Filed To Story: In the Shadow of the Past Luna (Lily & James)
“You know why,”
Rose responds. “Look, you need to know that Nick is here. He is about to bring your father in. Please pretend that you are still unconscious. I will help you. Just trust me, please.”
“Okay, Rose. I do not think I can open my eyes again anyway. Or speak. It hurts too much.”
“I know, Lily. I am sorry. I am so sorry. I promise we will get out of here though. We will follow our plan.
Just hold on a little longer for me, okay?”
“O-okay.”
Three minutes later, I hear footsteps that I know belong to Nick and my father.
“What happened to her?”
my father asks. If I did not know any better, I would think that he is outraged about what he is seeing.
“Mother said she saw her fall down the stairs.”
I feel someone pull back my blanket… or is it my shirt?
“How would she get marks like these from falling down the stairs?”
my father asks.
“Mother said she was carrying plates of food. Perhaps the plates cut her?”
“Nick, look at these marks. What you just said does not make any sense. These marks look like they were left intentionally.”
“I know, Father, but Mother was the only one here, and she was pretty adamant that that is what happened. Maybe after she fell, Lily intentionally cut herself?”
“Like a suicide attempt?”
“Maybe? It cannot be easy for her to be here on Stephanie’s death anniversary. The guilt has to be eating. her alive, especially now that she is an adult and can really appreciate the consequences of her actions.
back then.”
1
“Maybe…”
my father says, in a voice that tells me that he is not at all convinced.
For a brief moment, my heart starts to fill with hope and joy. From what I have heard of this conversation, my father is horrified at how badly I have been hurt; he is not aware of the abuse that my mother has been inflicting on me; and he doubts that I have tried to commit suicide. Perhaps my father does still love me, at least a little bit?
Sadly, any hope I have quickly gets destroyed by the next part of their discussion.
“Nick, we cannot take her to the memorial service like this. She will be a distraction and take away from the attention that should be on Stephanie today.”
“I know, but James was pretty adamant. Maybe we can wrap her in a black blanket that will hide most of the injuries?”
“Do you know why James is acting so weird with respect to Lily today? I do not understand it. Who cares if Lily is at the memorial.”
“I do not know. I agree that he has been acting strangely all day, though. He even told me that he thought you all gave him the ultimatum so that you could force him to marry Lily.”
My father gasps, and then starts laughing. “He thought what?”
1 am not kidding. It was the strangest conversation. I have not laughed that hard in a long time.”
“I would never be that cruel as to demand James marry Lily. Lily does not have what it takes to be Luna, and she could never live up to the kind of Luna that Stephanie would have been. Lily needs to go and find a nice warrior or Omega to marry.”
“Or a human,”
Nick suggests.
“Yeah, or a human. A human could probably accept her more easily than anyone around here. A werewolf male would only see her as a burden.”
I feel my heart break in pieces for the second time in one day.
Nick and my father’s conversation does not necessarily surprise me… but suspecting that this is what they think about me versus hearing first-hand that this is what they think about me are two different things. The latter is fair more painful.
I suddenly feel a blanket being draped over me. I am then lifted into the air.
I guess I am going to Stephanie’s memorial.
(James POV)
It is now 11:37 am, which means that Stephanie’s first memorial event of the day is officially and already
37 minutes behind schedule. My father is freaking out, but there is nothing that he can do. There is not way that we can start the event without Stephanie’s brother and father.
Thankfully, Nick mind-links me that they are on the way. With luck, we can get this show started in a few minutes.
When Nick and Beta Robert arrive, they seem to be carrying a body bag. It is only when they come closer that I realize that the “body bag”
is actually the Little Brat, wrapped up in a blanket.
“What happened to her?”
I ask.
“I told you she was bad off,”
Nick responds.
I walk even closer and pull the blanket back. As I do so, Lily’s chocolate and raspberry scent overwhelms me. Distracted, my fingers then accidentally brush the Little Brat’s arm, which causes pleasurable sparks to run through me.
For the first time, I start to wonder if I made a mistake by insisting she be brought here
I force myself to focus so that my eyes can process what I am looking at. The Little Brat’s body is covered in bruises, welts, and cuts. I would not be surprised if she has multiple broken bones. She also has blood matted in her hair and covering her face. Her eyes and lips are swollen and purple.
I look around at the others, and everyone except Margie has the same concerned and shocked expression on their faces. That includes Nick and Beta Robert, even though they had already seen what she looked like.
Strangely, Margie does not seem at all surprised, and her eyes have a hint of… guilt. Is it possible that Margie had something to do with Lily’s injuries? Could Lily’s mother have done this to her? I try to shove those questions out of my head. I need to focus on today’s mission.
“Nick and Beta Robert, please bring Lily to her seat in the front next to Sheila.”
My father puts his hand on my shoulder. “Son, I do not think that is a good idea. It looks to me like Lily needs medical attention. You’wanted Lily here, and she is, but why don’t we just keep her on the side or in the b until the event is done?”
“NO! She will sit in the front next to Sheila, like planned.”
“Son….
“No, father. Lily and Sheila must sit together.”
Just as I say that, I hear Lily’s heart beginning to race. Despite our werewolf hearing, I do not think anyone else can hear it, but as her “mate”
I can because I am much more in tune with her than others.
I smirk.
“Little Mate, does it bother you that you have to sit next to Sheila today?”
I ask Lily via mind-link. She does not respond, but I do not care. Her increased heart-beat tells me that she is very much awake. “I invited Sheila to sit next to you when she left my bedroom this morning. You know, she stayed the night in my bedroom last night, which she often does these days.”
1
I see a tear slip from Lily’s closed eyes, which confirms that I am right. She can definitely hear me.
“Get ready, Little Mate. Sitting next to Sheila is only one part of the fun that I have planned for you this morning.
I end the mind-link. “Bring Lily to her seat,”
I say again to Nick. “It is show-time.”
New Book: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel
Dayson was the alpha of the largest pack in North America. Powerful figures from other packs sought to offer gorgeous girls as potential mates for Dayson. He steadfastly rejected these advances, he was not a pawn to be manipulated. But eventually there came a mysterious girl he could hardly say No. Who was she?