Chapter 3 - Mira
I’m in wolf form. The scents around me are sharper. The air is crisper. Every sound is on its highest volume and the world is vibrating with energy that I see far more clearly when I let Mika take control.
I walk in a trot back to my apartment. The soft pads of Mika’s feet move over the long green grasses silently.
Usually, I have the forest entirely to myself on my morning runs with her.
That’s why we get up so early, before the rest of the pack.
It’s the most peaceful time of day, and I love sitting by the river while she listens to the forest come alive at sunrise.
The moment she caught his scent, I had to jump into action to stop her from running to him. Jux was further downriver, his pure black coat slick with water, as dark as midnight. His eyes pierced into Mika’s as he watched us through the trees. I could feel the energy rippling off him toward me.
My heart was beating faster than it had in years, and Mika was practically tearing at her restraints.
Jux is twice the size I remember him being.
If I didn’t instantly recognize his scent, I would’ve been terrified to stumble across him alone in the woods.
He looks like a hellhound, massive and imposingly strong.
His eyes were devilish and ominous. I can’t imagine a single shifter who would dare challenge him for his position as Alpha.
My brother was standing behind him, also bigger than I remember, but nowhere near as captivating or terrifying. I could hardly convince Mika to tear her eyes off Jux long enough to even see my brother.
Mudder was, as Mudder always is…coated in river clay and looking ridiculously happy about it.
They must be thrilled to be home. To be back in the forest. Thrilled, but also overwhelmed. Is it strange for them to see that nothing has changed? Or has a lot changed, and it happened so gradually that I’m the one who didn’t notice it.
Back in my cottage, I shift back to human form and stretch my arms high above my head. My body pulses with energy after my run. Or was it the encounter with the man who shattered my heart in ways that can’t even be put into words?
He’s back. You’re going to have to speak to him at some point.
No, I think I will rather go out of my way to avoid him. I’m sure he’s going to be busy with Alpha rituals and duties and pack business. There is no reason for the tech-girl to be in the presence of the Alpha.
My skin is still burning icy cold from our swim in the river, so I skip the shower to savor the pleasant freshness and get dressed to head straight to my workshop. I need a distraction from Mika’s relentless agitation. Seeing Jux was not good for her. Or me.
At the workshop, I bury myself in a new project I’m working on.
I’m trying to create an automated system for the school to keep the kids entertained and focused during lessons.
Rayanna keeps talking about having more modern technology to present her lessons on, so I want to create a program and presentation platform for her to build lessons from scratch on, making her life easier in the long run.
I’m deep in programming mode when Miles arrives, knocking on my door, his familiar scent filling my space.
“Hey, you,” he smiles awkwardly. “You’re all grown up,” he says.
I stand, turning to face him. “You too. You look good,” I smile.
It’s weird seeing my brother. He is my brother, but at the same time, I have no idea who he is. Throughout my whole life, I’ve barely known him.
When our parents were killed, I went to live with our aunt, and I was taken into the pack mansion.
He has Alpha blood and is ranked a Beta alongside Jace.
He is ranked higher in social status than I am, and he grew up with privileged treatment.
They had already chosen him to stand by his Alpha's side from the moment he was born.
Miles picks up a motherboard and clumsy tosses it in his hand. I rush forward to snatch it away from him. “Be careful, that’s delicate,” I huff, stressed.
“Sorry,” he mutters, embarrassed.
We shift awkwardly, unsure what to say to each other.
“So, you do all the tech stuff around here. I had no idea,” he muses.
“Hardly anyone knows I do it. But they all reap the benefits of it,” I roll my eyes.
“Still keeping to yourself?” he asks.
“I find it makes life a lot easier to stay out of people’s way,” I smile tightly.
He snorts, a quiet laugh, “That’s going to be difficult after tomorrow night, though, isn’t it?”
My brows furrow and my eyes narrow in confusion. “Why? What’s happening tomorrow night?” I ask, wondering if there is some big tech project they want me on that they haven’t told me about yet.
“The Alpha is being sworn in,” he says, confused that I don’t know what already.
“Ok, yes, I know…but…” I shrug, still confused about what it has to be with me staying out of people’s way.
“The Moon Goddess named you as his Luna,” Miles stammers, “You’re his fated mate. I thought you’d been told,” he says, his eyes wide as he watches the shock flood over my face.
“I…” I can’t find the words. Mika’s hackles are spiked up in excitement, and a shiver runs down my spine. I shake it off.
“Sorry, Mira, I honestly thought someone had told you. It was announced this morning at the elders' breakfast,” he explains.
“I…” I still can’t find my words.
He chuckles. “You…?”
I huff out a harsh breath and force myself to focus.
“I didn’t know. Thanks for telling me,” I snap.
“Ok, uh, I guess maybe you need some time to process,” Miles smiles tightly. He takes a step backward, toward the door. “I’ll see you around. This stuff all looks cool, by the way, good job,” he adds.
“Thanks,” I mutter, not paying attention.
My brother leaves, and for a long time, I can’t move. My feet won’t obey me, and Mika is busy arguing with the single thought that is spinning through my mind. I can’t stay here. I have to leave.
These people have been nothing but cruel to me since I was a kid.
My life here hasn’t been a walk in the park, and now they expect me to be the Luna?
Worse… I’ll be Luna to an Alpha who has already rejected me once before.
What if he plans on rejecting me again, in front of everyone?
I don’t know if Mika will survive that kind of pain.
No one respects me. People look at me like I’m an outcast, a weirdo. Something to be gawked at or completely ignored.
I can’t do this.
I can’t be Luna to a pack I don’t even like.
I have to leave. And I have to do it now.
Mika isn’t arguing anymore. As much as she wants to be with Jux, the thought of being rejected again and the agony that will follow is too much for her to bear. She’s ready to run, too. Even though it hurts to leave Jux, it hurts less than a rejection.
Leaving my workshop as is, I run back home.
Grabbing a backpack, I shove a few essential basics into it. I can’t take a lot. I must remain inconspicuous if I want to get off the compound without alerting anyone.
I’ll tell the guards I’m going to town for equipment. Just a normal trip to the store. Nothing else.
Except they will probably smell the anxiety seeping through my pores.
***
With my things packed and the backpack strung over my shoulder, I slowly spin around to take in my little cottage. It’s the last time I will see it. It has been my home, my safe escape from the rest of the world, and leaving it is heartbreaking and terrifying. But staying will be far worse.
Being rejected by an Alpha will destroy me in more ways than one. My pack will ostracize me even more than they already have. I can’t stay, Mika. I’m so sorry. But it’s you and me. We’ll get through this, no matter where we end up.
Rogue. That’s where you’ll end up.
I shove the thought from my mind. I can’t deal with that now. I’ll find another pack. I have skills. I can figure this out.
It’s early afternoon when I step out of my cottage, leaving the front door unlocked.
I walk in a straight line towards the forest, thinking it’ll be easier to leave through the less-utilized path.
Mika is whimpering, but not arguing, as we stroll between the trees.
It isn’t until we’re almost at the edge of our territory that I smell him.
Mika leaps into high alertness. The skin on the back of my neck tingles.
“Mira, it’s been a long time,” Jace says, his voice deeper than before. Smooth and husky as it drifts through me like sweet, dark caramel.
I bite my lower lip and turn slowly towards him. He walks closer, too close. Only a few feet from me.
“Hi, Jace,” I say, smiling but tense.
“You’ve changed since I last saw you,” he muses.
“Filled out. Taller. Your hair has changed color, too,” he says, leaning his shoulder against a tree and folding his thick, muscular arms across his chest. Muscles bulge at the cuffs of his black t-shirt.
Fuck. He has filled out like crazy. He got so freaking tall that I have to crane my neck back to look him in the eyes.
His black hair is thicker and falls in his eyes like dark silk.
The cropped shadow of black stubble over his face frames his square jaw perfectly.
He’s fucking gorgeous. The most attractive man I’ve ever seen in my life.
My body starts to vibrate in response to him, and it’s almost impossible to hide the reaction from him.
Worst, I know he can smell me. My body is betraying me as honey spills between my legs.
He smirks, cocking his head to the side as his dark eyes trace over me in slow motion.
“Where are you going, Mira?” he asks.
His scent has changed, too. It’s still him, but the intensity of it… It’s so hard to control myself or my wolf with him this close to me.
“I… I’m going for an afternoon hike,” I stammer, trying to take a step away from him.
“With a backpack?” he muses.
“Snacks,” I blurt out.
“I don’t smell snacks,” he says slowly.
Suddenly, his black eyes flare, and his mouth pulls tight.
“Are you trying to leave the compound?” he snarls angrily.
I jump back in fright as his alpha voice booms over me.
“I…I…. I can’t stay here!” I blurt out in desperation.
“You are staying, Mira. You are fated to be my mate, and I will not let you run away with your tail between your legs!”
He grabs my arm and yanks me towards him, my breasts press against his solid chest, and my lungs heave as I fight for air.
He lowers his voice, dark and deadly. “You’re lucky I’m not the Alpha yet,” he snarls. I know what the threat means. It means he would use his Alpha command to make me do whatever he wants. But he hasn’t been sworn in yet, and that would be against the rules.
I bite my lip and fight two kinds of panic that are searing through my body.
One, because I can barely string a comprehensive thought together, being this close to him and Mika is about to shift and betray me.
Two, because I’ve lost the one chance that I had to escape this place and whatever fate has in store for me.
Jace hardly speaks as he drags me back to the compound.
Instead of taking me home, he takes me to the mansion, and to my horror, he locks me in one of the rooms on the upper floor. The floor is reserved for the Alpha.
“The New Moon is tomorrow night. I can’t risk you trying to escape before then,” he says, before locking the door and leaving me trapped with my thoughts.
For the life of me, I can’t understand why he doesn’t reject me and choose someone else.
Not that I want that pain! It’s what I was expecting him to do, but now it seems he’s determined to force me to be his Luna.
The pack will never want this. Why doesn’t he choose someone more suited and let me leave in silence?
Mika paces in agitation. She’s unsettled, wanting to be near Jux again. At least one of us is excited about this whole mess.