Chapter 30

[Third-Person’s POV]

Evelyn tore her eyes from Caroline’s stunned expression to find that Isabella and Samantha wore similar looks. Clearly, the woman wasn’t used to being spoken to in such a direct and mildly rude manner. However, I wasn’t going to simply stand there and have the woman talk down to me as well as treat me like dirt. She wasn’t holding anything back when it came to her dislike of me as Luna.

What actually caused my heart to clench in my chest was knowing that she had no problem talking openly about her son’s physical state. She made it sound as though it were Alexander's fault for having been injured in the accident.

Any real mother, biological or otherwise, should rejoice in the fact that their son is still alive.

I was really beginning to understand why Wendy had such reservations against Caroline. The woman was seriously hell-bent on believing that she and Alexander’s grandmother were actually on good terms.

I was just glad that Wendy was wise enough to see through the woman’s ruse. On the other hand, it was a bit sad to think that when the time came for me to take on the full responsibilities as Luna, I would be pretty much handling them on my own.

There was no chance I was going to trust someone like Caroline to step in and help.

Caroline’s look of shock gradually shifted to that of venomous anger. The corner of her eyes were twitching and she struggled to find the right words to throw back at me.

“Why you...You self-entitled, little—”

“Caroline!” A feminine voice called out.

We all turned our heads to see Fiona walking toward us. She wore a long light blue gown with her hair tied back in a loose braid. Her make-up was kept simple but perfect as always.

Oh, wonderful, Evelyn thought.

Her stomach churned at the very sight of her. It baffled Evelyn how someone who came so close to costing a person their own life, could walk around without a care in the world.

Fiona sauntered up to Evelyn’s mother-in-law with a knowing smile. Oddly enough, her eyes immediately went to Samantha as opposed to her. Her smile deepened into a cruel smirk, causing chills to run down her own spine. She eyed Samantha up and down like a predator before going in for the kill.

Fiona’s tone was mocking and nothing short of degrading. “I love your dress, Samantha, only haven’t you worn it twice already?” she laughed.

Samantha’s face heated under the other woman’s sneering remark. Evelyn knew that her Stepsister had no means of defending herself because what Fiona was nit-picking her about was true. There was no chance being married to Liam was going to give her the money she desired to buy new clothes every week.

If Evelyn actually had a better relationship with her Stepsister, she would have perhaps felt a

“Hello, Fiona,” Samantha greeted her back with a bitter smile. “How nice to see you again.”

Fiona let out a condescending cake before shifting her gaze over to Evelyn. It must have taken her a whole minute to realize who she was staring at. Slowly, her eyes widened and that smug grin she wore turned into something far more disgruntled.

“You?!”

Evelyn took a deep breath in and tried to brace herself for the public spectacle she was about to become.

“Hello, Fiona.”

Just as she did with Samantha, she lazily eyed her up. Pursing her lips, Fiona tilted her head and folded her arms over her chest. Her mind couldn't wrap around Evelyn’s transformation.

“That dress hardly suits you,” she bit out.

Evelyn almost laughed in response. “You’re not wrong. I tried to argue with Alexander against having the dress made. You all know how little I care for these types of events.”

“That’s right. Everyone knows how much you’d rather be trailing around with the other staff or playing in the dirt with your herbs and leaves,” she said coolly.

Samantha laughed in agreement. “Yeah, she’s a Luna that prefers to wear sweatpants and tank tops, and would rather go barefoot all the time.”

She and Isabella broke out into giggles, while Caroline chose to watch the whole encounter from the side.

Naturally, Evelyn felt uneasy with all the insults flying at her. However, these sorts of statements were truly nothing new for her to deal with. She used to be bothered by them, but after getting to know people like Wendy and Nina who embraced her for who she was, Evelyn was starting to own up to the idea.

“...You’re right. It’s why I earned the title of ‘wild child’. I care more about my pack and making sure that everything is running as it should be, than I couldn’t care less about things like dresses and jewelry.”

Everyone around her went silent. They all shared sheepish looks of embarrassment, having not anticipated Evelyn’s bout of self-confidence. Fiona, on the other hand, was only angered by it.

“What right do you think you have to be here?” she asked accusingly.

Raising a questionable brow, Evelyn glanced around.

“I have several rights to be here right now, just like everyone else,” she explained. “Not only am I an Alpha’s daughter, but now I am also a Luna.”

Fiona gave a derivative snort and glared back at Evelyn for her boldness. “Oh, please,” she scoffed. “You’re only a Luna because Alexander settled for you! Or I should rather say you two settled for each other.”

“So what if we did?” Evelyn threw back. “Why does my being with Alexander bother so many people?”

“Because apart from the Alpha King, he’s the one with the most influence and power. And to think he’s stuck with someone like you as a Luna, is nothing short of a total joke!” Fiona fumed.

“If you really felt this way, then why didn’t you try for a marriage proposal with him?” Evelyn asked.

Suddenly Samantha spoke out from the side. “Who would willingly choose to marry someone who’s disfigured and stuck in a wheelchair?”

Evelyn snapped her head to face her Stepsister head-on. “You’d be wise to remember the punishment that Alexander had placed on you. I wonder just how well he would take the news of you breaking his order of confinement.”

Both Isabella and Samantha fell completely silent. Fiona remained undeterred. Her goal was to clearly bring Evelyn down and she was determined to see it happen.

“It doesn’t dismiss the fact that no one respects you nor wants you around in your so-called pack.”

Evelyn’s brows pulled together in confusion. “What are you talking about?”

Fiona gave a sly grin. “Everyone practically knows that you’re being completely cold-shouldered by your own pack,” she stated fiercely. “And that’s something that I can prove.”

“How?” Samantha asked eagerly.

“Think about it, for someone as influential as Alexander, he chose to keep his own wedding small and pathetically casual. Not to mention that his own parents hadn’t bothered to show up to see the ceremony take place, nor anyone from the pack.”

“That’s because no one knew that the ceremony even took place,” Evelyn said in her own defense.

“Yeah, and why do you think he chose to keep such a big piece of news from his own pack? Maybe it’s because even in his physical state, Alexander is embarrassed and ashamed of having to marry someone like you.”

The room around them began to fill up with whispers of their overheard conversation. Evelyn had tried her best to remain as calm and composed as possible, but it had become too much for her to bear. Her chest ached from the lack of air that was reaching her lungs.

All she wanted to do was escape.