Chapter 4: Betrayed
-Celeste-
Something was terribly wrong. Not only had my own mate declared he was going to have a second luna, who was going to take his first luna’s place, but I had been removed from the bedroom, and when I walked around in my pack, they looked at me as if I were the enemy—not Zack. I couldn’t believe this. In just such a short time, everything had changed, and no one would tell me why. Whenever I tried to contact my brother, it was silent, and if I tried to talk to my parents, they only told me to be patient. Patient for what? What was going on? Every night was torture because I could feel them together. I could feel Zack being with her, praising her body, while I had been placed in a tiny bedroom and forced to be by myself. I barely dared leave my room anymore. The pack didn’t speak to me, they cut off the mind-link, my own friends had turned against me, and my own family refused to tell me what was happening.
I was all alone.
I’m still here, my wolf pointed out, and her voice so weak because of the torture we had both endured.
How could my own mate do this to us? Being fated meant loving each other above everything else, but in no time, Zack had turned his back on me.
Celeste?
“What?” I whispered.
Did you hear me? my wolf questioned.
I shrugged as I gazed out of the window, looking at the storm outside. I was dressed in the biggest hoodie that covered me like a dress, and we curled up together in a big chair. I hadn’t even decorated the room, just used the things that stood there already. It felt nothing like the warm and safe space I had shared with Zack.
Celeste!
“I heard you,” I replied.
Then why aren’t you talking to me? Are we going to ignore each other as well? my wolf asked.
“I don’t know. Does it matter?”
You can’t let this break you. Go to him. Show him why we are still his mate!
“Why should I?” I whispered.
Because that is what we are. We are his mate, my wolf reminded me.
“But why should we fight for him? He is the one who discards us like used underwear. How could he do this to us?” I asked, feeling the tears in my eyes come back.
I couldn’t believe I had more tears to spill, but there they were. They just seemed never-ending. I hated it. I cried for him. I hated that I even felt like this, but because of our bond and how he betrayed it every night, I felt soul-crushing pain. Was I the only one who felt it? Why was I the one being punished when I had always stayed fateful?
We will find a way back from this, my wolf assured me.
“How come you don’t want to kill him? Or at least hurt him?” I asked, feeling anger rise in me. I had never felt this way before. It felt crushing, but also strengthening. The anger was the only thing keeping me from completely falling apart.
I do. But us wolves are slaves to the bond. I can’t hurt him, even though I want to, my wolf told me.
“So what?” I whispered.
We could reject him, she suggested.
“And go where?”
Home.
“I have nothing there. My own family keeps me in the fucking dark,” I snarled. “Besides, rejecting each other could destroy me. I could lose my mind. There is a reason we have hesitated.”
But he has already betrayed us. Maybe this will make it easier, she tried.
"I don’t know. I’m scared,” I admitted.
I am, too.
“And what if my family won’t even take me back? The pack has turned on us, thinking somehow all of this is my fault,” I cried.
I don’t know why they are doing it. Maybe you’re right. Maybe they do think we should have kept our alpha’s interest, or maybe Zack is lying.
“Lying?” I questioned.
Maybe he is saying we betrayed him first. If that is the case, who would blame him for moving on?
“I don’t even know who she is! She just showed up!” I yelled.
I know.
“Besides, when would I have had the time to sleep with anyone? I am here, or I am with Zack!”
Maybe when we go visit our family, as my wolf pointed out.
“Which we do so rarely. It’s not fair,” I sighed.
No, it’s not.
I wiped the tears away, trying not to crumble. I knew I couldn’t go on like this forever. I had to find a way out, so maybe I should try rejecting Zack. I knew there was a chance I might lose my mind, but maybe insanity was better than this awful feeling in my heart.
With new resolve, I nodded to myself before I prepared for bed.
It was in the middle of the night when I heard a strange sound. It was much like the creak of a floorboard. Slowly, I opened my eyes, still disoriented from sleep. However, I couldn’t see anything but a dark wall in front of me. Just as I was about to turn, I saw something dark coming over me. I screamed, but a hand quickly slammed down over my mouth before I was being pressed into the bed.
Fight back! my wolf shouted.
I tried my hardest, but the person above me was much stronger. Suddenly, my attacker pulled out something that glinted in the light from the hallway—it was a knife.
Celeste! Let me take over! my wolf urged.
In my panic state, I could barely connect with my wolf, but I tried my hardest to allow her to take charge. My body began changing, but just then the knife came flying down toward me and hit me right in the chest. I gasped, feeling the sharp pain, while darkness slowly began surrounding me, pulling me into a peaceful world.