Prologue - Celeste
Celeste P.o.V. ~11 yrs ago~
I pushed through the chaos of the crowd. I could hear someone screaming my name, asking me to stop. I couldn’t. I needed to see for myself. I had felt the break of the connection through the mind link but I needed my eyes to confirm what my heart refused to accept. It couldn't be him. He was invincible.
I made it to the front of the crowd. As I pushed past the last of the crowd, my knees gave way at the scene in front of me. The tears running down my face.
In front of me stood the Alpha of the Blood Moon Pack looking at my mother, holding the head of my father. I felt sorrow and anger. I tried to get up and push forward but was grabbed and pushed behind my father’s gamma.
'You can’t, Celeste. He can’t know it’s you.' He mind-linked me. I swallowed a sob and held onto his leg with all of my might. I could still see my mother on her knees crying. Alpha Geoff was laughing, kicking my father’s head like a hacky sack.
“Your mighty Alpha didn’t stand a chance, Luna. Your pack now belongs to me. You belong to me.” He smirked and laughed again. My mother looked over the crowd of our pack. My father had been challenged and by werewolf law, what he said was true. We now belonged to the Blood Moon Pack. Her eyes made contact with mine. I could see that her heart was shattered. Alpha Goeff pulled my mother up by the arm and squashed her to his side.
'I have failed you my people. I’m sorry' I heard her say over the pack mind link. As Luna, she could project to everyone in the pack at once. Still looking at my eyes, her breath hitched. 'I love you Celeste, my little piece of sky. I hope you can forgive me one day. Don’t let them know how special you are. Don't look pequeña(little one).' she said to only to me. My gift pulled me forward then and I saw a flash of future. But there wasn’t enough time to prevent it. I saw the same image of what my gift had shown me play out in front of my eyes. I sobbed as I saw my mother grab the bloody knife from Alpha Goeff’s waist band and flash it across her throat. A pain burst forth in my head. I buried my head to the leg that was holding me up.
I heard the Alpha’s roar “Stupid b***h!” He kicked the lifeless body of my mother over my father's.
“Grab all the unmated females and baby males. Kill the rest” he screamed. I heard the snarls of his warriors and the screams of mine as his orders were carried out.
I was lifted and carried through the crowd. He didn’t stop until we reached the cliffs behind the Packhouse. I could still hear the screams of my pack as they were ripped to shreds.
“Look at me.” My father’s Gamma, Lucian, said. He shook me a little when I didn’t obey. “Look at me little Celeste!” he said urgently. I looked at him. “I can’t take you with me little one. I don’t know if I’ll make it out of alive. You have to lie. You have to lie about who you are. You understand?” He said.
“I have to lie.” I said.
“What’s your name?” he asked. “If they ask you, what is your name?”
“I don’t know” I said, crying again. All I wanted to do was wake up from this nightmare.
“Your name is Celeste Pierce. You are the daughter of deceased Gamma, Lucian Pierce. Say it.”
“My name is Celeste Pierce. My daddy was Lucian Pierce. Daddy’s g- Gamma of Alpha Cory” I said.
“Good” He said, giving me a hug and a kiss on my forehead. “I would be honored to be your dad in name.” he said. “I have to go little one. I will look for you. You hear me. I will find help and look for you. I will get you out. I want you to repeat what I said over and over until it feels natural ok? Until you no longer want to say your daddy’s last name. You can’t let them know who you are. Bad things will happen if they know. Promise me Celeste, promise me you will say the right words?” He said.
“My name is Celeste Pierce. My daddy was Lucian Pierce, Gamma to the Alpha” I said.
He gave me another tight hug “Good girl. I will find you. Flourish and live little one” he said and I saw in horror as he jumped off the cliff. He shifted half way through the jump and dropped into the river. I heard a yelp as he hit the water. I stared for what felt like hours waiting for him to resurface, but I saw nothing. I sobbed and fell to the ground. Curling into a ball.
“My name is Celeste Pierce. My daddy was Lucian Pierce, Gamma to the Alpha” I said. “My name is Celeste Pierce. My daddy was Lucian Pierce, Gamma to the Alpha” I sobbed into the night. “My name is Celeste Pierce. My daddy was Lucian Pierce, Gamma to the Alpha” “My name is Celeste Pierce. My daddy was Lucian Pierce, Gamma to the Alpha” “My name is Celeste Pierce. My daddy was Lucian Pierce, Gamma to the Alpha”
After what felt like forever. I passed out on the edge of the cliff, not waking until I heard footsteps coming near me and feeling someone pick me up.