2: Betrayal

Elara Moonstone

I lay on the bed staring at the ceiling wishing I could escape from the reality of my life, my headaches, and my heart throbs as I had cried myself to sleep last night, even though my pillow was drenched in tears, there was still no relief for me.

I had expected Rowan to join me at some point in the night, to show me how sorry he was and how much he cared about me but I didn’t see a glimpse of him, there was no warmth around me, he must have been busy with his new woman… Lyra!

The name tasted like ash in my mouth.

I rolled over and buried my face into the pillow, trying to ease myself from the pain but it was hard, everything seemed not to work at this point.

I suddenly heard a knock on my door hoping it would go away but it didn’t, I groaned squeezing my eyes shut.

“Luna?” Maera’s voice was soft but unmistakable. “It’s time for the council meeting.”

I sighed, wiping away the remnants of my tears and forcing myself to sit up. “Thank you, Maera,” I replied.

“I’ll leave you to get ready. I’ll wait outside if you need anything.” Maera said she watched me worriedly, I knew she wanted to ask what was wrong with me but chose to keep quiet.

I watched Maera leave and then I dragged myself from the bed, my body stiff and aching from the whole cry I did, I would have preferred to stay in the bed but I had to attend the council meeting.

I performed my morning ritual and changed into something decent before leaving my room, as soon as I arrived at the courtroom, I was welcomed with the scent of fresh pine and earth which unmistakably belonged to Rowan.

My steps faltered when I noticed Lyra sitting next to Rowan, She was leaning slightly toward him, her hand resting casually on his arm. This was beyond humiliating, how can Rowan bring her to the courtroom?

“Good morning, Elara,” Rowan finally said.

“Good morning,” I replied stiffly, forcing my words through clenched teeth. I wanted to scream, to ask him how he could do this to me by bringing her here. But I couldn’t. Not here. Not in front of the council.

I walked to my seat on the left-hand side of Rowan’s throne. I sat down slowly, my hands clenched tightly in my lap as I tried to control the raging anger inside me.

One of the elders, an older wolf named Torin, cleared his throat and spoke first. “We would like to thank you, Alpha Rowan, for successfully completing your mission. You’ve protected this pack, and we are forever in your debt.”

Rowan smiled, his eyes scanning the room, but his gaze never lingered on me. “Thank you, Elder Torin. It was an honor to serve. I couldn’t have done it without your support. But before we continue, I would love to ask who is this woman sitting next to you, she is not familiar neither have we seen her face in the pack.”

Rowan turned to face the council with a slight proud smile on his face as he was about to talk about Lyra. “I have an announcement to make,” he continued. My heart dropped into my stomach. “I have found my mate. Lyra is my mate, and I have decided that she will be my Luna.”

Make her his Luna?! What about me? What about everything I had endured and sacrificed because of him? Is he forgetting this pack has belonged to the Moonstone family for centuries?

I wanted to stand up, to scream, to tell them all that I was the rightful Luna of this pack, that this was my birthright. But I couldn’t speak. I was paralyzed by the overwhelming betrayal from Rowan.

Rowan’s voice continued, “I understand that this may be difficult for some of you,” he said, his eyes flickering toward me for a split second before quickly moving back to the rest of the council. “But I do not want any of you to bully Lyra. That is why I had decided to make her my Luna, after all the rightful Luna to a pack is the alpha’s mate.”

I couldn’t hold it in any longer. “No, You don’t get to do this, Rowan. This pack belongs to my family. To the Moonstones. We have led it from the very beginning, and now you want to take that away from me? You didn’t even discuss this with me and you think you can just announce it at the council meeting without speaking to me first,” My voice cracked, but I didn’t care.

The room went silent, and I could feel the eyes of the elders on me, but none of them defended me.

Rowan’s face hardened as he tilted his head to look at me. “I am the Alpha now, Elara,” he said, his voice low but firm. “And I have the right to make decisions for the pack. You know this. It’s the way it’s always been.”

“You have made a mockery of everything we had and fought for, is this your way of repaying me for everything I have done for you?” I whispered, tears welling in my eyes, despite my best efforts to keep them in check.

“What have you done Elara? Stop making it look like you have something no one can do!” He screamed and tears welled up in my eyes, my lips were sealed, my heart bled and I knew I couldn’t stay any longer.  I couldn’t breathe in this space where he and that woman are.

I stood up abruptly, knocking my chair back with a loud crash. All heads turned at me but I couldn’t be bothered to care. I stormed out of the courtroom.

I barely made it to my chambers when I heard the sound of footsteps behind me. His footsteps.

“Elara,” Rowan’s voice came from behind me, angry and demanding. “What’s wrong with you?”

I stopped at the door to my room, my hand gripping the handle as though it could give me some kind of strength. I turned to face him, my eyes blazing with the fury that had been building inside me since his announcement. “What’s wrong with me?” I spat. “What’s wrong with you, Rowan? You expect me to just sit here and let you throw everything away like it’s nothing? You’re taking everything I have worked so hard for.”

Rowan’s expression twisted, frustration clouding his eyes. “I’m the Alpha now, Elara,” he said, his voice rising in anger. “I have taken control. The Alpha ritual has been completed. No one can deny my command, not even you, all you can do is complain!”

“You are the Alpha now?” I whispered, my voice breaking. “What happened to us, Rowan? What happened to the promise we made?”

Tears burned my vision, and I wiped them away angrily. “I can’t accept this,” I said, my voice trembling. “This is my pack. My birthright. And you…you... The worst thing I ever did was trust you!”

“Stop suffering yourself Elara, you know you can’t do anything, my words are the commands of this pack. I won’t let any harm come to you but you will let me decide and let Lyra be who I want her to be, when you’re done crying or done being childish, we will sit and talk about this.” With that said, he turned and walked away.

A scream tore out of my mouth, shaking my whole being, I couldn’t believe Rowan could ever do this to me.