Page 8 of The Wild Moon
“Stop,” I snarled as I stood up, naked and unafraid in front of the entire pack, the single word cracking out like a whip, freezing my Soulbound mate in his tracks. “This isn’t happening.”
I ignored the rumbles from the pack behind me. Their opinions did not matter to me. Not one of them. Not even dear old Alpha daddy, who I could sense was watching the goings-on with great interest from above me on his stupid Altar of Arrogance. This wasmychoice, and I was going to make it. I was not going to let some magical bond force me to take this asshole as my mate. No way.
“You ruined my life, you piece of shit,” I spat at Johnathan. “Your pathetic, fragile ego couldn’t handle being dumped, and so you had to lash out to defend your stupid masculinity. You destroyed my family, all to make yourself feel better. Well, guess what, asshole? I reject you. Right here, right now, in front of everyone. I willneverbe your mate. Do you understand?”
The black-furred wolf growled threateningly at me. As if I should just shut up and do as he said. I lifted my eyebrows, staring down at the beast. My wolf urged me to let her back out, howling wildly inside my mind as I denied it the happiness it so desperately wanted.
This is for the best, I told it.I want to be happy and to find my family. I can’t be locked down to this asshole or this dying town if I want to do that! I just can’t.
I turned and ran without another thought. There was nothing left for me here. Nothing left in this town. I had to go. I had to run and be free.
My wolf understood that, at least. Although she resented me for denying her the Soulbond, there was one thing she longed for more: running free under the Wild Moon. What little of it remained.
She lent me her power. We shifted again and ran onward, four legs faster than two, sending us racing across town. Somewhere. Anywhere but the Aldridge house and the rest of the pack. I could never go back there.
It was time I left Seguin forever.
Chapter Six
At some point, my wolf’s energy faded.
We slowed our run to a trot and eventually came to a halt, staring as one at the eastern sky. Red rays of light were shooting up through the horizon, piercing the wispy clouds with their brilliant glow. It was going to be a sunrise to remember.
Just like it had been a night to forget.
Gritting my teeth at the unpleasant, painful sensations of my fourth shift of the night–double the amount I’d ever attempted before–I eventually got to my feet. To myhumanfeet. My wolf was exhausted, and she retreated into the corners of my mind to rest. This had been the most energetic Wild Moon yet that we had experienced, and a part of me couldn’t blame her for feeling that way. I, too, wanted to keel over and sleep for days.
But I couldn’t. We had to get out of town, and soon. It wouldn’t be long before Johnathan came looking for me, and I wanted to get a good head start on him. Of course, I’d never be able to truly lose him. We were Soulbound now. Linked forever, a pull that I would have to fight for my entire life to deny.
Now there’s some high-level irony, I thought unhappily.
For eight months, I had returned to Seguin in hopes of finding my mate. Someone who I could be myself with, who would understand me and make me feel whole again.
Eight Wild Moons of waiting at the front of the pack for my Soulbond to kick in.
Eight Wild Moons of continual humiliation.
All the while, I spent my time searching for my family, trying to find any trace of my parents.
And when it came down to it, fate saw to it that I ended up mated to theoneperson I hated more than anyone else. I’d wished so hard for something I didn’t deserve that I’d been granted something evenworse.
How was thisfair? I raged against it inside, wanting nothing more than to sever the bond, to be free once more. It had never occurred to me that, although I’d been without a mate, I had beenfree. Unencumbered and able to do as I pleased, outside of returning for the Wild Moons. There had been nothing else to worry about. Now, however…
A cool breeze picked up, and I shivered, reminded of my nudity as the wind swept over my form, causing goosebumps across my skin. I’d learned to give myself over to the Wild Moon, but outside of that, I was still self-conscious about wandering around naked. I needed to find clothes somewhere, since returning to the Aldridges’ to retrieve what I’d worn the night before was out of the question.
Looking around to survey my options, I inhaled sharply as I realized where I was. Somehow, in my flight, I had come to the one place I spent eight months avoiding. My parents' house. My childhood home.
It wasn’t boarded up yet, unlike half the houses in town, but I figured it was only time before that happened. Nobody had set foot in there since the night of my parents' disappearance on my Soulshift night. The first time I’d come back to Seguin, I’d come to the house, with plans of staying there simply for the night. But I’d found myself standing almost in the same spot, unable to go inside.
But back then, I’d had clothes.
“You can do this,” I told myself, wishing I felt as confident as I sounded.
It’s amazing how one bad memory can outweigh a lifetime of positive ones. How my guilt has prevented me from returning even when I didn’t do anything wrong.
The breeze picked up again, oddly cold for an early May morning. Usually, I could shrug off the breeze. Perhaps I’d overdone it last night. I wasn’t sure.
I approached the house, my guilt weighing me down with each step. My feet began to drag across the gravel driveway as I approached, unwilling to fully pick themselves up. They would prefer to stay still, or better yet, turn and head elsewhere.
