His Reluctant Luna

Alice -

I felt Lucian sink into the bed next to me. I was already in bed and turned to face him.

"Hey," I said, placing my hand on his cheek.

"Sorry, I was delayed." He replied, smiling.

"It's ok, I heard about those bodies being found. Is it something to worry about?"

He seemed to be contemplating something.

"Nothing to worry about, they were unfortunate human victims. They will be handed over to the cops. Probably, murdered by someone crazy. They were dumped in our shipyard."

"That's so terrible, poor humans."

"Evil exists! You know it. Don't ponder on it." He said while tracing my face with his knuckles.

Lucian scented my neck deeply and once he calmed down he leaned back to look deep into my eyes which were fluttering open and shut as I struggled to stay awake. His hand gently tucked stray strands of hair before moving down to caress my cheek as he whispered, "I love you."

"You should, I'm fabulous," I whispered as I fell asleep with a smile on my face.

****************

"Hello, Girls! Welcome!, we have bags for each of the girls containing t-shirts, shorts and sweatshirts with the pack logo on them. It also contains binders with school rules and emergency procedures. These are all gifts from your Alpha and Luna," said Eliza.

I was visiting the pack's high school to check on the Rossi girls. Who had just joined the school on the campus, and it was their first day. Not all children went to the pack's school. Some went to various private and public schools outside the campus. Depending on their parent's preference. We never placed any restrictions on where the kids went to study as long as they followed the security and secrecy rules. Still, the pack's school had several students in various grades. For Rossis it was safer to be in the campus school.

"In the upcoming week, everyone will be assessed, as per your skill levels in defence and combat. We have training sessions weekly for defence and physical combat, and we also have training sessions for First Aid, survival skills, hunting and tracking," said Eliza.

I had not had many conversations with Eliza, since she had been reinstated in the pack. She was good! One of the best fighters and trainers in the pack. Though, I wondered if our relationship would ever become normal. The girls appeared a bit nervous, but they seemed to be enjoying the session.

I turned towards the Rossi couple. "Since you are coming from another Pack, if you find we are missing something in our training, please let us know. We are constantly looking for new ways to improve the safety of our Pack."

"Everything here is so much better than the black stone pack," he said gratefully.

I waited until the class got over and then approached Eliza.

"You are doing a wonderful job, Eliza," I smiled.

"Thank you, Madam Luna," she replied, with a slight bow. She seemed different, less hostile.

"I would like to invite you to join me. Tuesdays at my house for the women's lunch group. It gives us a good opportunity to catch up on Pack gossip and to be quite honest, it's a good opportunity to get away from our mates," I said, laughing.

Her face looked awestruck. "You are inviting me?"

"Aren't you part of the pack?"

"I am."

"Good then, see you on Tuesday." I smiled.noveldrama

She looked a little taken aback.

"Madam Luna, I wanted to say this for a long time. I am sorry and ashamed of my previous behaviour. I don't deserve your forgiveness, but you saved my life. Otherwise, I would have been executed. Furthermore, I just wanted to express my gratitude."

"You deserve a second chance, Eliza, and you are doing a good job of training these girls. We have to stay and work together. So, we should bury the past and stay cordial." I wasn't ready to be friends with her, not yet, but being hostile in the same pack would be a bad move. I was the Luna, after all.

"Thank you, Madam Luna, I will see you on Tuesday."

*************

The sky was overcast and dark grey clouds hung low over the mountain as I looked out through the back windows of the kitchen as Emma put some dishes from breakfast, on the table.

Several members of my old pack were getting ready to sit at the table after loading their plates and I heard Martha say in a loud voice to be heard over their conversation, "It's supposed to rain, make sure you bring your jackets, and when you come in to wipe your feet. You'd better not track mud in my kitchen."

I smiled. My father's Beta Jackson and his wife Martha had retired though they helped around in the pack, Martha was in charge of running the pack's dining hall. No wonder, it was always serving warm comfort food. I had always loved her cooking.

I was visiting Jade Moon, which I usually did once a month, just to catch up with my other family and friends.

"Why am I not feeling anything, yet?" I asked Emma. As I sipped my coffee.

"Have patience, it's been just 10 days." She replied.

"What if I don't conceive? What if I am barren! Will Lucian dump me, God, what will I do?" I mumbled absentmindedly.

Emma rolled her eyes.

"Stop being so dramatic! It took me two years to conceive. Not everyone gets pregnant on their first try, and you are not barren."

"What if I am because of me being a hybrid?" I asked.

"Don't be ridiculous! I can run some tests on you for your peace of mind. But, I don't think it's needed so soon. Just relax, your anxiety will make things worse. Just keep trying." She winked at me.

We discussed various things and I told her about Eliza, how she had changed, and I had invited her over.

"You mean that woman who tried to seduce your mate? That's weird." Emma said seriously.

I laughed.

"I am not becoming friends with her. Just cordial, she is part of the pack after all."

Emma suddenly became alert, as if talking to someone mentally.

"Bobby contacted me. They need me at the infirmary."

"Anything bad?" I asked curiously.

"They have found a body of women. I am going to check it and take it away for the autopsy." She replied.

"What! That's unfortunate," I replied, and then it suddenly struck me. Was it a pattern? Maybe I should talk to Lucian about it.

He was in the city, attending some business meeting, hence too far for our mind link to work, so I called him.

"Enjoying sweetheart?" He asked, from the other side of the phone.

"Yes, but something just happened. Remember those bodies which were found in our shipyard. Emma just told me they have found a woman's body near the Jade moon pack. Could it be a pattern? Am I thinking too much into it?"

I could hear him breathing, heard as if trying to control his anger/anxiety. "When did this happen?"

"Today," I replied.

"Stay there, I am coming to pick you up. Do not leave alone. Is that clear?" "Yeah, sure," I replied. I wondered was this the beginning of new problems.