Luna Rising by Sloane Murphy
Chapter Three
“Luna, I’m here to save the day.” I look up at a grinning Maddox before he bounces down onto the bed with me.
“Oh, my knight in shining armor,” I tease, messing with his dark floppy hair. “And how exactly are you here to save the day?”
“Your birthday, of course. I told your mom that we’d have a joint birthday bash since I’ll be here with the fam already. I know how much you don’t want the attention, so what better way to distract the crowd than with this face?” His gray eyes sparkle with laughter as he looks over at me. His dark hair flops into his eyes, and his smile just enhances how sharp his jawline is.
I snort a laugh and push him off the bed, which isn’t easy considering how big he is. The guy is built like a tree, all tall and broad. He barks out a laugh as he lands on the floor in a crouch. He’s definitely not a cat, but his reflexes are out of this world. I guess being a hybrid Lycan and Angel will do that. The next Alpha of Alphas will surely be even more of a powerhouse than his dad, which is saying something.
“You really are my savior.” I stick my tongue out at him, and he climbs back on the bed and sits crossed legged opposite of me. “You totally didn’t have to do that, especially since your birthday is like over a month after mine. I appreciate it, though, truly.”
“We’re going to be here anyway, and our birthdays are only a few weeks apart really.” He shrugs. “I know how much you hate the attention, and this is a big birthday with the mating potential and all that. You don’t need all eyes on you for something like that.”
“You know everyone thinks it's going to be me and you, right?” I ask him, rolling my eyes.
He just laughs before leaning back against the bedpost. “Yeah, I know. Dad hasn’t been any less chill about it with me than your mom has been with you. He seems to think I’ll find my mate early. Though why he thinks I’ll find a Lycan mate when he didn’t is beyond me.”
“You never know.” I smile at him sadly.
Honestly, the thought hadn’t even crossed my mind. I’m a shitty friend sometimes. Before uncle Roman, no one had ever mated to someone from a different faction. Then he met Remy and everything changed, but before that people simply assumed they hadn’t crossed paths with their mates. To be fair, until Maddox, no one was sure Lycan hybrids could even exist either. It seems sad to me that so many people potentially missed out on finding their mate because everyone was too bigoted to look beyond their own factions. Honestly, if my mate isn’t a Lycan, it will probably be more fun. Though Maddox doesn’t look too thrilled at the thought of not having a Lycan mate.
“Maybe there’s a wolf girl out there just pining for you and you don’t know it,” I offer helpfully.
“Oh, Luna, you and Nova are the only two who don’t pine after me. Didn’t you know that already?” He winks at me, and I burst out laughing. Mostly because he probably isn’t wrong. The girls around here simp over him something fierce. To me, he’s always just been Maddox. To them, he’s the heir to the Alpha of Alphas. Obviously that’s a big deal, but I get enough grief being an Alpha heir, fuck all that extra crazy. “Speaking of dark and twisty, where is she?”
I roll my eyes at him again before nudging him with my foot. They really do love to hate each other. “Nova is out shadowing Thatch. She’ll be around later, so if you’re here all day…” I trail off, pulling the word out in a singsong voice, trying to tease him into admitting that he likes her more than he lets on. Unfortunately for me, the asshole is so laid back he might as well be upside down. He’s also something of a player, so he’d never admit it anyway, even to me.
“I am here all day. Dad’s here talking to Theron about something. They’re being weird about shit.”
“I wonder if it's about what happened the other day…” I ponder before launching into a story about my dad losing his shit in the square.
He thinks it over for a minute then shakes his head. “Nah, I don’t think so. Dad’s been squirrely for a minute, and Mom hasn’t been any better. You should see it when the parental units get together for their big badass meetings. It's like they forget the rest of us are grown. Raze nearly went full storm on them a few weeks ago, and I only just managed to get Evie out of the way. Crazy-ass bastard.”
My eyes go wide at his words. His older brother, Raze, is a beautiful fucking specimen, then again, the entire Bennett brood are. He’s all broody with his dark hair and soul stealing eyes. But he’s also a full Angel, the son of the Archangel of War and a Shadow Walker. He does that whole moody thing so fucking well. I might have had a teeny tiny crush on him since… well, forever, even if he is just a smidge younger than me. It’s less than a year, so it doesn’t count.
Right?
“You think that's why your dad is here? Cause something bigger is happening?”
Fear strikes at my heart. The world has been pretty easy going since the Accords were drawn up between the factions. Everybody stopped hunting each other, rogues became a thing of the past, and other than the one-off squabble here and there, it's been peaceful.
He just shrugs, looking so fucking chill it's stupid. “Could be. But they don’t tell us anything, hence Raze’s freak out. Plus, his powers are like leveling up or some shit. Kain took Evie to France for the weekend, and Creek has Colt in the Shadow Realm visiting with Silva. And well, Dad brought me here, and I get the feeling it's not just for the run tonight. Though, running sounds really good now.”
“Dude, you are such a guy sometimes,” I sigh, throwing a pillow at his head. I swear, I love him, but he’s so blasé about stuff.
“Nah, I’m just chill. I figure I’m going to have enough stress on my plate when Dad passes over the mantle. Until then, I’m going to be as chill as I fucking like.”
* * *
Maddox gets called away with Dad and Uncle Roman, leaving me with Nova and my mom. Mom dragged us dress shopping in anticipation of my birthday party. This is just the day I wanted. Fates, my sarcasm is over the top even in my own head.
“Here are three more for you to try on, sweetheart.” Mom shoves the new dresses through the side of the curtain, and I bite my lip to stop the groan that’s trying to escape.
“Mom, I am so not a dress kind of girl. None of these look right.”
“Luna, stop it. You are beautiful. You just need to embrace your feminine side some more.” I roll my eyes at the excitement in her voice. As much as I usually hate to disappoint my parents, this shit isn’t going to happen. Give me biker boots, some jeans, and a sweater over this shit any day.
“I agree with you, Leandra, she does look pretty, but she also looks super uncomfortable.” Nova tries to reason with her, but I already know it's a lost cause.
“Beauty requires sacrifice,” is all I hear my mom say before I hear her heels totter away.
I wrangle myself out of the bright blue monstrosity she has me in and try on the red one she just flung in. I can’t help but groan when I get stuck somewhere along the way. “Nova, help. Please.”
She slides into the changing room and bursts out laughing when she sees me. The stupid dress is caught around my neck, and my arms are still stuck up in the air. She pulls her phone from her pocket and snaps a picture of me, basically crying because she’s laughing so hard, and I can’t do anything but stand here and groan about it. Realistically, I could tear the dress to shreds with my trusty Lycan strength, but Mom will definitely straight up murder me if I do that.
After putting her phone away, Nova pulls the dress off of me just in time for Mom to reappear. “Mom, I have tried way too many already. I don’t like any, and if you make me put on any more, I’m probably going to shift and ruin them all. This is way too much.”
“Oh, Luna,” she sighs, and I hate the disappointment in her bright blue eyes. She tucks a loose strand of her white blonde hair behind her ear as she frowns in my direction, and the silent disappointment fucks me up.
“How about you let me pick my own outfit for this stupid party, and I won’t complain about any of the decorations and shit?” I bite my lip after offering my compromise because I’ll definitely still complain, I just won’t do it in front of her. But if I can find a way to get out of wearing this dress, I’m going to take it.
“Fine, Luna, but I want to see the outfit before the day of. And it can’t be all black!”
“But, Mom…”
“Nope, those are my conditions. This is your birthday, yes, but this is bigger than a simple old birthday, and you know it. Whether Maddox swooped in and saved the day for you or not, you still need to look your best. The way you present yourself to the packs is important, especially being Alpha Born. I know you don’t like it, but this is one of those times when you need to just suck it up.” She crosses her arms and stares me down until I relent. At least it's better than a dress, I guess. “Oh, and you’ll need to wear heels.”
“Moooom,” I groan, running a hand through my hair. It’s still better than a dress, that's what I have to remember.
“Do we have a deal, Luna?”
“Yes, Mom, we have a deal.” She grins, clapping her hands as if this was her master plan all along. I swear I wouldn’t even be surprised if it was. My mom is one of the nicest, sweetest people around most of the time, but she can also be an evil mastermind when needed. “I have classes tonight online, so can we wrap this up?”
“Sure thing. Get dressed, and we’ll run by the store before we head home. I’m going to make lasagna tonight. It’s Maddox’s favorite, and since you’re planning on running tonight, you’ll need the extra energy. Nova, you’re more than welcome to join us.” Mom smiles at her sadly. Nova lives in general pack housing. The orphans tend to end up living together, and despite my mom repeatedly offering Nova the spare room at our house, she always says no.
“Thank you,” Nova says quietly, blushing a little. Mom gives her a side hug, and I turn to pull my jeans and t-shirt back on, thinking about my classes for the evening. Doing my degree online was the only way I could get my parents to agree to let me do it at all. You could say they’re a little overprotective and college was never on the table for them. But having a degree is an integral part of my plan to explore the world some more, so I cling to it with both hands.
“Ready to go?” I ask as I step through the curtains in my regular clothes, pulling my hair back into a ponytail as I go.
My mom tuts but turns and walks toward the store exit, apologizing to the clerk at the entrance of the changing rooms as she goes. I smile at the girl guiltily as Nova and I pass, but she just smiles at me with a quick, “It’s fine.”
I can’t help but wonder what Maddox is doing with our dads today. He often gets looped into what’s going down because Roman actually has faith in his son. Sometimes I feel like my dad’s expectations of me and my capabilities are as high as they are low.
I get it. I don’t want to be Alpha, so why loop me in? On the other hand, maybe I’d be more interested if I had a clue what was going on in pack and faction politics. Faction politics have always fascinated me. Looking through the newer history books has always been super fascinating to me. And thanks to Auntie Remy and my four uncles, they contain actual accounts of faction history rather than the bullshit that used to be recorded as ‘history’.
The Dracul castle in France is totally on my list of places to visit when I break away from here.
I’d love to explore more of the Seven Realms, but I’m pretty sure that Dad will have a conniption just with me exploring this world, let alone the six others.
I climb into the back of Mom’s SUV along with Nova and stare out of the window as we head home. My phone buzzes in my pocket, and my eyebrows rise when I see Maddox’s message.
Maddox: Well, tonight just got interesting. Let's just say there’s going to be fireworks for the run.
I don’t know what’s going on, but suddenly, I’m looking forward to the full moon for the first time in a while.
* * *
I stand in the clearing between the house and the forest, still in my underwear. Being a Lycan means that being naked around each other isn’t really a big deal, but there’s a weird chill to the air leaving me uneasy.
“Tonight we have some new wolves joining our run,” my dad's voice echoes through the space. Uncle Roman stands on the small rise next to him. Dad glances around at those of us standing gathered before him before continuing, “In the last month, five Lycans have had their first shift, so each of them will run with an enforcer, same as always. We also have some guests from another pack with us.”
I let my gaze follow to where my dad is motioning, and I see the man he was arguing with the other day along with five others.
There are eleven new wolves to run with… This could be interesting. I guess these are the fireworks Maddox was on about earlier.
As if drawn by my thoughts, Maddox appears at my side as naked as the day he was born, with absolutely no fucks given. I guess when you’re as ripped as he is, there's little reason to feel self-conscious. “What do you think about the interlopers?”
“Who are they?” I ask, watching the six of them closely. One of them is glaring fucking daggers at Dad and Roman. He doesn’t look that much older than us, he’s almost as tall as my dad and his dark hair blows around in the wind as he stands there, shoulders back, with his colorfully inked arms folded over his chest. I have no idea why he’s being so pissy. Why are they here if they clearly don’t want to be?
“They’re from an old pack. Your Dad actually killed their alpha back in the day. Their pack was one of the ones that went against Mom and my dads. They’ve just kind of drifted from pack to pack ever since. They haven’t really found a good fit, and your pack is the last one for them. Obviously they haven’t come here, because of their pack history with your dad, but this is their last chance at finding a pack.”
Whelp… I guess that explains the looks. Why the fuck are they running with us if they hate my dad? Surely that’s just asking for trouble. At least Maddox let me know, so now I’ll stay on alert. If they’re pissed at Dad, that makes me a prime target for any anger they might want to vent. “Wait, is that why you’re here? To look after me on this run?”
He has the decency to look a little uncomfortable as he rubs the back of his neck. “I mean, no? But it’s a definite perk, right?”
“Don’t you lie to me, Maddox Bennett-Knight.” I wag my finger at him, and he grabs my wrist and twists it behind my back, yanking me around me so my back is flush to his chest.
“I am not lying to you, Luna. I would’ve come and run with you anyway. But now that I know who they are, I’ll be more on alert for sure. No one asked me specifically to look out for you.” I struggle against his hold, and he growls a little. “Stop it.”
“It was implied though, wasn’t it? That you need to watch out for me?” I struggle against his grasp, but his hold only tightens. “This is some fucking patriarchy bullshit. I can look after myself.” I struggle more, and his hold tightens.
“Luna, calm your shit before people start paying attention to us instead of our dads,” Maddox growls out in a whisper against my ear. “I know you can look after yourself, but that doesn’t mean I’m not going to look out for you too. You’d do the same for me.”
“Fine,” I say through clenched teeth. He waits a beat before releasing me. I rub my wrist, not because he hurt me, but because I’m sore that despite all of my training, the asshole is still stronger than me.
“Let's run!” Uncle Roman's voice carries through the air just as the moon hits its peak, and howls ring out around the space as the shift begins. The pull of it is like fire in my blood, so I strip out of my underwear, and give myself over to the power of it. Maddox keens next to me as his shift is over in a heartbeat. His black wolf watches me as I crouch and take a deep breath. The pain starts at the base of my spine and ripples down my arms and legs.
It’s over in less than a minute, but it feels like a lifetime.
My wolf is so happy to be free you’d think I’d kept her locked away for months. Her joy only grows when she sees Maddox’s wolf. We definitely make a striking pair. His night dark fur in contrast to my snowy white fur. My senses are both dulled and heightened in this form. The things that make me human pull back as the wolf takes over. My hearing, smell, and sight are all enhanced even more than usual while my more human instincts recede.
Maddox howls into the night before jumping into me, knocking me to the ground playfully. He takes off into the forest, and I clamber up to chase behind him, all thoughts of the interlopers far from my mind as we run.
The joy radiating from my wolf makes my heart happy and my brain a little fuzzy as I give her full control. We chase after Maddox, hunt the rabbit we catch the scent of with him, and generally just enjoy the time under the moon.
We lollop back toward the house when a wolf whose scent I don’t recognize charges at me from the side and crashes into me. My wolf lets out a cry, and Maddox is there in a second, tearing the wolf from me, his giant black wolf practically foaming at the mouth. I shift back unwillingly, the pain from the hit overwhelming me.
Seconds later, Dad and Uncle Roman’s wolves appear, snarling at the wolf who attacked me until the wolf submits.
Maddox stands in front of where I’m lying, head low and a low growl rumbling through his throat. My ribs hurt like fucking crazy, and it’s hard to breathe. Maddox shifts back and lifts me from the ground, carrying me through the forest back to the house. I try not to whimper, but I’ve never been attacked in wolf form before. That shit fucking hurts.
Maddox lets out another low growl and holds me tighter, trying not to jostle me as he moves as quickly as he can. “I’ll have you to your mom in just a minute, okay?”
“Okay,” I say quietly, barely able to speak over the pain that screams through my center. I struggle to suck in air and panic sets in. Maddox’s eyes go wide, and he starts to run as he senses the shift in my demeanor.
“Just hold on, Luna. I got you.”
