All Chapters of The Rise of a Forsaken Luna: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

SERAPHINA~~“Break?”Rexton’s voice didn't just rise.It dropped into a heavy, territorial rumble that seemed to vibrate through the mattress and into my very bones. He seethed, his breath hot and smelling of whiskey against my skin, “You belong to this pack, Seraphina! Dammit, you belong to me, and we’re never-ending!”His fingers were like iron shackles around my ankle, his thumb pressing into the bone with a bruising force that made me gasp.“You’re hurting me!” I hissed, trying to jerk my leg back.But he only hauled me closer until I was forced to sit at the edge of the bed, eye-to-eye with the enraged beast he had become. “You can’t end us, Sera.” He whispered, his eyes dark with a manic sort of possessiveness. “You have nowhere else to go. I am the walls that keep you safe. Without me, you are nothing!”I looked at him, and for the first time, I didn't feel fear. Instead, I felt a cold, hard pity because he truly believed his own lies.H-he thought I w-was some rag he cou

SERAPHINA~~T-that sound…It wasn’t just a cry. Not for me. It was a blade that sliced through the chambers of my heart.The bond between us twisted, filling me with the agony of my child as she wailed.“Please!” I cried, struggling to break free from the warriors’ hold. “J-just let her go. I will d-do anything—”Regardless of my plea… of my desperation, the dark Healer squeezed Celeste’s punctured finger, letting her blood fall into the ritual bowl. Instead of stopping the dark Healer, Rexton urged her to get more than enough blood, turning a deaf ear to my plea and Celeste’s cries. In fact, I could see the faces in the hall lighting up despite my child’s pain. “Dahlia, please.” I thought to change my approach since she was a mother too. “Please save my child, Dahlia. You know she did nothing to deserve this treatment.”“But you did try to kill my son.” Dahlia hissed, her lies vibrating through my marrow. “It’s time she pays for your sins, bitch.”With all hope lost, I watched

SERAPHINA ~~ Despite staring at him with deep confusion, Ethan continued speaking, taking a step closer while I took two steps away from him. Ethan’s voice lowered. “I just need you to hear this.” He moved even closer as he begged for time that wasn’t even mine to give. “Let’s get out of here,” Kieran tried to communicate the direness of the moment to me. But before I could act, Ethan voiced, speaking so fast I almost missed some words, “You know what? I hated you for taking up space you never asked for… and I hated myself more for needing you to stay small.” “Why? I was the lowlife in your home.” I just couldn’t believe my ears. “You were the girl in the prophecy, or at least my parents believed that, and they wouldn’t stop talking about you. You got all the attention, and I was left to do things on my own. I hated it, Sera.” Ethan explained, his emotions running wild. He whispered inaudibly, as if to hide his shame, “I was intimidated. I believed I wasn’t enough

SERAPHINA~~“We are finally free.” Kia hummed happily in my mind the minute we crossed the invisible borderline. The air also changed, not just with the drop in the temperature, but also with the absence of the choking atmosphere of Crimson Moon Pack. The last time I felt this shift, I wanted to return to Crimson Moon Pack for my baby, but this time, I had no reason to go back ever again. But as the adrenaline finally ebbed, my body revolted. My feet, bare after I kicked off my shoes so I could run faster, have been shredded by the flint-edged stones and thorns of the neutral zone and soon gave way. I hissed in pain, stumbling toward the frost-covered grass.Kieran was at my side before I could hit the ground. He looked down at the dark stains my feet were leaving on the earth, his jaw tightening.“I’m fine,” I managed, though my voice was thin. “We just have to... keep going.”“You’ve done enough, Princess,” Kieran said, his voice a low, commanding rumble.Without a word of p

SERAPHINA~~“Mommy!” Celeste’s shriek snapped me back to reality, and I once again buried the thought of my past like I have been doing for five years. I just couldn’t face the past, even though I have been told that doing so would hasten the healing of my soul.“You have to help me, Mommy! Please.” Celeste exclaimed amidst laughter as Kieran threw her higher. As soon as Kieran caught her, I stepped in to stop him from repeating the process. “You don’t want her to throw up all over you, do you?” Kieran chuckled deeply, holding on to Celeste’s body. “It wouldn’t be the first time.”Truly, it wouldn’t. Together with me, he has experienced the good and bad days of parenting Celeste. While my brother and Serena were Celeste’s favorite people, Kieran had stepped into the role of a dad. An excellent and available one, in fact.I watched them for a moment, my heart squeezing with a bittersweet warmth as memories flooded my mind. “We both know he wouldn’t mind becoming her dad full-t