Rejected Luna's Escape

The first rays of dawn filtered through the thin curtains of my room, awakening me from a fitful sleep. My fingers instinctively reached for my grandfather's pendant before remembering its absence. The hollow feeling in my chest expanded, threatening to consume me entirely.

A sharp knock at the door startled me. Beta Ryan stood there, his expression carefully neutral, though I caught a flicker of discomfort in his eyes.

"Alpha Alexander requests your presence in his study immediately," he said, his voice low.

I nodded, quickly dressing in one of my simple Luna gowns. The walk to Alexander's study felt like marching to an execution. Each step echoed my decision from last night. Ten days. Ten days until I could perform the rejection ceremony and free myself from this torment.

When I entered, Alexander sat behind his imposing desk, Madison perched on its edge like she belonged there. Her fingers toyed with my grandfather's pendant around her neck, the sight sending a fresh wave of pain through me.

"Victoria," Alexander said, my name sounding like a curse on his lips. "As of today, you are relieved of all Luna duties."

I stood frozen, though the news wasn't surprising. For years, I'd been Luna in name only.

"Madison will assume all ceremonial responsibilities," he continued coldly. "You will serve as a house attendant."

Madison smirked, sliding off the desk to approach me. She held out a folded gray uniform, the kind worn by the lowest-ranked pack members assigned to cleaning duties.

"You can change now," she said sweetly, her eyes glittering with malice.

Alexander didn't even look up from his papers. "Do as she says."

My fingers trembled as I took the coarse fabric. "May I change in private?"

"No," Madison answered before Alexander could. "Right here will do."

I stood rooted to the spot, humiliation burning through me. *This is just another test*, Lyra whispered weakly. *Stay strong*.

Slowly, I removed my Luna gown, feeling their eyes on me as I slipped into the gray uniform. The fabric scratched against my skin, a physical reminder of my new status.

"Perfect," Madison purred. "Now, I'd like breakfast served in the main dining room. Don't keep us waiting."

The kitchen staff watched with wide eyes as I entered, their former Luna now dressed as a servant. The head cook, Martha, who had known me since I arrived at the pack, pressed her lips together in a thin line.

"I need to prepare breakfast for the Alpha and Madison," I said quietly.

Martha nodded, her eyes filled with pity. "I've already started the preparations, Luna."

"I'm not the Luna anymore," I whispered, the words burning my throat.

"You'll always be our Luna," she replied softly, before showing me what needed to be done.

I carried the heavy breakfast tray into the dining room, where Alexander and Madison sat in intimate conversation. My hands shook with exhaustion and emotion as I set down plates of food and poured their tea.

Madison deliberately shifted her arm as I poured, causing the hot liquid to splash onto her silk gown.

"You clumsy bitch!" she shrieked, jumping to her feet.

Alexander's chair scraped back, his eyes flashing with rage. "What have you done?"

"I-I'm sorry," I stammered, setting down the teapot. "It was an accident."

"Clean it," Alexander commanded, his Alpha tone vibrating through the room. "Now."

The force of his command drove me to my knees before Madison. Without a cloth in reach, I knew what they expected. Swallowing my pride, I reached out with trembling fingers to dab at the stain on her gown.

Madison's laugh tinkled like broken glass as I knelt before her, my fingers burning from the hot tea. "Careful now," she taunted. "This silk is worth more than you are."

After breakfast, I escaped to the only place that still brought me peace—the medicinal herb garden I'd cultivated behind the pack house. The familiar scents of lavender, rosemary, and healing herbs enveloped me as I knelt in the soil, tending to the plants that had become my only friends.

*Ten more days*, I reminded myself, gently pruning a wilting stem. *Just ten more days*.

A shadow fell across the garden, blocking the sun. I looked up to find Madison standing there, a cruel smile playing on her lips.

"So this is where you hide," she said, stepping deliberately onto a patch of delicate seedlings.

"Please don't," I said, rising quickly. "These plants are for healing the pack."

"Your pack?" she laughed, reaching down to uproot a mature valerian plant I'd nurtured for months. "You have no pack, Victoria. You have nothing."

I lunged forward instinctively to stop her, grabbing her wrist. "These are medicinal herbs. They help people."

With shocking speed, Madison drew her nails across her own wrist, creating deep scratches. Blood welled immediately as she let out a piercing scream.

"Alexander!" she cried. "Help me! She's attacking me!"

Heavy footsteps pounded toward us. Alexander appeared, his face contorted with fury as he took in the scene—Madison bleeding, my hand still on her wrist.

"What have you done?" he roared, rushing to Madison's side.

"She attacked me when I found her destroying pack property," Madison sobbed, collapsing dramatically into his arms.

"I didn't—" I began, but Alexander's raised hand silenced me.

"Take her to the dungeon," he ordered the guards who had followed him. "Three days without food. Perhaps that will teach her respect."

As the guards dragged me away, I caught Madison's triumphant smile over Alexander's shoulder, my grandfather's pendant gleaming at her throat.

The dungeon door slammed behind me, plunging me into darkness. Alone in the cold cell, I curled into myself, the stone floor harsh against my body.

*Nine days left*, I thought, a strange calm settling over me. *And nothing—not even this—will stop me from breaking free*.

In the darkness, for the first time in years, I felt Lyra stir with renewed purpose within me. *We will survive this*, she whispered. *And then we will be free*.