Celeste has been living with the rogues for a few days now.
The size of this pack was smaller than her old pack, and everyone here was younger. Celeste never thought she would one day become a rogue and live with a group of rogues, let alone with this group that had once attacked Celeste's own wolf pack.
The reputation of rogues was poor. They were known for their love of destruction and attacking other packs. But Celeste started to notice that her first impression might not have been accurate. Everyone in the rogue pack was surprisingly friendly towards her, at least.
However, with her short time spent with them, Celeste couldn't be certain whether their kindness was genuine or just a result of Kent's presence.
After coming here, Celeste lived in Kent's room because the pack did not have any extra rooms. And they did not live in one place for long. They usually moved quickly, maintaining their wandering nature.
Same as her former pack, the rogue pack was also noisy. Sometimes they would run together in groups through the forest at night. But everyone also carried that sense of alertness and cunning, which was the biggest difference between them and Celeste's former wolf pack.
Speaking of her former pack, she couldn't help but wonder what kind of life they were living now. Are they still living in their secret base? Or have they returned to their own homes after confirming that there was no longer a threat from hunters in the town?
Had they eventually decided whether or not to have a new Alpha? Did Jeremy finally step up to the role?
Celeste couldn't help but think about Jeremy again. She couldn't help it even since she left.
But she tried not to think about him. Every time she did, her wolf also would perk up her ears and become restless.
Since she left, Celeste hadn't been able to pick herself up, and her wolf had always been gloomy. She was haunted by the feeling that something was slowly disappearing from her life. Probably it was a withdrawal reaction from leaving a mate, right? Celeste had thought about going back, but she couldn't. She didn't have a choice.
What was Jeremy doing now? Her mind drifted back to him again. Did Jeremy come to look for her after she left? Did he ever think about himself? Did he miss her? Or was he finally relieved that he could break free from their bond? Would he now freely choose his own Luna? Such as … Nancy?
Thinking of Nancy, Celeste felt the air being squeezed out of her chest again. She shook her head. Jeremy and she were both free now. They could choose whatever they wanted.
Celeste tried again in vain not to think about Jeremy. But within seconds, her mind involuntarily went back to that night, to Jeremy trapping her in his arms, to the kiss that landed on his cheek, and to Jeremy's warm and soft lips that almost touched hers. Her heart pounded.
But soon, the conversation with Byron pushed its way into her mind. A pack without a Luna could never be strong. The heat gathered on her cheeks dissipated.
Then, that night, her wolf ran into the moonlight.
The rustling of the leaves passed by her ears and touched her skin. The soil under her feet was slightly damp and a bit cold, but it allowed her to come back to the present, calming down her tangled mind slightly.
The night had been quiet, and Celeste remembered running freely in the forest under the moonlight, resolving her inner troubles one by one, and crushing them under her feet.
She was hungry, so she hunted in the forest. She listened to the gentle sound of the stream flowing through the forest and followed the trail to the silvery creek shining in the moonlight. The thirst in her throat had been eased.
To get closer to the moonlight, she even ran up a small hill and finally stopped on a rock at the edge of a cliff, howling as with the trees and the creek glimmering under the moon. But that time, she seemed to have run too far and didn't hear any response to her howling.
The night breeze carried the scent of the stream, blowing through her hair as she stood high up, making Celeste's wolf feel a hint of coldness. She looked toward the direction of the secret base, where Jeremy and the rest of the pack were, but she was already too far away and could no longer see the hidden base nestled among the trees.
Celeste remembered the desire that rose from the bottom of her heart.
She wanted to go back, back to the pack. Back to her family. Back to the warm embrace of Jeremy. Her wolf took a step back, ready to re-enter the forest, but Celeste managed to stop herself.
By the time the moon was resting high above the sky, her wolf had run back into the deep forest, back to her home.
Now with the hope that her parents might still be alive, Celeste found the house less intimidating. It had been a few days since the attack, and a thin layer of dust had settled on the tables. But Celeste didn't have time to tidy up. She went to her room, took a shower, and changed into clean clothes.
Instead of returning to her own bed, her feet brought her to Jeremy's room. And that night, she slept on his bed.
She hadn't had a good night's sleep in days. But that night, she fell asleep almost as soon as her head touched Jeremy's pillow. She had prepared for another nightmare, but it was a dreamless night. When she opened her eyes, it was already morning.
Celeste went out the door and headed to Raymond's cabin. From afar, she could see Kent sitting at the doorstep of the cabin. When he heard Celeste's footsteps, he looked up and smiled at her, as if he knew she would come to find him today.