Chapter 28

I stood, frozen in place as the world crashed and tumbled around me. It couldn’t be true. I got away. I played all my cards right. After everything I did, Mason still found me right before I could finally break free of him forever.

A traitorous voice whispered in the back of my head. Who had I been kidding? Mason had done everything he needed to in order to ensure that I would never be able to get away from him. It wouldn’t have mattered even if the alpha and luna of the Red Moon Pack had taken me to their territory, he would’ve burned the whole world to the ground until he found me.

The truck barely stopped before the door swung open and Mason jumped down with a look of fury on his face. He instantly zeros in on me.

Behind him, a dozen gamma soldiers file out of their own vehicles. Most likely, they were completely blocking any escape route.

The members of the Red Moon Pack drew closer to me. I knew it was insane. I shouldn’t expect other people to fight my battles for me, but I was helpless, an orphan who could never shift. I had no one and nothing left except for those people I hardly knew. They were my last chance.

Desperately, I looked over my shoulder to Luna Jenna to gauge her reaction. She looked angry, but unsure. Alpha Glenn didn’t look much better. Still, she came closer to me, wrapping an arm around my shoulder and pulling me tight.

“Don’t worry, we’re not going to let him hurt you any more.”

I believed her. Holding onto her words with every shred of strength I had left, I faced Mason again. “Go home, Mason.”

His growl echoed through the clearing, making the members of his pack flinch from the intensity. “Harper, I don’t know what games you’re trying to play with me right now, but you’re the one who needs to come home right this instant.” He put enough command in his words that it caused me to drop to my knees in the dewy grass.

Luna Jenna didn’t let go of me. She crashed down with me, holding me tight, and whispering a million incoherent sentences in my ear.

Seeing his luna in a vulnerable state, Alpha Glenn took a step in front of us. “Alpha Mason, I request that you allow us to transfer Harper into our pack.”

“And why the fuck would I do that?”

“I think we all know it’s best if you let her go now before things escalate further than they already have.”

Mason scoffed like he wasn’t an abuser who’s already been caught. “Listen, I don’t know what you think you know, but my wife is a lying bitch. No matter, she still belongs to the Ridgewood Pack, so I’ve come to take her home.”

“I –” The resolve was already melting out of Alpha’s Glenn’s voice, I noted with despair. Mason would keep fighting until everyone realized that I wasn’t worth the trouble and gave up on me, returning me to his prison.

“You didn’t quite think this through, did you? What kind of alpha are you putting your whole pack in danger for a woman you don’t even know? A woman who happens to be the luna of the Ridgeway Pack.”

Luna Jenna slipped away from me, standing up again. “She’s not officially the luna. She’s not even bonded to the pack.”

“Be that as it may, she is already legally my wife and bonded to me, which means that she’s one step away,” Mason said with a smirk. “And I’m sure that the Alpha Council will side with me as well. The Ridgeway Pack will see you taking our luna into your territory as an aggression of war and deal with you as such.”

The alphas stare down at each other, a semi-circle of soldiers standing behind either one of them. For a moment, I felt the tension rise and I knew something bad would happen. I opened my mouth, ready to give it all up and tell Mason that I would go with him, but he nodded his head before I could say anything.

All at once, gammas from the Ridgewood Pack exploded into action, going after any of Alpha Glenn’s men they could while Mason watched them with a satisfied smirk.

One of the soldiers that I barely recognized broke away from the fight and began running in our direction. I was sure that he would grab me and bring me back to Mason, but I wasn’t the one he reached for. At the last second, he shifted his weight and threw himself at Luna Jenna instead. I screamed, pulling Alpha Glenn’s attention away from the fight.

When he saw them grab his mate, all of the color drained from his face. I knew no matter what, it was all over. There was no way that I would be able to come back after that.

“Alright!” he screamed.

Everyone immediately froze, most likely because Mason told them that their main objective was to strong arm Alpha Glenn into doing what they wanted and giving me up without starting too big of a situation that really would get the Alpha Council involved.

That would be bad for his reputation afterall.

Alpha Glenn watched as the Ridgewood Pack member let go of Luna Jenna who immediately ran to his side. He didn’t look at me. Instead, he fixed his stare on Mason’s feet. “I will negotiate with you to stop all of this senseless fighting.”

My heart sank. Part of me knew that he was right. There was no reason for anyone to get hurt over me. It wasn’t like I was of any great importance to anyone who was fighting. Letting me go wouldn’t hurt them, keeping me would.

It was an easy choice.

Mason grinned like he was the big bad wolf of the story and he liked it that way. He strode over to Alpha Glenn and clapped him on the shoulder. “I knew you would come around to seeing my side of things. She’s not that important anyway. Let’s go talk over there.”

The two alphas walked to the edge of the clearing while Luna Jenna walked back over to me. I was still in the grass, lacking the energy to get up because I knew he was right. No one cared about me and no one would fight for me, and I sure as hell couldn’t do it myself.

She sank down next to me, not quite as close as before, defeat radiated from her too. She grabbed my hand and started mumbling rapidly. I strained my ears, trying to hear what she said, but my hearing wasn’t as good as people who had already shifted.

It didn’t sound like she was saying anything coherent at all.

Then, she spoke loud enough that I could hear.

“Harper, I want you to listen to me. I know you feel hopeless right now, but I need you to believe me that everything will be okay. No matter what happens tonight, even if we face a setback, Glenn and I will not rest until you’re okay.”

Even against the rational side of my brain, I knew she was right. I would still be able to escape, somehow, even if it wasn’t tonight.