The Unbroken Luna

4

 Emily’s pov

Driving away from the pack lands was the best feeling ever. The moment when I’d crossed the border had felt the most liberating in my entire life. It still terrified me that Clayton and his minions might find me, but the joy of finally being free? It was overwhelming and totally worth it.

Turning the radio on, I kept driving halfway towards the airport. I was using small, secondary roads among the woods to get there, and for a very specific purpose; I was going to fake a car crash to hide my tracks.

My purpose was to lead Clayton and the Red Blood warriors to look for me in the wrong place. They would soon find out that I wasn't in the hospital, and once they would notice that both my car and I were gone, they would immediately start looking for me, surely using my car's GPS.

It was raining; it wouldn't be hard to believe that I’d simply lost control of the car and hopped off of it to go look for help. Also, the water would make it impossible for them to follow me, as it would wash my scent away.

 So, I started swaying around for a few meters; then I directed the car towards a tree and pulled my feet away from the pedals. I opened the door and jumped off the SUV, running to the other side of the road to protect myself (you know, just in case the car exploded).

In the end, it didn’t explode; it just crumpled on the tree with a loud, metallic shriek. I sighed and walked closer to the remains of my car. I grabbed my backpack from the trunk, opened my umbrella, and started walking towards the motel doctor Foley had told me about.

By the time I got there, I was soaking wet and a shivering mess. The middle-aged, grey-haired woman behind the reception desk looked at me with barely concealed disgust and an annoyed wince.

“Welcome to Jade’s motel,” she said. “What can I do for you?”

“I-I need a room” I managed to answer between my clattering teeth. “For… just for tonight. I’ll leave tomorrow morning… or early afternoon”.

“Yeah, that’s fine. Do you want breakfast and meal service?”

I shook my head no.

“Then that’d be fifty dollars”.

It was at that moment that I realized it; I didn’t know how to pay. I had one of Clayton’s credit cards in my wallet, but if I used it, he would track me down in no time.

Shit.

I quickly crouched down to fumble with my backpack, hoping that maybe, just maybe, I had some cash in my wallet …

A zip-lock bag caught my attention. It was stacked down in the backpack, almost hidden. It looked like it had something in it… I pulled it out and my jaw met the dirty, sticky floor of the motel’s hall.

It was full of cash. Five thick, rounded rolls of dollars.

Rick ...

“Hello?”

The receptionist waved at me from up the counter, visibly annoyed.

 I swallowed down the astonishment and the gratitude I felt and quickly paid her. She handed me a key.

“Room 45”.

“Thank you. Good night,” I mumbled, still trying to wrap my head around those money rolls.

“Yeah, you too”.

I walked out of the reception and made my way towards my room, paying attention to every sound, every movement, making sure I wasn’t being seen or followed. I couldn’t bear the thought of being found and dragged back to the pack house; the mere idea of it made my insides knot in fear and refusal, and I placed a hand over my still flat belly.

I’ll protect you, little pup.

I locked my room's door and then I let myself fall on the bed, sighing.

I’d done it.

I’d left the monster I’d married, the pack house that had become my prison. I would not be beaten, belittled, and raped again.

I was free …

And completely clueless about my future.

Yes, I’d left hell; but what was I supposed to do now?

Going back to the Crescent Moon pack wasn’t an option; I couldn’t risk putting them in danger. Clayton was smart, and even though my birth back wasn't strong as his, they were allied; he wouldn’t dare a meaningless attack. If he knew for sure that I was back there, though… if he had the certainty that I was back with my family, and even the vague suspicion that I’d talked about his abuse, then he would waste no time in making sure that I’d fall back into his clutches. 

I couldn’t put my pack and my family in danger. And that meant that I couldn’t even give them any information about my movements. For them to be safe, they had to be completely and sincerely ignorant about everything.

Mulling over won’t get me anywhere, I thought, slowly walking towards the bathroom. I need a break.

After a long, relaxing shower, I wrapped myself up in a cozy robe and sat down again on the bed, emptying the backpack to check what I had: two thousand dollars, a bottle of water, some pills, two sandwiches, my wallet, three disposable phones, and the other things Foley had told me about. All the essentials for three days.

 How was I going to spend those days, though? Where was I supposed to go?

I couldn’t just live in the woods; it wasn’t safe. Poachers could have spotted me, or worse, I could have met normal wolves whose silence I couldn’t buy. Clayton, thanks to his Alpha blood, could easily mind link with wolves, and then I would have been done.

A loud ringtone broke the silence, giving me a serious jump scare that quickly turned into panic.

Foley had given me those phones. He was the only one who had those numbers.

Why was he calling me? Did the Red Bloods already start looking for me? Did Clayton already know that I was gone?

Holy s**t, holy s**t, holy s**t …

“Hello?” I whispered, picking up the call.

“Hi, it’s me” it was Foley. His voice didn’t sound frantic, and I took it as a good sign. “Did you reach the motel?”

Well, if there was a danger, he would have told me about it straight away.

“Yes,” I answered. “I’m safe and sound, even though I had to take care of the car”.

He immediately understood what that meant. “Good,” he said. “I just wanted you to know that I’ve called a very good friend of mine. If you’re in search of a safe place for you and your baby, he’s more than willing to welcome you into his pack”.

Again, I was left with my jaw hanging from my mouth in shock as warm gratitude spread into my chest.

“Really?” was all I managed to whisper.

“Sure thing,” I could feel that he was smiling. “Oh, and by the way, no one here still suspects anything. I, of course, had to make up an excuse for your sudden disappearing; now everyone believes you have a strange medical condition for which I've sent you to a better-equipped hospital for more screenings”. 

“Poor me,” I didn’t feel like laughing out loud, but a small smile curled up the corners of my lips.

“Oh, yeah, your sickness is terrible and unknown,” he joked. “Anyway, I’ll send all the stuff you need to go at my friend’s to the motel so that they’ll give them to you. We’ll meet each other again there”.

When I heard those words, guilt washed over me like freezing-cold water. Foley was going to leave the pack, and the reason was me.

He’d helped me escape, putting his family and himself in danger, and now he had to run away from his home.

Because of me.

“Luna? Emily, you still there?”

His voice brought me back to reality, and I swallowed. “I’m sorry,” I stuttered, my voice trembling.

Silence filled the air for a few seconds. “Emily, this is not your fault,” he then said. “You are the victim. The victim has, by definition, no-fault”.

“You’re leaving your home, still,” I replied, trying my best to keep my voice from shaking and becoming teary. “Your wife and your children …”

“The Red Blood pack has never been our home,” he declared. “We moved in ten years ago, but both my wife and I were born into another pack… the same we’re all going to now”.

“But …”

“Emily, you’re our Luna,” Foley said. “Both my wife and I stopped considering Clayton our Alpha in the very moment we understood what kind of man he is. You’ve always been kind, compassionate, and strong. We’d follow you anywhere. Now, please, rest and try to sleep. I’ve put some anxiolytics and sleeping pills in your beauty case if you need them”.

I nodded and took a breath. “Thank you, Rick” I murmured.

“You’re welcome. Now, go to sleep. Doctor’s orders,” he joked. We wished each other goodnight and then I ended the call.  

Both my wife and I stopped considering Clayton as our Alpha at the very moment we understood what kind of man he is. We’d follow you anywhere.

I couldn’t wrap my head around those words. If they didn’t consider Clayton their Alpha anymore and were willing to follow me, did this make me… Alpha?

I decided not to mull too much over it. What people were doing or thinking didn’t necessarily make me anything. I’d left Clayton; it meant that I was no longer a Luna, and the Red Blood Luna specifically. I was, if anything, a Rogue, and a Rogue couldn’t, by definition, be an Alpha.

Foley’s right. I need to sleep.

Without thinking about it twice, I swallowed down a sleeping pill, put on my pajama, and slid under the covers.

Tomorrow was going to be a whole new day, the first day of my new life.