Lost Luna: Hunted By Two Savage Alphas

Alexis's POV:

My name was Alexis Harper. I was twenty-three, a columnist for the fashion magazine Urban Chic.

Bryan Harrison, my boyfriend of five years, was holding his first press conference that day. He'd spent three years on his gene-editing research, and now he was finally ready to share the results with the public.

Somehow, I felt more anxious than he probably did. I could hardly sleep the night before, so I got out of bed at four that morning and arranged a huge bouquet of imported white roses and eucalyptus. The flowers had taken three days to arrive. Even the florist said she'd never seen anyone make such a big deal over a bouquet.

Around eleven, I finished my article about fall and winter haute couture trends earlier than expected. Much to my surprise, my editor allowed me to leave before the end of my shift.

The bouquet hid most of my upper body as I hurried through the office building. My heels clicked fast against the tile floor, and my press badge kept hitting my chest.

Changing clothes hadn't been an option. I still had on the camel coat and silk blouse I'd worn to work that morning.

Bryan's press conference was taking place in the ballroom of the Skyline Hotel, an expensive hotel in the downtown area.

When I reached the ballroom, reporters had already filled the media section. Every camera seemed to be aimed at the stage.

After making my way into the reserved section, I took a spot near the side. I kept the flowers close to my chest so I wouldn't crush the little card tucked inside. The message was simple. "I'm so proud of you."

Onstage, Bryan wore a navy suit. The spotlight made him look so good that I almost couldn't believe he was real.

His presentation continued, but I didn't take in anything he said. I kept thinking ahead to the moment he stepped off the stage. I pictured myself as the first person he would hug, with that massive bouquet between us and every camera recording it.

The entertainment section might run a headline the next morning like "Brilliant Scientist Bryan Harrison Celebrates With His Girlfriend." I was already planning to frame the clipping and keep it on my desk.

Bryan's voice pulled me back. "I've shared the results of my research with you today, but there's something else I need to announce. To me, it's even more important."

Excitement rushed through me.

After a brief pause, he smiled at the crowd with a hint of nerves. "Someone came into my life and changed where it was headed."

My back straightened before I realized it. Tears were already gathering in my eyes, and my trembling hands nearly lost their grip on the flowers.

He had to be talking about me.

Five years ago, we met in the university library. Bryan hadn't known whether research was truly the future he wanted. I spent countless nights beside him and helped revise his papers. After his first rejection, he cried on my shoulder.

"Choosing her was the best decision I've ever made," said Bryan. He slipped a hand into his pocket and brought out an object.

Tears blurred my vision, but I still recognized the small square box.

Joy almost made me scream.

One step carried me forward as I raised the bouquet. I was ready to run to him as soon as he left the stage.

"Emily," he called out with a smile. "Come join me up here."

For a moment, the words made no sense to me.

Emily? Hearing that name felt like a hard hit, and a piercing noise filled my head.

I knew one of his lab colleagues named Emily Foster. She always tied her hair into a low ponytail and wore round glasses.

I spotted her in the front row with the invited guests. She was wearing a pale blue dress. She pressed one hand over her mouth, then stood and walked toward Bryan, her face flushed with emotion.

Cheers and whistles broke out across the ballroom.

As soon as Emily joined him, Bryan knelt and lifted the lid of the box. Inside was a diamond ring. I'd never seen it before, and it was bigger than any ring I'd ever imagined.

"Emily, will you marry me?"

I couldn't move.

The flowers somehow fell from my arms and landed on my foot, yet I hardly noticed the impact. A pair of white petals broke free and came to rest on my low-heeled pumps.

Reporters throughout the media section focused their cameras on the couple as they held each other onstage. One camera operator hurried past and slammed into my shoulder, which nearly knocked me off balance.

Bryan leaned over and kissed Emily's forehead. His hand had always been mine to hold, but now it rested around her waist. Her pale blue dress and his navy suit looked perfect together.

A hand caught my arm from behind.

"Alexis?"

Samantha Ward, one of my closest friends, had called my name. She was an entertainment reporter for Metro Weekly, which had an office next to Urban Chic. She had also come to report on the press conference.

She led me through the crowd and kept going until we were out in the hallway.

The shock had already numbed me by then.

"Are you all right?" Samantha took hold of my shoulders and brought her face closer to mine. "You look like you might pass out."

I tried to answer, but nothing came out.

Her eyes moved from my empty hands to the two petals on my shoes. The ruined bouquet was still inside the ballroom. People had crushed the flowers into the carpet, and broken eucalyptus leaves surrounded them.

"Those flowers..." My voice sounded weak and unsteady. "It took three days for them to get here."

Samantha hugged me and drew me against her shoulder. The scent of her perfume mixed with the coffee on her breath. That was when I noticed how badly I was trembling, and I couldn't make it stop.

"Was this my fault?" I asked. My words were muffled against her coat.

"Of course not." She stroked my back at a calm, even pace. "None of this was your fault."

"Then how could he..."

I couldn't finish the question. The tears I'd been holding in finally spilled over. They streamed down my cheeks and soaked Samantha's coat, leaving a dark stain on the fabric.

She looked at the damp patch but didn't mention it. Instead, her arms tightened around me.

Later, Samantha took me home, and neither of us spoke during the drive. She never asked me to explain what had happened. Every so often, she simply checked on me through the rearview mirror.

I rested my forehead against the cold window and watched the streetlights pass. My thoughts had gone quiet. There was no point trying to understand any of it because nothing made sense.

Once I reached home, my parents wanted to know how the press conference went and why I'd returned so soon. I told them I was tired and avoided saying anything else.

As soon as my bedroom door shut, I couldn't pretend to be fine anymore. My bag slid from my shoulder and landed on the floor. I stumbled across the room, fell facedown on the bed, and pressed my face into the pillow.

The crying wouldn't stop, and the pillowcase soon became soaked. I sank my teeth into my lip so no one would hear me. Each sob stayed trapped in my throat until it started to burn.

Time passed without me noticing. It could've been half an hour, or much longer. By the time the tears finally ran out, exhaustion had taken over, and my swollen eyelids ached.

Three soft but clear knocks came from the other side of the door. My body stiffened. I pushed myself upright, grabbed the comforter, and used it to dry my face.

After that, I crossed the room and opened the door.

Samantha was waiting outside.

"What are you doing here?" My own hoarse voice caught me off guard.

"The coworker who was supposed to travel with me backed out. We already paid for two plane tickets and a hotel room in Slawood next week. Our plan was to cover a few off-calendar Fashion Week events and take street-style photos for my articles. Now she's decided to attend her friend's wedding instead. The bookings can't be changed, and we won't get our money back. I don't want to make the trip alone." Samantha spoke with complete calm, as if she were discussing an ordinary day at work. "Come to Slawood with me."

Caden's POV:

I had the driver pull over near the far end of the overlook. One glance at my reflection in the rearview mirror told me everything-I looked dead inside.

"Alpha?" said my Beta, Eddie Blake, turning around from the front passenger seat.

"Leave me here," I said, my voice scraping low in my throat. "And make sure no one comes after me."

Eddie didn't try to argue.

I got out, and the door closed behind me before the black stretch limousine drove off along the mountain road. Its red taillights grew smaller with every turn until they vanished around the bend.

I headed for the railing by myself while the wind blew hard across the cliff and pulled at my suit jacket.

My tie was already gone. I'd ripped it off earlier and tossed it somewhere in the back seat. My shirt collar hung open, and cold air hit my neck and collarbone. I barely felt it.

For the last two years, I hadn't paid much attention to whether I was cold or warm.

I placed one hand on the metal chain barrier and stared at my fingers as the wind slowly turned my knuckles red. The cold still didn't bother me. My body still reacted, but everything felt too distant for me to care.

The city lights stretched toward the horizon far below me. Life carried on like normal down there, but from where I stood, I felt completely removed from it.

My fingers moved toward my neck without much thought. Then they touched something hard beneath my shirt, and the familiar ache returned.

I pulled the thin chain from under my collar and looked down at the round pendant hanging from it. There were no words carved into the metal. Instead, a dark wolf's head filled the center. Its face tilted upward slightly, with its fangs showing between parted jaws. The design was simple, sharp, and unmistakable.

It was the totem of the Ash Pack.

That same day two years ago, I'd put this chain around Alexis's neck myself.

That night two years ago had fallen around the same season, but the breeze had been much softer. Evening was slowly settling over the estate as Alexis leaned against the balcony railing in a white dress. Her hair spilled over her shoulders, and the fading sunlight still touched the side of her face even though the moon had already appeared in the dimming sky.

She noticed me coming closer and turned with a smile.

"Shut your eyes for me," I said.

"What are you up to now?" said Alexis with a laugh.

"Just close them."

Still smiling, she did as I asked. I moved behind her and gently brushed her hair away from the back of her neck before slipping the chain into place. The clasp clicked shut, and the cool metal made her flinch.

"It's freezing," said Alexis.

"All done," I said.

Her gaze dropped to the silver pendant. She ran her thumb across it, then turned to face me again. She traced her thumb across it for a moment, then turned around to face me again.

Seeing that look on her face was enough to pull me in, and I kissed her before I could stop myself.

Once we parted, Alexis looked at me and said, "Why a necklace?"

"You really have to ask?" I said with a quiet laugh as my thumb brushed the skin near her collarbone. "I want everyone to know you're mine. You're the Luna of the Ash Pack, and you're mine."

Alexis didn't answer, but the look in her eyes told me she treasured every word.

Nothing in my life had ever made me happier than that moment.

Back then, I truly believed we'd already survived the hardest part and that better days were finally waiting for us. For once, I'd even believed the Moon Goddess had decided to show me some mercy.

I couldn't have been more wrong. Maybe the Moon Goddess had never been on my side to begin with.

Soft footsteps approached from behind. Whoever was approaching moved quietly enough that the wind nearly covered the sound. Still, an Alpha's hearing wasn't easy to fool, and I heard every step.

I'd noticed the scent before the footsteps ever reached me. It was faint beneath the cold night air, the smell of metal from the railing, and the exhaust drifting up from the city, but there was no mistaking it.

Cedar came first, followed by old ink and the lightest trace of gun oil.

Only one place had ever carried that exact combination.

I stayed where I was, though the tightness in my shoulders eased slightly.

Someone tall and lean waited near the entrance of the overlook, mostly hidden by the shadows. He wore a black hoodie, the hood pulled so low it hid everything above his mouth.

One hand remained at his side with a curved hunting knife clenched between his fingers. A thin strip of light caught the blade, revealing the silver coating along its surface.

Without giving me any warning, he rushed forward and swung the knife straight for my throat.

I moved out of its path and grabbed his wrist before he could recover. My thumb nearly pressed into the joint out of instinct, but I stopped myself and changed my hold, restraining him instead of snapping his wrist.

The knife slipped from his grasp and slammed against the chain barrier with a sharp metallic sound before falling over the cliff. Somewhere far below, a weak echo came back through the darkness.

Before I could release him, his other hand reached for his waist and pulled out a shorter blade. He aimed for my throat again, but I turned aside before it reached me. The edge swept past my ear, and my left hand closed around his wrist before he could strike a second time.

That weapon fell next. It hit the ground, rolled twice, and finally stopped.

He tried to drive his knee into my stomach, but I caught the movement and turned his momentum against him. In one motion, I twisted him around and forced him against the barrier. The chain pressed hard into his back as his upper body leaned over the edge, and a gust of wind rushed up the cliff and lifted the edge of his hood.

I forced one of his arms behind him and pressed my knee against his lower back, keeping him firmly in place.

Still, I made sure not to hurt him more than necessary. At this distance, the cedar scent was impossible to miss.

Then hurried footsteps came from the entrance, and two beams of light swept across the overlook.

"Alpha!" said Eddie.

Vince Gibson, one of my other guards, had arrived with him. Both men carried flashlights in one hand and guns in the other, with their weapons aimed directly at us. The safeties were already off, although Vince kept his finger resting against the frame instead of the trigger.

I immediately spoke to them through the pack mind-link.

"He's not a threat," I said. "Put the guns down."

Eddie stayed still for a moment.

Vince also paused. His flashlight shifted slightly before the beam returned to the man beneath me.

"Lower them. Now," I said.

Another two seconds passed before Eddie finally dropped his weapon to his side and turned the safety back on.

Vince did the same before returning his gun to its holster, although he kept one hand wrapped around the grip.

I slipped my thumb beneath the man's hood and pulled it back little by little.

Once his face was uncovered, the dim lights around the overlook made him easy to recognize.

"I know you," I said.

It was Henry Carter. He had become chief of the South Precinct three years ago, and we'd worked together several times during operations involving both the Ash Pack and the police.

We'd exchanged handshakes, sat across from each other over coffee, and spent hours studying maps during planning meetings.

He'd even come to Ash Pack territory for dinner once, where we'd ended up talking about border patrols for most of the night.

Yet now, he was standing in front of me wearing a black hoodie with one arm still pinned behind him. A fresh scrape near his temple was bleeding-he'd hit the chain when I took him down.

I kept my hold on him.

He didn't look worried or angry about being caught. Instead, he remained surprisingly calm before motioning toward his trapped arm with his chin.

"Think you can let me go now?" said he.

I studied him for a few more seconds before finally releasing his wrist.

Once he was free, he stood upright and brushed the dust from his hoodie. He didn't seem bothered when the wind pushed his hair out of place.

"Two months ago, the South Precinct started looking into a crew of rogue werewolves," said Henry. "They've been running across the border and set up in an abandoned industrial park on the north side of the city. We still don't have an exact head count, but there are enough of them to be a serious problem. We've also confirmed that they've stockpiled a large amount of silver ammunition. They recently got a new leader, and things have become a lot more difficult since then. We've already tried hitting them twice, but both operations failed before we could get anywhere. At this point, we're almost certain someone inside the department has been warning them ahead of time."

I rested back against the barrier. "And that's why you tracked me down," I said.

"I need help from your pack," said Henry, looking straight at me. "But considering how you've been for the last two years, I didn't know if you'd even care anymore. People say you've been walking around like the dead."

The wind nearly carried his words away, but my hearing was sharp enough to catch every one of them.

I pushed myself away from the barrier. "Fine," I said. "What exactly do you need from me?"

Damian's POV:

Cool moisture rushed into the cabin as soon as the door swung open.

Slawood International Airport smelled of jet fuel and some sweet perfume I couldn't name.

Above the runway, heavy clouds pressed down in a flat, lifeless gray.

For several seconds, I remained at the top of the stairs and studied the distant terminal.

"Alpha." Barry Morgan, my Beta, came up behind me and spoke quietly. "The car is ready at the east exit."

After giving him a brief nod, I headed down the stairs. Four guards surrounded me at once. Two moved ahead while the other two followed behind, shielding me as we crossed the airport.

Barry moved nearer, his voice low enough to feel against my ear. "We've heard that Caden Murray, the Alpha of the Ash Pack, has made a deal with the police. The ledger... isn't with us anymore."

My pace stayed even, but something in my face tightened.

Bound in hard black leather, the ledger contained handwritten details of every transaction, including dates, locations, and amounts. It also listed the code names and contact details of several important figures.

Once the police got hold of it, the rogue werewolf network we'd built across the northern district would fall apart.

"Who gave us this information?" I asked.

"Someone working on the inside. Henry Carter, the chief of the South Precinct, went to see Caden himself." Worry slipped into Barry's voice despite his effort to hide it. "If they use that ledger as evidence, we'll lose everything in the northern district."

"That's enough," I cut him off.

We arrived at the glass doors leading to the east exit. A light rain had turned the parking lot outside into a blur of gray.

"Two things matter now. We get the ledger back first. Then..." I faced Barry and spoke without emotion. "Caden dies."

Several steps later, I waited beneath the awning while our driver pulled the car around.

Near the curb, the four guards spread into a semicircle and watched the traffic as well as everyone passing by.

I slipped my hands into my pockets and drew in the wet air. It smelled of car exhaust and rain-soaked concrete. Under that was coffee from the terminal, strong cleaning chemicals, and traces of perfume left by nearby travelers.

Another fragrance reached me then, but the rain had nearly washed it away.

Jasmine drifted in with the wind, mixed with the clean smell of rain.

I'd smelled it in my dreams.

My head snapped toward the scent. Two young women stepped through a side door and hurried across the wet pavement toward the taxi stand.

The woman ahead wore a cropped cashmere coat in camel brown. Short hair framed her face. One hand covered her head while the other waved frantically for a taxi.

Her companion walked a few steps behind, and I couldn't look away from her. An ivory trench coat covered her, and its hem rose whenever the wind caught it. She didn't rush like the other woman. Instead, she walked with her head lowered and searched inside her bag.

Her hair was wet from the rain, and several loose strands stuck to her cheek. She tilted her face away from the downpour before wiping the water from her cheekbone.

Another gust brought the jasmine back to me, and its scent was clearer now.

Only fifteen paces separated us. She stood at an angle, so I could see only part of her face. Her nose was straight, her profile delicate-the kind of face you'd find in an old painting. The belt around her trench coat hung loosely at her waist. Rain had darkened the fabric across her upper back.

She kept looking through her bag and tipped her head slightly. Her lips tightened with concentration, while tiny drops of rain rested on her lashes.

"Come on, Alexis!" her short-haired friend shouted from beside the taxis. "It's pouring out here, and I'm wearing cashmere!"

At last, she raised her head and took a small pale blue umbrella from her bag. The rain no longer hid her face, and her bright eyes came clearly into view.

Light freckles crossed her cheekbones, while the cold rain had turned the end of her nose pink.

Her lips curved into a smile, and my chest locked.

"I've got it. I'm coming!"

The umbrella opened with a snap. Its pale blue canopy stood out against the gloomy weather as she rushed to join her friend.

For a moment, I couldn't draw a breath.

Nothing about her had changed. I recognized her face, her smile, and the way she wrapped her fingers around the umbrella handle. I froze for a second, then ran after her.

"Alpha!" Barry called from behind me.

I shoved past two travelers in my path. A rolling suitcase slammed into my shin, but I kept running. Rain struck my face and drenched my hair and suit almost at once. Water ran into my eyes, yet I never looked away from the blue umbrella moving through the crowd.

"Alexis!" I yelled.

My voice barely carried through the downpour, and she kept walking without looking back.

A taxi was already waiting beside the curb. Her short-haired friend got into the back first. Alexis closed the umbrella and leaned down to climb in after her. I caught one last glimpse of her face through the doorway before she slipped inside.

"Hold on!" I got there just as the door shut.

My fingers grazed the wet rear window, but the vehicle had begun to move.

The driver kept going. Its taillights blended into the airport traffic as the taxi carried her and the pale blue umbrella away.

I chased it for another five or six steps, but the cars ahead quickly gained speed. Rain blurred the license plate until it became nothing more than a light-colored mark, then it disappeared.

"Alpha!" Barry rushed over and raised a black umbrella above me. "W-what happened? Who did you see?"

No answer came from me. I stood in the rain and stared at the turn where the taxi had vanished. My breathing remained hard and uneven after the chase.

Alexis had been mine, and she'd been dead for two years. Had I truly seen her just now?

That woman had Alexis's face. She'd even held the umbrella the same way, and she'd lowered her lashes just as Alexis used to whenever she searched through her bag.

Water continued to fall from my chin.

I glanced toward the bend one final time before getting into the car that waited for me.

Only a weak trace of jasmine remained in the rain.

Somewhere in this city, she was alive, and I intended to find her.

I wouldn't lose her again. If I had to lock her up to keep her, then so be it-she was never leaving my side again.