The Luna Trials by Marissa Gilbert novel Chapter 4

The excruciating pain was too much, and tears were burning Savvy’s eyes. She did her best not to scream as her nails dug into the wooden surface of the library desk.

“That mother***ing bast*rd!” she gritted her teeth, calming Athena down as best as she could. The two of them were Alphas; they wouldn’t be crying over a man even if it was their mate. Even if he was hurting them. Especially knowing what kind of man their mate was.

Savannah hated how the mate bond worked. When she found out about Zack’s betrayal and escaped him with the list of traitorous packs who plotted to kill her brother, she made sure to try and reject him when she reached a neighbouring pack of werecats where she was safe. But Zack did not accept her rejection. She still remembered how he stood there, on the border, naked and angry, his hazel eyes piercing her soul. And she spat out the words only for him to refuse to do at least that for her. He did not wish to set her free even though he wasn’t going to be a real mate for her. Unfortunately, since they were true mates chosen by the Moon Goddess herself, for their bond to be broken, she needed him to accept the rejection. And until he did, they were tied to each other forever.

Mates were supposed to take care of each other, love each other unconditionally, and do everything for each other. But her mate only saw her as a good option for breeding strong pups and getting more power. This was all that she was to him, and it still hurt her more than anything.

Then he was gone because he knew that his cover was blown and that Gideon would be ready if they attacked. So Zack escaped, and they never saw each other again. But after about a month, she started to get these little reminders of his existence. The pains were rippling through her body in torturous sharp waves.  As if someone was thrusting a knife into her flesh over and over again.

The first time she experienced this, she almost passed out, and it was Zara who found her. But it was Athena who explained to her what was happening.

“It’s him,” the wolf said, trying her best not to howl from all the pain, “it’s Zack. He is…”

She did not need to finish that sentence since Savvy was clever enough to figure it out. Her mate was having s*x with someone. It was so painful on so many levels, but she ended up laughing through tears. She laughed and she laughed while her elongated claws were leaving marks on the concrete floor. While Zara was holding her and asking if she had to call for help, Savannah only shook her head, squeezing her eyes shut. She did not want anyone’s pity. She also did not want her family to be worried about her. All of them had enough on their plates already. So, she made Zara keep her secret, and this was one of the reasons they got so close in the past months.

Over time, she learned to tolerate that pain, to handle it better. She was almost used to it. Luckily, Zack’s intimate moments with others were short. A few minutes at best. Not at all like their first night together, where they couldn’t get enough of each other.

But Savvy slapped herself the moment she let her mind go there. They were done. Mate or no mate, she would have to kill him to get her freedom. And she would never find herself in his arms again…

The arms around her grasped her tighter, and this was when the pain finally became dull.

“Hands?” Savvy mumbled in frustration.

“Earth to the maid,” she heard a familiar voice and blinked a few times. What was all this?

Savannah found herself staring in the face of the gardener she met earlier, his clear blue eyes watching her intently, brows furrowed as he scanned her face. It took her some time to come back to her senses, and she clenched her lips when she did, realising that he was a witness to her weakness. It was bad that he saw her so close this time. He was still thinking that she was a maid, and that part was good, but he would soon see her as a princess. It was inevitable. And who knew what he would be telling people then?

“Space to the gardener,” she pushed him away and stood up, fixing her clothes. At least she looked decent. At this moment, anger for Zack filled her heart as the pain disappeared completely. He was done, and so was she.

Previously, he at least used to have his fun during the dark hours; now, it was still the middle of the day. Which was why she was so careless and went to the library alone. Which in turn led to this situation.

“What was that?” The guy sat on the top of the wooden desk she used previously and traced the marks she left on the surface with his large calloused fingers. “You were… out of your…”

“Don’t finish that sentence!” she ordered in her princess tone, only later remembering that she was pretending to be someone else. The gardener did not look pleased and hopped off the desk to tower over her.

“Or what?” he asked, his minty breath caressing her skin.

He was much bigger than her, much taller. With an aura of confidence around him that gardeners back in her kingdom did not possess. He was also brutish and still didn’t even look clean.

“Or you’ll regret this,” she smirked, folding her hands on her chest. “The gardening section is that way,” Savvy pointed with her index finger.  “Hurry up. Your roses definitely need some work.”

“Only because some crazy lady shredded them to pieces,” he chuckled.

“I heard she only did it because they were that ugly,” she tried to get away from him, but he only bent lower, inhaling her scent and pinning his hands to the desk on both sides of her, which got her trapped.

“No wonder you hate roses when you smell like forest flowers,” he was so close to her that his beard tickled her. Savannah never liked beards. Or man buns. Those were two things that she hated. But Athena, who was always very defensive about their personal space, was unexpectedly quiet now. “Bluebells?” their eyes met when she heard the word. No one ever guessed that on their first attempt. Not even Zack.

“Look at you,” the girl rolled her eyes and tried to push him away, but he didn’t move an inch, “a true master of your trade.”

“Is that why you hate roses? Because they are more exquisite in comparison?” he teased her, and she did not appreciate it.

“Exquisite?” Savvy scoffed. “Those weeds that grow practically everywhere, that come in every colour and still lack originality. Not to mention that they literally try to hurt everyone who touches them. How can you even compare this to the bluebell, a flower so rare it needs protection that only blooms once a year and in the most secret of places. Although maybe you are just one of those who likes…ordinary things.”

“Are we still talking about flowers, feisty maid?” the man’s lips stretched into a smile.

“I don’t know,” Savannah raised her brow, “are we?”

He leaned lower, and his beard prickled her again, the closeness getting too much. However, for the first time since Zack, Athena was behaving. She didn’t growl at the stranger, did not protest, did not make Savvy feel sick. And it was so new and freeing.

But she had to stop. It was one thing to pretend to be a maid, and it was another to actually kiss one of king Kai’s men. She wasn’t risking that much, considering that she already had a plan of action in mind.

So, no matter how tempting it was to kiss that man right now, she knew she couldn’t. His lips were almost brushing over hers when she twisted one of his arms quickly, making him lose balance and almost smack his face on the desk while she ran to the other side of the room.

She turned to take the last glance at him and giggled at his startled expression. He was probably the lady’s man here and used to getting it easy with all the maids, considering how confident he was.

“Didn’t you know you are not allowed to pick bluebells?” Savannah smirked, and the look he gave her was not what she expected. She expected disappointment or maybe even anger. But if anything, he was amused.

“They don’t grow in the North, blossom,” the gardener chuckled.

“Too bad for the North,” Savvy shrugged her shoulders. “They are beautiful in spring.”

She turned on her feet and stormed out of the library, not wishing to continue this encounter. It was exciting but so wrong. And she couldn’t afford it.

Kai stood where she left him. The little feisty maid with a sharp tongue that reminded him so much of someone…

She irked him. But in a way that piqued his interest.

Which he had to kill, of course. His house was now full of women who belonged to important packs and kingdoms and who came here to compete for his attention. He still did not know how to get out of this, but one thing was certain – he couldn’t insult any of them. So, a fling with a western maid was out of the question. No matter how good she smelled, no matter how attractive she looked, no matter how his wolf wanted more right now when he usually barely tolerated females seeking their attention… He came here to look for ways out of all this mess, and he couldn’t get distracted.

This was exactly when he noticed the books that the maid was reading, and his mouth opened in shock. He lifted one of the oldest-looking books and saw the title on the thick ancient tome: “The Luna Trials Guidelines.”

Whistling, he took it and quickly looked through the other books. He counted at least five, and all of them were about the ancient traditions of the North. It was a good thing that it was literally impossible to study them so fast. He knew that the little maid worked for the western princess. The last thing he needed was for that woman to know all the rules about the event. So, he gathered all the books and went to his room. No one would ever find them there.

***

Savannah found Kyle outside, and he showed her the way to her designated room.

“Just don’t be angry, okay?” he snorted as he led her in the direction opposite to the main building where everyone else was going.

“What, did Elene give me the worst accommodation possible?” Savvy scoffed. After everything today, it wasn’t a surprise. It was something that she expected. But when they entered the dark passages that led to a very gloomy tower, she couldn’t hold in her laugh anymore. It didn’t look like this part of the castle was used much.

“At least we are not the only ones here,” her friend joined her.

“Moon Goddess! Who does Elene Fionnlagh hate as much as me?” she snorted and that was when a door opened right before the two of them. The princess gasped when she saw who had walked out.

“I guess that would be me. Long time no see, Savannah…”