Luna's Hidden Legacy

CHAPTER 1

LUNA MOONCREST

Life has never been a smooth ride for me in any way. I had a very easy journey living with my parents and other extended family members who made life worth living as a child.

Little did I know that I was only being prepared for the worst days of my life.

I never thought the same people I once bonded with and called family would one day turn their backs on me.

My name is Luna Mooncrest and my life has been a rollercoaster of emotions, following the death of my parents.

As if that was not enough humiliation already, the moon goddess chose to punish me further by rendering me wolfless and without a mate.

I literally turned into a laughing stock in the same pack where my parents were once rulers.

"We'll be back before you know it. We can't just let him die that way."

Those were the last words I ever heard from my parent's lips, and the rest of it was history. Everyone was in complete awe of their sudden disappearance, not until a fellow pack member visited the packhouse to announce their death.

It was as if a new chapter was automatically opened for me by my extended family.

"Oh, so they are finally dead? Finally, we can breathe some fresh air." I heard my cousin, Delia say from a distance.

It didn't stop there. My uncle was not left out, alongside his wife.

"Now is the time to take over what rightfully belongs to me." He spilled boldly, striking his mustache with his thumb. "What more is left for you, Mooncrest?"

"Of course, we all know she is now automatically our maid." Delia added, laughing heartily to herself.

This all sounded like planned work, like they had all been waiting to get the news of my parent's death.

"That's right, my angel. After all, we never employed the services of a maid before now. I guess she should be useful in that aspect since she fails to be useful in the rest."

I knew he was referring to my inability to find my mate.

They all took turns to throw various tantrums at me. My eyes narrowed in disbelief, and for some minutes, I was speechless.

I finally found myself after a while, but this time around, the tears were unstoppable. "Why are you all doing this to me right now? I just lost my parents, now this?"

"You had better shut that mouth of yours or I will shut it for you." Delia warned, shooting me an aggressive glare.

This was so alarming and unbelievable. Even if everyone else turned their backs on me and spoke to me as they wished, I never believed Delia here was going to do the same.

This was someone I took as my only little sister, someone whom I adored at every point in my life.

"Delia, are you really saying this to me? Have you suddenly forgotten everything in a hurry?" I queried with a teary face.

But all that looked like trash in the eyes of Delia. She glared at me with undeniable hate. I could boldly see the anger written all over her face.

She suddenly turned to face her father. "Dad? She disgusts me! I don't want to see her anymore." She spat viciously, sparing me an even more despiteful glare.

"What else are you waiting for, you little wretch? Get to work immediately!" My uncle warned brashly, throwing a fist at me.

I took to my heels immediately. I ran as fast as my legs could take me until I was sure I had left their sight.

Their voices kept reverberating endlessly in my ear, leaving me totally helpless and petrified.

***

Night time was fast approaching. As usual, I made my way to the kitchen to have dinner as my bowel was beginning to make a funny sound.

I was merely an inch away from the kitchen when I had a familiar, yet coercive voice yelling behind me.

"And what do you think you are trying to do?" It was a feminine voice. I needed no one to tell me that it was Delia.

I turned gradually to confirm my curiosity, and she was exactly the person I saw.

"Hey Delia. How are you doing this evening? Why not come have dinner with me?" I indulged her with a pleasant smile.

Unfortunately, what I got in return was a cold frown with an unwelcome greeting.

I wasn't really bothered seeing her glare at me in that manner. That was the exact way she had behaved earlier today. I initially thought it was some mood swing dealing with her, but I was obviously so wrong.

To avoid any further trouble with her, I gently turned my daze away from her and continued my movement into the kitchen.

I felt a sudden sharp pull on my hair which stopped me instantly from getting any closer to the kitchen.

"Didn't you hear my question? Where the hell do you think you are going, bitch?" She asked once again, clinging so hard to my hair.

I gritted my teeth in pain. The only sound I could make was a yelling sound, yet, none of that got to her.

Instead, the more I yelled, the firmer she held onto my hair and dragged it aggressively.

She finally let go when she had made sure that the pain sank into my brain.

"You know what? Turn around immediately and get the hell out of this place right now! Get into your damn room!" She ordered, pointing her index finger towards the kitchen exit.

"But I..." I wasn't going to give up just so easily. I tried to say something to further convince her but my words were left hanging in the air as she cut in quickly.

"I don't want to listen to anything that is about to come out of that filthy mouth of yours. Get out!" She yelled insistently.

I dared not hesitate one bit. I turned around with the impact that her fierce words had on me.

I zoomed off at once without a single feeling of reluctance.

CHAPTER 2

LUNA MOONCREST

I retreated back into the comfort of my cabin. I still couldn't get my mind off the words Delia had said to me back at the kitchen.

Did she really mean those words? Why was everyone being cruel to me all of a sudden? Why couldn't I find peace with my own family?

Why was she trying to starve me all of a sudden?

For once, I was so disappointed at Delia that the only thoughts that came to my mind about her were that of evil.

Before now, Delia and I used to be on good terms with each other. Apart from being relatives, we had always been best of friends every single moment of the day.

Why did everything about her suddenly change now that my parents were dead? Was this really the true side of her she had been hiding behind the good side all this while?

Now it was glaring enough that this was the new life I had suddenly been subjected to, and the earlier I got used to it, the better for me.

It was obvious that all these things were happening right now just because my parents were dead. If only they were still alive and fit, I would still have the privilege I always had all this while.

Delia was only faking her love for me after all. It was gradually beginning to make sense to me.

I was really not in my right frame of mind anymore. Being treated like an outcast by the people I referred to as family, and right now, being starved by the same people was just the height of it.

Sitting back in this cabin was going to do more harm than good to me.

I decided to take a little stroll around the pack house. I stepped out of the cabin and headed directly towards the heart of the pack house.

Just then, I heard a reprimanding voice from a close distance.

"I'm sorry, Luna, but Princess Delia and her father ordered us, me specifically, not to let you out of your cabin anymore. They insisted that you must not be found anywhere outside the cabin, unless you are stepping out completely from the pack house." He explained clearly, shivering at each word that came out of his lips.

I stared at him in awe, hoping that he would walk up to me and tell me that it was all a joke, but none of that happened.

I walked up to him instead and gripped onto his neck firmly. "What did I just hear you say? Who asked you to tell me this?"

"I.. I ... I was only..." He struggled to let words out of his lips, not until a dominant voice suddenly took over from him.

"Yes, you heard him right, Mooncrest. Let go of him this minute!" I turned back and saw Uncle Derek walking towards me, with a bold frown occupying his face.

I lowered my head instantly, not also forgetting to withdraw my grip on the guard's neck. It wasn't his fault after all, he was clearly acting on instructions.

"Uncle, did I just hear you say he is right? You mean I'm also not allowed to step out freely in the pack house anymore?" I quizzed with a warm voice, fighting back tears from flowing carelessly.

Derek nodded in affirmation. "Of course, you heard me right. Henceforth, you are not allowed to step an inch out of that miserable cabin of yours unless you are otherwise instructed to do so."

"But uncle, why are you doing this to..."

"Hey.. hey! No more questions." He cut in immediately, stopping me from spewing one more word. "Now I need you to turn around, say no word as you return back to your cabin. Leave immediately!"

Just the way he had ordered, I turned around without mincing words. I made sure I made no attempt to counter his order by trying to banter words with him.

Instead, I accepted my fate as it was and returned back into my cabin.

***

The night was a really cold and unpleasant one for me. For a long time in my life, I have never experienced sleeplessness like I was at this point.

No matter how hard I tried to sleep, I saw myself drooling back awake.

It was just obvious that my mind was preoccupied with a lot of things, and that was the major reason why I found it so difficult to sleep.

My mind flashed back to the moment when Uncle Derek had yelled at me to return into my cabin. His voice carried exactly the same weight as that of his daughter.

It was just so unfortunate that this was the new life I was subjected to.

If I was able to find my mate at least, maybe all this wouldn't be happening. Everyone was obviously seeing me as a failure and a weakling just because I couldn't attain my full potential by locating my mate.

Was the moon goddess not cruel enough to me by hiding my mate from me all this while? Was I not old enough to know who my mate was?

It was enough torture already that my parents were dead and I was without a wolf, but having no mate up till now was definitely not what I bargained for.

I was so reluctant to go to bed, definitely not now that my whole life seemed to be crashing right before my own eyes.

Sleep was obviously the last thing on my mind right now. The only thing that would be capable of bringing back my hunger for sleep was only if I could be privileged enough to find my mate just like every other werewolf.

I just hope at the end of the day, I wasn't going to turn out to be an object of mockery before my newfound enemies.

I was still in deep grief with my thoughts when I suddenly remembered something.

The pack's annual meeting is tomorrow!

CHAPTER 3

LUNA MOONCREST

With no further hesitation, I finally retired to bed as it dawned on me that the pack's annual gathering was an avenue for destined mates to find each other and mark themselves as mates.

I would definitely be lucky enough to find my mate there just like the others.

***

As early as the following morning the next day, I stood up and began to make preparations for the annual pack meeting.

A feeling of excitement washed over me, leaving me totally expectant for a great day ahead.

There was no doubt that I would be lucky enough also to locate my mate just like everyone else.

I made sure to put on my most beautiful dress and look my absolute best in anticipation for what was coming.

As soon as I was done, I peered around the entire surrounding of the pack house and gently snuck out when I had confirmed that the coast was clear enough and there was no one watching me.

I succeeded in leaving the pack house to the pack's communal area where the gathering was scheduled to hold.

I was lucky enough to be one of the first people to get there.

I hid myself at a secluded spot where it would be difficult for anyone to find out that I was in attendance.

I was doing this just because of the fear of being caught by those demons I took as relatives.

It felt so good staying away from them for a while.

The meeting started in no time, and a good number of people began to troop in one after the other.

I suddenly felt a strong attraction pulling me towards the center of attraction.

I could feel something urging me to take a step forward and claim my mate.

I was staring at him eyeball to eyeball. He could also see me, but he chose to remain on his seat and keep shooting repeated glances at me.

After a while, I saw him blink his eyes at me and gestured to me to come join him, with a snap of his finger.

I dashed out of my current hiding place at once, not minding if anyone saw me.

At this point, I knew this attraction was never ordinary; I knew he was my mate and I was determined to let him understand that we were meant for each other.

I wrapped my arms around him the moment I finally made it to where he was sitting. A blush of smiles covered my face. I couldn't just shake off the happiness I felt by finally having my mate wrapped in my arms.

Unfortunately, I never knew I was causing an unnecessary scene.

Ryder Blackthorn was the beta of the pack, and he was my mate!

Apart from being very close to the Alpha of the pack, I never expected him to be the mate I had been hoping to see all this while.

Nonetheless, I was still fulfilled enough that I finally got to see him.

"I've been waiting for the day I would find my mate all this while, I never knew it was going to be you." I screamed happily, curling my hands up around his neck.

"What do you mean, woman? Will you let go of me this minute?!" He sprawled aggressively as he struggled to get my hands off him.

"What's going on here? Even if you realized that I was your mate, do you think this is the right way to go about it?"

"Oh, I'm really sorry about..." I was still on the verge of saying something to express how sorry I was when I heard a familiar voice behind me.

"What does she want, darling?" Turning around, I saw Delia glaring furiously at me as she locked hands with Ryder. "Hey, sister. Aren't you tired of fooling yourself everywhere you go? Why do you keep doing this?"

To my greatest surprise, Ryder received her hands and planted a warm kiss on her forehead.

He clearly did this on purpose just to get back at me. But I really couldn't place my hands around the drama playing out before me.

I fixed my daze on them helplessly, my mouth wide open as I could no longer hold the shock. "You are my mate, Ryder. What are you doing with her?"

"Of course I know I am your mate. I knew about it all this while, but I can definitely have nothing to do with someone like you." Those words cut through my veins strongly, leaving me in total awe.

As if that was not enough, he placed both hands on either side of Delia's cheek and cuddled her ears frantically.

They both burst out in laughter as they turned an aggressive glare at me.

"I guess it's high time I did this." Ryder announced, now rising to his feet. He faced the whole crowd and held on firmly to Delia's hand.

"I, Ryder Blackthorn hereby reject you Luna Mooncrest as my fated mate. Instead, I have decided to choose Delia as my mate."

The hall divided as soon as he made those statements. I could literally see all faces turning to me and making mockery of the fact that I had just been rejected by my mate publicly.

"I guess you lost once again, sister. You should know by now that you are nothing less than a failure. You disgust me!" Delia spat viciously at me, her voice spewing so much hatred for me.

I was literally struggling to fight back tears from bursting out of my eyes. This rejection right here was unbearable and disgraceful.

How was I even supposed to face this crowd right now?

I finally managed to raise my head and stare into Delia's eyes. That was when the endless stream of tears flew out freely.

"Why are you doing this to me, Delia? I loved you just the way someone would love her own sister. Why have you chosen to frustrate me in this manner?"

"Oh, you are so pathetic! In case you have forgotten in a hurry, I never frustrated you, instead you did that yourself. I mean, what other frustration is greater than that of the beta rejecting his mate before the public? You should hide your face in shame."

She was right after all. I lowered my head quietly as different thoughts kept flooding my mind.