Nicole stood frozen solid. She couldn't believe what she'd just heard. She gripped the hem of her dress to remind herself that she wasn't dreaming.
Did this just happen?
Voices. Thousands of voices rang in her head and she felt as if she'd been thrown into a pot of hot oil. Nothing was a better description of how she felt. That man was supposed to be her mate. Her protector.
Her mouth was hanging slightly open. This hurt more than all the physical and mental trauma she'd been put through in Crimson. It was better that they hit and tortured her than what just happened. She stood shell-shocked, how could her mate abandon her like that?
Weren't mates supposed to be together forever? Wasn't he supposed to challenge the Alpha of Dark Moon? Wasn't he supposed to silence the lies Alpha Liam was spouting? Mates were forever. Since she came to Crimson, she'd seen werewolves go rogue because they lost their mates. She'd seen male wolves attack and kill whoever disrespected their mates. She witnessed all these and yet why was her mate not reacting the same way?
Nicole could feel his frustration and anguish but Shane wasn't showing it. Instead, he hobbled out of the conference room with his head bent with shame, without even sparing her a glance.
There was unrest amongst Crimson's pack members, she could feel their resentment at Alpha Liam and pity for Alpha Shane. Their murmurs swarmed the hall and melded together until it became one large buzz ringing in her ear.
Pity? Did they pity him? A werewolf, an alpha werewolf who couldn't stand up for his people. An alpha wolf who just sold his mate off like that? An alpha wolf who allowed another Alpha to step into his territory, kill his pack members, point accusatory fingers at them, spill a lot of lies, and forcefully demand his pack's Luna from him?
And they pitied the coward! Her wolf raged within her and yet it was so heartbroken that its rage turned to wrenching sorrow and anguish. A rejection was the worst thing that happened to a werewolf. Although, Shane didn't explicitly come out and say "I reject you." What he did could still be regarded as one.
She saw the pitying glances of Crimson Pack members, she heard them sigh and shake their heads, but none of them ventured to check on her. She could feel from the Pack bond which was waning, that news of what happened had already circulated amongst pack members. She stared at them until they became faceless voices.
"It's a pity. He just sold her off like that." One woman murmured,
"Shows that she was never Luna,"
"But my wolf recognizes hers as Luna?"
"Well, it was a hoax,"
"We've all been played,"
"It's unfortunate, the poor girl was a slave and is still a slave,"
"But why did Alpha Liam want her?"
"That was mighty bold of him,"
"Are you shocked? He was royally pissed by Alpha Shane's so-called betrayal that he had to have a pound of his flesh and what's better than taking the reason why Crimson thrives,"
"He's as ruthless as they say,"
"He's worse than ruthless, poor Luna, I wish Alpha Shane fought harder for her,"
"Can't you see that his hands were tied? Rumor has it that, Crimson's borders were surrounded by his army,"
One of them gasped.
"Is it not better to lose the Luna than have Crimson destroyed,"
"Oh, that Alpha of Dark Moon is callous,"
Another person scoffed.
"Callous? No, a beast. He's not in touch with his human side. There's a rumor that his werewolf is in control most of the time. It's why he has no weakness. He kills without a second thought. His goal is to obliterate everything that seems to be a threat."
"From what I've heard, he's succeeding. He's not one to cross."
"Alpha Shane did the right thing,"
Fear clawed at Nicole's chest as she listened to the group gossip abashedly. They were so insensitive that they didn't mind her presence.
Nicole was shedding tears but she didn't know it. She also didn't know that the room had cleared out and that it was she and Liam, his pack members, and some spectators who waited to see her reaction that remained. Neither did she notice that Liam was staring daggers at her nor that her finger had turned to claws and had pierced her flesh. Nicole's eyes were wide open, but she could barely see.
The thought of death crossed her mind because she didn't think she could stand torture from any other person. Even her wolf was too wrenched and wrangled to discourage her.
All she needed was a silver bullet, dagger, or wolfsbane. It would do the job quickly and effectively.
"I finally have you," Alpha Liam's voice skewered through her thoughts, making her stumble back and crash to the floor.
Instantly, Liam's arms shot out and grabbed her.
"What's the matter with you," he hissed, holding her close to his chest, with his heart thumping in his chest.
Nicole still stared wide-eyed, pale-faced, and barely breathing.
Liam growled and roughly pushed her to the closest seat.
Meanwhile, Nicole was drowning in her head. The voices didn't stop buzzing, neither did they stop scolding her nor did her heart cease feeling like it had been ripped apart.
Nicole could see Liam pacing around her, huffing and anger rolling out of his veins, but she couldn't recognize him.
"How long has she played the role of Luna?" He barked,
Nicole didn't grab the response of the werewolf who answered him, but she felt the waves of anger Liam ebbed out.
A dull throb in her brain told her that she was somehow growing more connected to Alpha Liam as seconds went by and whatever she had with Crimson had been cut short.
From that moment, she'd become a total stranger to Crimson. They no longer regarded her as one of them. She now belonged to the Dark Moon and was now an enemy.
A peal of dry laughter fell out of her lips. Like she was possessed, she began laughing hysterically as tears streamed down her face.
"Alpha, the pain is consuming her. She might lose her wits and go rogue."
"That bastard deceived her and let her believe that she was something she wasn't for so long," Liam barked,
Nicole snapped,
She jumped up and growled at Liam.
"You are the ruthless bastard. You liar! You lied to destroy Crimson!"
Relief flooded Alpha Liam's eyes because she responded and he smirked,
"You should be grateful to me for saving you from the lies," He gloated.
Nicole sneered, but her fear of what she'd heard about him stopped her from saying any more.
Sensing the terror coursing within her, Alpha Liam's smirk grew wider.
"I saved you from a lie. You should worship me,"
Nicole laughed dryly and made to walk out on him, but he snatched her out of the air,
"I'm not Shane," He growled, "If you want to live long enough to pay your debt in Dark Moon, you need to acknowledge that I'm your god and that my words are law,"
A spark of gold flashed within his blue irises.
Another wave of horror crashed into Nicole, alongside arousal.
Her body somehow ignored the fear in her head and allowed the power in his voice to trigger it. She trembled slightly as all the depressive thoughts swapped with carnal ones involving Liam.
Her body ached for his touch and kisses. She wanted him to take her and make her forget the pain that threatened to suffocate her.
She swallowed and took a step away from him, but the heat radiating from his hand that clutched around her arm went straight to her core. The throbbing started slowly till it became violent and uncontrollable. Her body wanted him. She imagined tracing her tongue on the ink that decorated his body. She imagined exploring his body.
Liam grinned, his eyes dilated and dropped to her lips.
"I know how bad you want it. Are you wet for me, Nicole?" He whispered into her ears.
Nicole's breath hitched, and she swallowed.
Liam chuckled,
"You're very tempting, Nicole, but not here or now. When it happens again Nicole, I'll make you beg." He hissed,
Immediately Nicole snatched her hands from his grasp and dashed away.
"Nicole," Liam growled, stopping her as she almost made her way out the door.
"Get your things ready, we leave in two hours."
And with that, Nicole remembered her reality.
She bolted out of the conference room and went up the stairs to her room.
The moment she entered, she slammed the door shut.
"I thought you'd be gone by now," An icy voice mocked, making Nicole's heart leap.
"Fuck," she hissed on seeing one of Shane's minions sitting with her arms and legs crossed on her bed.
Nicole folded her body and clutched her chest. As her heart did a thousand flips. Too much was happening, and her head was threatening to explode.
"Aww, she wants us to give her a final goodbye," Another girl said stepping out from the shadows,
Nicole's spine straightened immediately. Her wolf sensed the danger that was coming. They wanted to give her a beating. These girls didn't see her as Luna anymore and she was highly outnumbered.
She snarled, preparing herself for battle. But she knew she couldn't win. Her eyes flashed around for a way out.
How could she still be going through shit like this after what she'd just gone through in the conference room?
Didn't she deserve a break? Or some space? Did the moon goddess see her as filth?
They laughed maniacally.
"Aww, she still thinks she has a chance."
"Try it," Nicole blurted out unthinkingly, "Touch a hair on my head." Her heart bounced within her, she didn't want a beating, she couldn't bear it. She was yet to recover from the one Shane gave her that morning.
The girls laughed and started approaching her.
Despite her fear of getting beat up, Nicole smirked,
"You hoes forget that I no longer belong to Crimson. Just lay a finger on me and see what Dark Moon's Alpha will do. Come on, hit me." Nicole dared, knowing quite well that she was lying.
They all stopped dead in their tracks. Their eyes shone wide and in their moment of uncertainty, Nicole dashed out of her room.
She ran until she was away from everyone. The moment she was in the cover of the forests she shifted into her wolf form and went for a run.
She was yet to process all that had happened to her. Her mind couldn't believe what happened. It was still like some sort of nightmare. There was still too much to unpack.
Was she really leaving Crimson? Did she now belong to the Dark Moon? Then there was her crazy attraction to Alpha Liam. Why did he have such a damning effect on her? She didn't feel this way with Shane who was her mate
Wasn't she supposed to hate him for destroying her life? He was worse than Shane.
There was still the matter of Shane not being her fated mate. The thought of it made her bitter. Because if it was through it meant that she was never supposed to carry the burden of a Luna. The worst part was that if she remained an ordinary slave, her service to Crimson would have ended a long time ago and she paid her debt.
The more she ran, the more mysteries she had to unravel and the more confused she became until she came to a single conclusion.
She was fucked.