a figure with long white hair and glowing mismatched eyes. And in his hands—

My scream catches in my throat.

— was Zane's head.

Blood is pouring from the ragged stump onto my body.

My entire body starts to shake.

Slowly, I lift a shaking hand and touch where his head should have been.

"Zane?"

No answer.

No. No. No.

This can't be happening.

Tears stream down my face.

The forest spins. My ears ring. My chest burns.

Then the scream finally tears it's way free.