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“Luna?” I asked, unnerved. What the hell was I supposed to do with this woman?
“You are the one this woman has gone against. If she won’t fight me, I have the right to choose her punishment. I would like you to choose that punishment for her.”
I thought long and hard for a few minutes before I turned back to her. “May I ask her a question?”
“Of course.”
I walked forward until I was standing in front of Traci. Looking at the blubbering mess in front of me, I couldn’t believe I let this woman have so much power over my life. I needed to know just one thing before I could push her voice from my life.
“Why? Why did you see the need to torture me and make me feel beneath you?”
I watched as her face told me she’d never thought about the question I asked her. Her face slowly changed from the lost, little girl look, transforming back into the girl I used to fear being around. She wiped the tears from her eyes and snarled at me, but I was no longer scared.
“Because you are! You think you’re special because they took you into their elite group? You are nothing. Just like me!” she hissed. I shook my head at her words, realizing this was all about her own self-hate. It was never about who I was.
“You were not nothing, Traci. You had a group of girls hanging on your every word. You were the most popular girl in school. Even Bells wasn’t as popular because she didn’t like hanging out with people and they began to avoid her. You had more power than you thought.” I sighed. “Or maybe I just gave you that power. These guys aren’t elite. They’re people who have fears and doubts and question their worth, just like I do. Just like you do, clearly. That’s where you went wrong. If you wanted to be their friend, all you had to do was treat them like the kids they were. I can’t believe you rejected your mate because you thought a title was more important. You’re going to go through life missing that other half of your soul. Was it really worth it for a man that always made it clear he wouldn’t be with anyone but his fated mate? It’s the most foolish thing I’ve ever seen anyone do.” I turned around and began walking back to Celeste to tell her I was done. That Traci living the life she’d chosen was punishment enough, when Kara ran at me, and I froze.
But Kara wasn’t running at me. She ran past me and grabbed Traci by the throat, who was about to ambush me with her hands turned into claws. Celeste’s hands began to glow with the telltale sign of her fire gift, and Traci started to whimper and then scream. I smelled the stench of burning flesh and took a step back, right into Cory’s arms.
“I don’t know what the fuck is wrong with you! It’s like you don’t have a fucking brain. She gave you a chance to explain yourself. She was showing you fucking mercy, trying to make you understand and you try to ambush her? Why should I let you live?” Kara snarled, making every person around us bare their neck as her aura slipped outward in her anger. Traci continued to shriek as the skin on her neck and chin sizzled and charred. As much as I thought Traci deserved to be punished, I didn’t want her blood on Kara’s hands. Traci was my demon to fight.
“Kara, I know what I want her punishment to be.” Kara turned and looked at me without dropping Traci, who was now clawing at Kara’s hands, shrieking as the fire in them burnt her own. Kara wasn’t even flinching as I watched the scratches Traci was leaving healing even as more wounds were made. “I want her to work in the janitorial staff of the long-term care facility in Guardian Moon. Maybe if she’s able to see what real pain and suffering look like, she might finally understand how blessed she was. Maybe she’ll understand that there are worse things in this world than being an omega, as she believes.”
Kara cocked her head as she considered my words. The long-term care facility in Guardian Moon housed people that Uncle Helios had helped save over two decades ago from laboratories that were experimenting and torturing shifters and vampires. They were trying to play god, trying to create a hybrid that would be forced to obey an alpha but live as long as vampires . Most of the people rescued had long since recovered and integrated themselves into the pack. A small group of the rescued shifters, though, were scarred beyond the help therapy and doctors could provide. They were trapped in their minds, forced to relive the hell they went through day in and day out. I volunteered there when I was younger, and it hurt my heart to see the brokenness in their eyes.
"That’s a great idea.” Kara smiled proudly at me before her eyes went back to Traci. “Be grateful she stepped in because I don’t forgive people that fuck around with my family or interfere with other people’s mates.” She dropped Traci, and I refused to flinch at the scarred tissue that would remain on her neck and face from the way her wolf tried to heal the damage to her skin. “Zack, can you please escort this young lady to the pack hospital?”
“Of course, Luna, with pleasure.” Zack was one of Celeste’s old personal bodyguards while she was luna. He now helped train the new shifters in basic training.
Maybe I could get him to help me, I thought as I watched him drag Traci toward the hospital.
We walked inside the pack house, and before we could head anywhere, Celeste caught up with us. “Can we have a word with both of you?”
Cory nodded, and we followed Celeste and Markus to Cory’s office and sat down.
“I’m sorry you went through all of that. I didn’t expect you guys for another hour. She shouldn’t have gotten anywhere near you.” Celeste sighed as we all sat down.
“Mom that wasn’t your fault.”
“Her actions, no. Waiting until the last moment before I grabbed her, yes. I was hoping to teach her a lesson, but not at the expense of Evie’s mental health.”
“I’m okay, Celeste. This actually helped me,” I answered, making all three of them turn to look at me. I turned my attention to Cory so I could explain.
“I think I want to train. I’ve never done anything past basic training and the fact that Traci challenged me thinking I would be an easy fight doesn’t sit well with me. I was going to ask Zack if he would take some time to train me in the afternoons.”
Celeste was nodding approvingly, but Cory looked unsure.
“You don’t have to, Evie. You shouldn’t have been challenged to begin with.”
“No, but that’s life, right? There will always be a Traci wanting power. I’m about to become your luna and I refuse to be your weakness because of it. There’s already a threat looming over our heads.”
“She’s right, son. As much as I hated it, Celeste’s training was necessary. She had her fair share of challenges and her skills were invaluable during all the missions,” Markus pointed out. When Cory still looked conflicted, so I grabbed and squeezed his hand.
“I don’t want to be a warrior. I don’t have the stomach for it, but I need to be able to defend what is mine,” I said. Cory’s lips twitched at my words, and his eyes burned with heat, happy that I claimed him this way. Finally, he groaned and rubbed his forehead.
“Fine, but not Zack. His schedule is pretty full right now and he’s got vacation coming next month.”
“I can train her. We can call it part of the luna training,” Celeste suggested and I paled, making her laugh. “I promise I won’t be trying to hurt you. I’ll make it fun.” I highly doubted it, but I nodded, nonetheless.
