Leaving the Pack

In the end, Yvonne left with a soul full of reluctance, though she gazed at Zacharias before she did. Zacharias did not return her gaze. He gently caressed my bangs.

"Don't get mad at her, Lucilla. She's just used to helping me out." A momentary pause later, he added with a hint of hesitation, "But I think she has a point. The elders always hold their meetings in the territory. It's better if the place looks more formal."

That was a quiet slap in the face of my dignity. I hung my head low, mortified. Ever since I moved in, Zacharias gave me carte blanche to do anything I wanted. The old Zacharias told me, in a loving voice, "This is our home now. You can do whatever you want with it. I don't mind."

Now he crushed everything I did. I was going to say something, but then his phone rang. A hint of anger flickered across his face.

"I explicitly told them today is for you and you only. Who's disturbing me now? I can't believe they're disobeying my direct ord—"

When he saw the name on the screen, he froze up. It was Yvonne's name. Zacharias put his phone away. Fidgeting, he said, "I know we're supposed to pick out the wedding stuff today, but the elders just said…"

I refused to hear his lies any further. Instead, I said, "It's alright. Work's important, I know."

He gave me a tender look and smiled at me. Then he kissed my forehead. "I knew you'd understand."

He left without saying another word. I saw him off, though my mind was on something else. Something more turbulent.

I wondered if he was going to see Yvonne. I hung on to some foolish hope that maybe, just maybe, he was going to handle work.

Driven by those thoughts, I followed him.

Zacharias did not leave the territory. Instead, he went to his second-in-command's residence and knocked on her door quietly.

Yvonne peeked out of her yard. She was wearing a red slip dress that hung to her body and showed off all her curves. Zacharias looked down. All he saw was Yvonne now.

"I thought you wouldn't show up. So, tell me, who's prettier? Me or her?" Yvonne put on a seductive smile. She grabbed Zacharias' arm and led him inside.

The moment the door swung shut, all my strength left me, and I slumped down to the ground. I knew this was coming, but seeing his betrayal right in front of my eyes still hit my heart hard.

The man who loved me with all his heart was gone. Dead. I wiped the tears off my eyes and pushed myself back up.

Now that he had someone else, it was time for me to bow out of this relationship. I grabbed all the Luna keepsake and went to the City Hall. Then I handed them over to the registration elder.

The elder pushed his spectacles and slowly unfurled my bloodline scroll. Hesitant, he asked, "Are you sure you're leaving the pack, Lucilla? If this goes through, you will be stripped of all status. You will no longer be tied to the Dawn Pack. Even after death, your soul will not return to our holy land."

I nodded. "I'm sure."

The elder was conflicted. He said, "The Alpha has told us that you are to be Luna. Once the bonding ceremony is over, you will reign over all females. Are you sure you want to leave the pack now? That seems like a shame."

I closed my eyes and pondered my decision again. Then my eyes snapped open, filled with determination. "I don't share that sentiment, elder. Please process the paperwork for me."

Scheming Woman

A heavy sigh escaped the elder's lips, but he respected my wish and did the paperwork. "The verification will take two days. Once that is done, you will no longer be part of the pack. Your details will be deleted from the database. You have three days to leave the pack."

I nodded in silence and bought a flight ticket that was scheduled for three days later.

When I came back to the territory, I saw Zacharias standing at the villa's entrance looking all nervous. He noticed me and strode up to me. "Where were you, Lucilla? You didn't tell me you were going somewhere. I was worried sick when I couldn't find you."

He checked me closely and breathed a sigh of relief. I was fine, it seemed. Then I checked the time. That process at the City Hall took three whole hours, yet he only realized I was gone not too long ago. He must've only finished his affair with Yvonne.

"The villa's stuffy, so I wanted to get some fresh air in the woods," I lied naturally. Yes, I could do that to Zacharias now.

Zacharias held me tightly. When he spoke, his voice was trembling. "You could've asked for me. Don't go alone. The woods are dangerous. There are Rogues there. You could've gotten hurt."

His fresh scent assailed me, but then I noticed something else. A scent belonging to fruits. It was sickly sweet, and it made me retch. I pushed him away. Nervously, he patted my back.

"What's wrong? Did you eat some of the woods' fruits?"

I turned my head away so I wouldn't taste that sickly sweet stench again. Only then did I manage to keep my bile down. "No, my walk just took a bit too much out of me. I need some rest," I explained. Still, something was making me uneasy.

"I'll stay with you!" He took me to the bedroom, but a moment later, Yvonne knocked on the door again.

"Alpha, something's wrong with the territory's expense account. I might need your help for this." She did not show any hint that said she was sorry. Her eyes were filled with a challenge.

Zacharias stopped in his steps. He was conflicted, unsure of what he should do. Like the understanding fiancee I was, I pushed him outside. "Work's important. I can rest up by myself."

Yvonne took Zacharias away. She held her head up high, strutting like she'd won something. Her provocation did nothing to me. Something more pressing was waiting for me.

…

The healer gave me the report. I was three weeks pregnant. The news stunned me. Just when I'd decided to leave Zacharias, I was pregnant with his pup.

"The baby's healthy, and so are you. Congratulations, you're going to be a mother!"

I took the ultrasound report with trembling hands. My mind was reeling. I tucked the report in my pocket. 'I should talk with him,' I thought.

For our children, I would give him one last chance.

However, the moment I came out of the consultation room, I saw Zacharias holding Yvonne as they carefully entered the room next door.

These rooms were exclusively for expecting mothers.

Yvonne noticed me, and her gaze lingered on me for a moment.

…

I had no idea how I even walked out of the healing chamber. My legs took me right up to the borders of the pack's land, and I stopped right beside the woods, my mind still in a state of confusion.

My wavering heart steeled itself again. I would leave the pack, along with my unborn child. Then I turned around, and Yvonne was in my way.

"You guessed it, didn't you? I'm pregnant. It's Zacharias'." Yvonne caressed her belly. There was no mistaking the challenge in her eyes.

"He was delighted when he found out. Insisted on a full-body checkup. He promised me the spot of Luna, since my pup will be the next Alpha."

Yvonne's bragging tore my heart into tiny little pieces. The promises he used to give me. Now he was giving them away to someone else freely.

The only thing I had left was an illusion of love.

Yvonne suddenly darted closer. She whispered in my ear, "I'll need you to disappear. My child doesn't need you around."

She stuffed a dagger into my hand and slammed her arm into its edge.

"Don't hurt me, Lucilla!"

Departure

Yvonne fell to the ground screaming. She clamped her hand over her wound and shivered like a victim.

"What are you doing, Lucilla?" Zacharias strode up to us and held up Yvonne like she was the most precious thing in the world. Then he saw the dagger I was holding. It was covered in silver nitrate. The 'realization' drove him into a bout of rage.

"You attacked Yvonne with a silver weapon? How could you! I thought you were better than this, Lucilla!"

His gaze was colder than the winter winds, yet they burned me like the flames of hell.

"I didn't…" I was going to explain myself, but Zacharias was already taking Yvonne away. Then something silver shone in Yvonne's hands.

A dozen silver needles pricked my throat. The agony made me black out, and I fell to my knees. Zacharias ignored this. Instead, he told me, "Reflect on what you did. You're not coming back until the bonding ceremony!"

He picked up Yvonne and held her in his arms, then he leaped into the distance. I saw the triumphant smile curling Yvonne's lips.

And then only silence was my companion. The sun was already setting. Night only made the woods more treacherous. No werewolf would enter the woods alone after sundown.

The man who would never let me wander alone left me to fend for myself. I scrambled to get myself back up, then I ran as fast as my legs could take me.

Something was rustling behind me. I sensed them. They were coming. They were gaining.

My hair stood on end, and I ran faster, my hand clamped against my throat. The needles buried themselves against my throat, and the silver was stopping the wounds from closing up.

Blood was pouring down my skin, and it drenched the soil underneath. The rustling was getting louder, more violent. The sweet scent of blood was exciting the Rogues in the woods.

I ran and ran, even when exhaustion was catching up to me, even when my body was screaming out to me. Eventually, I hit the limit, and I fell to the ground, but my mind shut down before I could hit the soil.

I woke up finding myself in a healing pod. The healer told me the patrol squad saved me and took me to the healing chamber.

"The pod healed your wounds, but the silver ate your vocal chords. You might be…"

The healer's voice trailed off. I knew what it must be. Then she consoled me, "The silver's already taken out. Maybe your healing factor can help with the vocal chord problem."

All hope was lost. Then the healer grabbed my hand. "Your baby is strong. It fought the silver off. It still lives. It's waiting for the day it can see you."

That stunned me. I put my hand on my flat belly. Something warm soothed my heart. This child was Selene's gift for me. With it around, I was no longer lonely.

I went through the paperwork and left the hospital. Before I did, I handed a gift box to the healer who helped me. 'Hand this over to the Alpha,' I wrote on a piece of paper.

The healer was a gentle lady. She said yes to my request and gave me a ride to the airport.

The day my status was stripped, I boarded the flight that would take me away from the pack.

…

The ceremonial altar of the Dawn Pack. It would witness the most solemn bonding ceremony now. Zacharias could not overstate the importance of this ceremony. He spent a month decorating the altar until it was perfect.

Nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine moonroses circled the altar. These roses came from the Dark Forest by plane.

The ceremony was about to begin. The pack members were all gathered. Yet I was not there.

"Where is Lucilla? She's supposed to be here!" Zacharias was getting uneasy.

"Maybe she's still throwing a tantrum. She expects you to say you're sorry," said Yvonne. She was still trying to paint me as a childish person. A smile curled her lips. She wished I would never show up.

She thought Zacharias would fly into a rage, but all he did was stay silent. Then he strode off.

"Where are you going, Alpha?" She followed him in confusion.

Zacharias said, "I'm taking her back."

They ran into an elder a moment later. Confused, the elder stopped him. "Alpha, I thought the ceremony was canceled. Lucilla has returned Luna's keepsake to us. Her details are deleted from the database. She has left the pack."