Reborn: The Rejected Luna

#8 - It's Her

"Damn it Nykka!"

Startled, Romaldo had dangerously spun around the silent hallway to take out whoever was stupid enough to think they could sneak up on him. An attacker inside his castle was already as good as dead the moment they decided to enter it's doors. His eyes had landed on his sister, however, making him blow up instantly.

"I could have hurt you!" Romaldo growled.

"But you didn't." Nykka grinned, unfazed. "So, where has the big bad wolf been? You seemed extra busy all of a sudden."

"Nowhere," Romaldo grunted, still upset about Nykka's little stunt.

"Hmmmm." Nykka inched closer and took a whiff of him while he walked to his bedroom.

"What are you doing?"

"Dead leaves and grass," Nykka noted. Another whiff and she burst out laughing. "Did you and your wolf just spend today rolling in a patch of wildflowers? Oh brother, I knew Vieva was driving you insane but I didn't realize it was this bad."

Romaldo shot her a warning look but kept quiet. He knew whatever he said would be used against him to dig for answers. Nykka was good at that. She was right though. Someone was driving him insane, but it wasn't his fiancèe.

For several nights now he had been plagued with more thoughts about the girl at the market.

Since laying his eyes on the stranger, he and his wolf had been so restless they couldn't stay cooped up in the castle. Something kept drawing him away from his own pack, and each time he ended up at the Green Forest pack.

He had no intention of entering that pack's territory, but the uneasy feeling brought him to the edge of the pack and he had crossed it without thinking. The pack's border security was so pathetic he was able to get close enough to its members undetected. He did not see anything of interest though. No sign of the girl.

He could also have easily walked in and demanded a search but maybe he was afraid of what he would find. He had left, that nagging feeling fighting him the more distance he put between himself and the Green Forest pack.

"What? Nothing to say for yourself?" Nykka took him out of his thoughts. "Maybe I should go back downstairs and interrogate the witch herself."

"I was just doing another investigation on one of my packs. Happy?" It wasn't the entire truth, but for Nykka's inquisitive mind it was enough.

His sister frowned. "You are doing another round, so soon? I thought you were done until later in the year. Or…"

"Enough Nykka!" Romaldo glared. Her trailing thoughts and that glint of amusement in her eyes were enough to know what his sister was thinking.

"Unless you suspect your mate is actually in this particular pack. Would it be one of the lowest ranked ones?"

Romaldo audibly sighed. "I suspect they are abusing its members and misusing all the rations I provide to help all my struggling packs." Again, not a lie, just not the entire truth either.

He intended to do an actual inspection. The state of that pack left much to be desired. No pack of his should have been in such a deplorable state and he wanted to know how they were using the rations from the Crystal castle.

"Or they might be abusing just one person, your mate."

Romaldo had to literally bite down his lips to keep the growl that almost escaped his mouth. He was also surprised at the rage his wolf felt at Nykka's statement. He had to agree that he particularly did not like it either.

"I don't have a mate." He snapped at his sister, hoping to hide his reaction too, but it was too late. His sneaky sister was too sharp for her own good.

"Uh huh." Nykka stood back, arms folded, a 'You have it written all over your face' accusation written on her face.

"Where is Ken?"

"That…"

"What, woman?!"

"Only the appearance of a new mate would leave you so unfocused you forget that there is a little thing called a mind link."

Romaldo glared at Nykka before turning on his heels. His sister made it really difficult to endure her when she had set her mind on tormenting him. More so when he couldn't keep himself from reacting to her accusations. He loved her, but in moments like these he wished she was some random pack member that he could unleash his wrath on.

"Ken, get your butt over here." Romaldo growled in his mind-link before stepping into his bedroom.

Glad to be rid of Nykka, he crashed on the only sofa in the room. His sister knew she could only go so far, his bedroom being one of her limits.

But even though Nykka wasn't in the room, it was as good as having her there. Her words about Romaldo getting a second chance mate kept echoing in his mind. He had tried to convince himself that it wasn't true, but the strange way he felt spoke otherwise. It wasn't the same as how he had instantly known that Amelie was his mate, but it still stirred his emotional state in a direction he wouldn't normally go. He was done with mates. Had been since Amelie's death, but with this girl, cracks were forming in his resolve and he didn't like it.

That is why he needed to pay the Green Forest pack a visit and find out for himself once and for all. He needed to see the girl to figure out what this was. And he would do it tonight.

"Nice of you to actually announce your presence, your majesty." Ken stood by Romaldo's closed bedroom door, his arms folded.

"The Green Forest pack," Romaldo stated, ignoring his beta's sarcasm.

"Would that be the same pack who's alpha you just stood up?"

"I decided I'd be the one paying them a visit instead." Romaldo sat up to face his beta. Ken only nodded but Romaldo could still see a million questions running through his mind. "I suspect my efforts to maintain basic sanity in every pack is being wasted in this particular one."

"Someone else can check that out. If the alpha needs to be straightened out, we have plenty of guys to make that happen."

"I can't let this slide. It will serve as a perfect reminder to everyone else of what happens when simple instructions are not followed." Romaldo got up. "We leave in thirty minutes."

"Is Nykka right?"

"Excuse me?"

"I know you, Romaldo. And this is so unlike you." Ken curled an eyebrow at him, but Romaldo wasn't ready to come clean yet. For all he knew, this might end up being nothing.

"We leave in thirty minutes. Just you and me." Romaldo hated leaving his beta in the dark and making the trip just between them would let Ken know to trust him.

Ken left quietly while Romaldo walked further into his room to get ready. He chose to be in all black. His usual intimidating look that left subordinate pack members trembling in their shoes.

The ride to their destination was awfully quiet, not that Romaldo wanted to indulge in any form of conversation. His mind was too preoccupied. The thought of finally seeing that girl had left him and his wolf unusually tense. And the closer they got to the Green Forest pack, the more that tension thickened.

"We are here." Ken's clipped tone snapped Romaldo from his thoughts.

Glancing at his sulking beta briefly, he shifted his eyes to their destination. A look outside of the SUV revealed a run-down excuse of a pack house. Against the darkness and despite having multiple rooms being filled with light, the building looked dead, deserted.

"Is that supposed to be their pack house?"

"See why I needed to come?"

Ken merely scoffed at Romaldo's question before getting out of the car. As expected, the beta was still skeptical about their reason for making the trip.

Not bothering to offer any more explanations, Romaldo followed suit, discarding the usual protocols and formalities that accompanied such a visit.

With him out of the car, Romaldo lifted his nose to sniff the air, looking for the presence of any alluring scents. There was none and no sight of a beautiful she wolf with star-struck eyes waiting to be claimed either.

"Your majesty!"

A trembling guard appeared before him, his eyes wide. "We did not expect a visit from the Crystal Moon."

"And you are?" Ken growled at the guard, who quickly bared his neck in submission.

"I'm the head guard, your maj--"

"So you are responsible for letting just any stranger come this close to the pack without so much as a simple interrogation?"

The guard visibly paled, while Romaldo enjoyed watching Ken terrorise the i***t. In his sour mood, Ken was probably overdoing it, but it worked in Romaldo's favor. He couldn't afford to have any of his packs, no matter how small, fall into his enemy's hands, which was bound to happen with their non-existent security.

"I...I…"

"Your alpha, where is he?" Ken demanded impatiently, while Romaldo agreed with his quick action. There was really no point in wasting time talking with a lowly guard.

"Right this way." The guard stood up and, without glancing back at them, scurried towards the pack house.

Romaldo straightened out his suit and put on his scary look. He might have been there for answers to his dilemma, but he didn't plan on letting this pack's alpha escape his wrath concerning the mismanagement of the rations allocated to the Green Forest pack.

The inside of the pack house wasn't so bad. At least it bore the evidence of human life and some ordinary cleaning. Romaldo kept his eye out for anything out of the ordinary as he and Ken were led to the sitting area. And by out of the ordinary, he was looking for any evidence of his famed mate.

"Your majesty, what a pleasant surprise!"

A very unkempt man with a pot belly stood up from the furthest chair in the room and bowed. "No one told us of your decision to visit us instead. Please, refreshments for our esteemed guests."

Charm was dripping from the alpha's voice, but Romaldo looked past it and instead noted how the alpha's seat was the only one in good condition in the pack's living area. And looking at that protruding pot belly, Romaldo had no doubt the bastard enjoyed more luxury than his own members. That pissed off the alpha king even more. This was not a structure he would ever encourage in any pack under his territory.

"You, over here." Ken beckoned to the alpha while he instructed some random pack member to dust the alpha's chair so Romaldo could take a seat in it. The chair being the most comfortable one in the room had nothing to do with Ken's decision. It had everything to do with reminding the alpha of his place. Reminding the greedy man of who was the king.

Romaldo sat down. The location of the seat was in a dimly lit part of the living area, giving him enough cover to hide any facial reaction he couldn't control. Just in case.

"W...What can we do for you?" The alpha asked timidly.

"What have you been doing with all the rations you received from the Crystal castle?" Ken demanded while Romaldo sat back in the alpha's seat observing the alpha's brow get covered in beads of sweat.

What Romaldo really wanted was to command the alpha to have every girl in his pack parade themselves, but he held back, choosing to be patient. Or maybe he hoped she would sense his presence if they were truly mates and gladly show herself.

"You see, alpha…" The man looked past Ken and towards Romaldo, earning himself a ferocious growl from Romaldo's beta.

"You think my king will save you?!" Ken boomed, his canines extending a little in his glorious show of strength, while Romaldo simply looked on impressed. His beta was perfect. A perfect beta for a perfect king, and Romaldo was almost tempted to feel sorry for the offender.

The alpha fell to his knees, baring his neck in a show of submission. Luckily for him, it was enough to appease Ken's wolf, at least for now. Because depending on their findings, the pack would end up needing a new alpha altogether.

"The truth!" Ken bellowed.

"The rations are simply not enough. N...Not that we are complaining. But…"

"Before you punish my father, why don't you have dinner first, your highness?"

Romaldo froze. The voice not only interrupted the interrogation, but it made Romaldo notice the change in the air. The uneasy feeling was back. His eyes landed on a tall beautiful blonde girl, dressed to kill, but it was the figure behind her that caught Romaldo's attention and had his wolf instantly perk up.

The alpha's interrogation long forgotten, Romaldo straightened up in his seat.

"You come over here." He pointed at the blonde girl and she walked over, swaying her perfect figure in a sexy fashion. He, however, was not interested in her, but having the blonde walk over left the girl in the doorway that was hidden behind her exposed.

"Or they might be abusing just one person, your mate."

Romaldo's chest rumbled. Before he could stop himself, his chest vibrated with a deep low growl. "It's her…" He stared with wide eyes at the girl whose head was still bowed.

Without a doubt in his mind, this was the girl he was looking for and her state almost sent him flying out of his seat.

Everything about her was a mess or out of place. With a tray in her hands, she had bruises on her face and he had no doubt there were many more under the hideous dress that was hanging on to her protruding shoulders.

"Alpha, it's my pleasure to entertain you in my humble home."

A weight settled on Romaldo's lap but his eyes were now glued to the most beautiful yet furious looking ones. The girl had looked up just at the same time that weight settled on his lap. Fury flashed in her eyes and something else too. Recognition. But that was replaced with confusion, then anger, bitterness and finally death glares. Her lips parted and whatever she said left him confused.

It wasn't the usual reaction to a mate bond, but it was something, at least for him.

A loud crash snapped him out of his confusion.

"You clumsy witch!"

The blonde girl flew off Romaldo's lap and before he knew it, she was charging towards the poor girl who was now on her knees trying to clean up the mess she had made.

"Stupid wench! Go back and replace the drinks immediately!"

Romaldo's grip on the seat tightened. He did not like what he was seeing and neither did his wolf. They both wanted to rush to the girl's side to help her and to tear apart her tormentor.

"We need to talk."

Ken's unexpected grip on his arm halted Romaldo's intentions.

"What is it?" He hissed.

"Not here."

Romaldo hated walking away, but the serious look on his beta's face screamed for his attention. And he knew their conversation couldn't be had in front of curious foreign eyes.

"What the hell was that?" Ken demanded the moment they were far enough from the pack house. "Is Nykka right? Did you get a second chance mate?"

"No. I don't know what she is."

"What do you mean no?"

"She's not my mate." Romaldo spat, hands clenched, trying to reign in his temper. Now that he was away from the girl, disappointment was eating at him too. Since Amelie's death, he had thought himself strong enough to resist the mate bond.

"Then what the hell was that? How are you possessive of a she wolf that means nothing to you?"

Another growl tore from Romaldo's throat. His wolf didn't like his beta's words and neither did he. The girl might not be his mate, but she didn't exactly mean nothing to him.

"That...What the hell was that?"

"Nothing."

Frustrated, Romaldo walked further from the pack house, but Ken came round and blocked him from taking any more steps.

"If the pack has a new luna--"

"She's not my mate!" Romaldo growled, but he knew his words were falling on deaf ears. Ken might be loyal to him, but that loyalty would easily be swayed if he even suspected this girl was his mate and the Crystal Moon pack's luna. His beta would choose his mate over Vieva, his fiancèe, without blinking and everything Romaldo had worked hard for since Amelie's death would have been for nothing. And he couldn't have that. But then again, he couldn't ignore whatever was between him and her.

"If you say so." Ken stood back, doubt written all over his face. "What do you want to do then?"

"She's coming with us."

"What on earth for? You just said she meant nothing to you."

"Because I could have sworn she just called me Maxith."