Chapter 28: Chapter 28

LILY POV I’d finished my book hours ago, and was now currently in the middle of the sequel. I’d never had time to read like this at Snow Moon, it felt great. A light breeze carried through the room from the open balcony doors, the curtains swaying gently. The scent of the forest breezed through the room, only enhancing my relaxtion. Totally absorbed in a world full of dragons and adventure, I was rudely shocked out of my euphoria by a piercing, agonized shriek. Throwing my book to the floor, I was out of bed and racing to the double balcony doors. I stepped out and surveyed the area.

A group of people were gathered some distance away, forming a circle. It looked to be mostly men, maybe the warriors? Had there been an attack? Retreating inside, I ran through the house, yanking the door open and jumping down the steps. I had no idea what to do in these situations, but I was Luna; was it not part of my duty to the pack to try and help?

I felt a hand grasp my arm, pulling me to a stop.

“You don’t want to go over there.” It was Luke.

“Why? What happened? Is someone hurt?”

He nodded.

“Then I need to be there.” I yanked my arm away and made my way to the group.

I vaguely recognized some of the warriors; they worked out in the gym a lot with Clint and I. I pushed my way through the tightly packed bodies, coming to stand in front of a scene that confused me. I’d been prepared for b***d or a maimed body due to a rogue attack. At the very worst, a corpse. What I did not expect was to see a tiny brunette kneeling before a man, crying her heart and soul out. Was he hurting her? Why hadn’t the warriors stepped in? Gazing around at their faces, it seemed nobody had any inclination to step in. Before I could demand that someone explain this to me, the man spoke to the woman on the ground.

“Accept it. I will not change my mind, it’s better if you just accept it now.”

“P-please….Connor…”

“No! Accept the rejection!” He growled.

My mouth flopped open in shock. He’d rejected her? And he’d done it in public too, as if the act wasn’t already humiliating enough? A surge of anger burned through me and I instinctly stepped out of the crowd and towards the poor girl on the ground.

“That’s enough!” I said.

“Who the hell are you?” The man, Connor, asked me. I straightened my shoulders and met his eyes.

“Lily. Luna Lily.” I answered.

Connor rolled his eyes. “Hate to break it to you Luna, but you don’t have the authority to stop a rejection.”

“Perhaps not, but I do have the authority to tell you to take it elsewhere.”

“All she has to do is accept it, and it’ll be done.” He looked down at his former mate. “But no, you have to make a big scene as usual, right Silvia?” He scoffed.

“Did you not hear me? I said that’s enough! You have no right to embarrass this poor girl in front of so many people, your peers and fellow warriors at that. This could have been done privatetly. So it’s you who wanted a show, not her.” I spit.

Murmurs erupted in the crowd, a few people nodding in agreement.

Connor simply shrugged. His attitude was pissing me off more and more. I kneeled down beside Silvia, putting my hand on her shoulder. “Honey, you don’t need someone like him, mate or not. I’m so sorry he did this to you, this way. I think it’s best if you accept his rejection now. You can move on.” I told her gently.

“How?” She whimpered.

“With my help. I’m your Luna, I’m here to help you, to care for you. And I will, I promise.” It was the first time I’d announced myself as Luna so publicly, but I didn’t shy away. It felt weird, still, but this girl needed me right now.

Silvia met my eyes and I nodded reassuringly. Her face was tear stained, but still pretty. Adorable brown eyes framed by long lashes and a light spread of freckles across her pale cheeks. She had an innocent, open face and my heart broke for her, for the fact that she had been mated to such a piece of garbage.

She turned to Connor, not really looking at him. “I, Silvia Thorne, Omega of the B***d Moon Pack, accept your rejection.” She whispered.

She clutched her chest at same time Connor did. The aura surrounding them tensed, the air feeling thicker. And then it broke. Silvia released a long breath, wiping her eyes.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

She shook her head.

I helped her stand, then located two men I recognized. “You two. Take her to Dr. Varlos at the hospital. Tell her I sent you, and she’s a top priority.” They stepped forward and nodded.

“Right away Luna.”

The crowd parted, letting them leave. From the corner of my eye, I saw Connor pushing his way through people.

“Not so fast!” I stopped him. “I’m not done with you.”

“Excuse me?”

“You think your actions have no consequences?”

“I have the right to reject my mate, just like anyone else. You can’t punish me for that.”

“Not those actions. Doing it like this.” I spread my hands, indicating the curious crowd. “What is your rank?”

“I don’t have to answer to you!” He spit.

“Oh, yes you do.” Luke came to stand beside me. “She is the Alphas mate, and your Luna. And she asked you a question.”

“I’m a warrior.” Connor replied grudgingly.

I figured as much. Crossing my arms, I said, “As of this moment, you aren’t. I’m demoting you to…. uh….” s**t. I had no practice doing stuff like this. I fumbled around in my head, trying to think of a suitable punishment that went along with the horrible choice he made today. An idea popped into my mind, one I liked very much.

“Actually, I’m not demoting you.” Connor raised his eyebrows at me. “From now on, part of your duties will include catering to the other warriors. They want water? You fetch it. They need equipment replaced? You do it.” I stepped closer to him, looking him straight in the eye. “If they need someone to wipe the sweat from their brow, you will do it. And only you.”

“You can’t do that!” He raged.

“I can. And I just did.”

“I’ll never get any training done! I’ll lose my position!”

“That’s not my problem. You should have thought about that before. And I hope it’s just as humiliating for you as this was for your mate. Former mate, I should say.”

Connor looked like he was seconds away from having smoke blow out his ears, but I wasn’t backing down. A few of the fellow warriors could be heard snickering, earning a glare from him. When he looked back to me, the hate radiating from him was almost palpable.

“You’ll regret this.” He hissed.

“Did you just threaten your Luna?” Luke demanded.

Completely ignoring the question, he turned and shoved through the crowd.

“Okay, show’s over folks. You don’t have to go home, but you can’t stay here! Move along now.” Luke discharged the spectators around us and I finally felt myself relax a little.

When it was just us, I asked, “Was that okay? I’m not officially Luna yet.”

“You did great kid! I’m honestly super impressed. You gave him a harsh, but fitting, punishment.” Luke clapped me on the shoulder.

“Do you think Dimitri will be mad?”

“Nah, I doubt it.”

I narrowed me eyes at him. “You already told him, didn’t you?”

Luke laughed lightly. “Caught me.”

“What did he say?” I played with my fingers nervously.

“He said it’s not the type of punishment he would have thought of, but he’s impressed that you did. He said you did a really good job.”

Relief washed through me. “Really?”

“Would I lie to you?”

A smile spread over my face. It died soon after as I remembered the other party involved.

“I’m going to check on Silvia; Make sure she’s doing alright.”

“Sounds like a good plan. I’ll see you later. Oh and Lily?”

I looked over my shoulder. “Yeah?”

“I think you did a good job too. I’m proud to call you my Luna.” He bowed slightly and I blushed.

“Thanks Luke.”