Rejected by Moonlight: Second Moon, Second Chance

Lila's scream rang out, sharp and loud. It bounced off the ravine's walls before the river's yell swallowed it whole. She knelt at the cliff's edge. Her hands dug into the wet soil. Her green eyes shimmered with tears, wide and desperate. She stared into the dark, swirling water below. The river churned fierce. It offered no hint of Kade's fate. No gray fur surfaced. No sign of the man who'd fought for her showed up. He'd vanished, taken by Jaxon's wolf and the river's hard pull. She was alone now. Only the wind's wail and the blood crusting on her skin kept her company. Her chest heaved as a sob broke free, rough and deep. It felt like her soul spilled out into the night.

"Kade!" she shouted. Her voice cracked apart. It shattered against the rocks far below. She slammed her fists into the ground. Dirt lodged under her nails. Her shoulder ached where Jaxon's claws had torn into her. That pain seemed small compared to the fresh hurt in her heart. Kade had saved her. He'd hauled her from the bridge's wreck. He'd battled the wolves with wild strength, despite his own blood loss. Now he was gone, a rogue who'd offered her a chance. He'd lost it all in a heartbeat. Guilt bit into her, fierce and tough. She'd relied on him, followed his lead. He'd paid for it with his life. Tears streamed down her face, silent and burning. They soaked into the earth as her shaky hand rested on her belly. She felt the faint life there.

"I didn't mean for this," she whispered. Her voice sounded thin and weak. She spoke to the child growing inside her, a desperate truth. "I didn't want him to die for me." The words tasted bitter, heavy with every choice she'd made. She'd fled Jaxon, trusted Kade, fought when all she'd wanted was peace. She'd killed a wolf tonight. She'd felt its blood pour over her hands. Now Kade's death marked her too, a stain she couldn't wipe away. Her breath caught. A shiver ran through her body. She curled in tighter. The cold sank into her like a harsh hug.

The forest towered around her, dark and heavy. Its shadows pressed close, thick with quiet. The trees stood like silent watchers to her falling apart. Jaxon's howls had calmed. His pack slipped back into the night. They might be circling, ready to strike again. The silence felt worse. It made her feel more alone. She was by herself once more, just as she'd been after Tom's death. Hunters' arrows had stolen his gentle smile. They left her with a hidden truth. Her mind drifted back to those secret days with him. His laughter had been bright, like a warm wind in summer. His touch had been soft against her skin. He'd promised her a life free from the pack's hold. They'd broken the rules, a human and a shifter, meeting in stolen moments. She'd loved him with a quiet fire Jaxon's bond never lit.

She pictured him now, glowing in the moonlight on the river. His dark eyes crinkled with a smile. His voice teased her about the stars. "You're stronger than you think, Lila," he'd told her once. He'd brushed hair from her face as they lay in a meadow. The world felt theirs for a short breath. She'd laughed off his belief back then. She'd brushed it aside light. Now, with his child inside her and the pack's rejection clawing at her, she craved that strength. He'd died shielding her from a hunter's shot aimed at her heart. She'd sworn to live for him, for their future. Yet here she knelt, beat up and bleeding. Kade's loss piled onto her guilt like dirt on a grave.

A rustle jerked her back to the present. Her head snapped up. Her breath snagged in her chest. She scrambled to her feet. Her legs wobbled but moved by instinct. She ducked behind a hollowed tree. Its wide trunk hid her shaking body. Her shoulder pressed into the rough bark. Blood seeped through Kade's bandage. She bit her lip hard to quiet a cry. The forest went still. The quiet stretched thin and tight. A soft crunch of leaves broke it. Someone, something, stepped too near. Her heart raced. It thudded loud against her ribs. She peeked around the trunk. Her eyes strained in the faint light.

Nothing moved at first, just shadows and gloom. Then a shape shifted near the ravine's edge, small but real. Her gut sank, heavy with fear. Was it Jaxon himself? Tara, hunting revenge? Another scout sent to finish her? She shrank deeper into the hollow. Her hands trembled over her belly. Her breath came short and choppy. "Please," she whispered. It was a plea to the dark, to the moon, to Tom's lingering spirit. "Not yet, not like this."

The rustling grew clearer. A twig snapped under weight. Fear sharpened her will. It forged it into something hard and bright. She couldn't fight, not with her body wrecked and her shifter power locked for the baby's sake. But she wouldn't die here, hiding like a whipped dog. Kade had given her a shot at life. He'd bled for her. She'd honor that. She slid around the tree. Her bare feet stayed quiet on the moss. Her senses stretched. She hunted for the danger's source. The shadow stopped, then crept forward. It moved slow, a hunting pace that chilled her blood.

Her mind spun, piecing together a plan. She could slip deeper into the woods. She might find a stream to hide her scent. She could hunker down until dawn, when the pack might tire. She took a step, ready to go. The shadow burst forward. It was a deer. Its antlers glinted in the moonlight. Its eyes widened with its own panic. Relief hit her, shaky and brief. A laugh rose in her throat. It died fast. The wind turned. It brought a new sound, a low, sad howl, far but clear. Jaxon's pack hadn't quit. They were still out there, tracking her.

She sank back into the hollow. Her body quivered as the rush faded. The deer fled. It disappeared into the trees. She envied its fast, free escape. She felt trapped, a rogue in a cruel land. Her only friend lay lost to the river. Her fingers grazed the bandage on her shoulder, Kade's rough work. Grief surged again. It crashed hard inside her. He'd been a stranger, a wolf with scars and secrets in his gray eyes. Yet he'd stood for her when no one else had. Now he was gone. She was alone, again.

"I'll live for you, little one," she murmured. Her voice firmed up. She pressed both hands to her belly. She felt a tiny kick, a spark of life tying her to hope. "I'll find a way." The promise carved itself into her core, fierce as the love she'd had for Tom, for the pack she'd lost. Kade's death wouldn't be for nothing. She'd survive, for her child, for the woman this nightmare was shaping her into.

The night dragged on. The moon sank low. Its light softened the forest's harsh lines. Lila tended her wounds. She ripped a piece from her shirt. She wrapped it over the bandage. Her hands moved slow but steady. She replayed Kade's final stand in her mind. His yell echoed, his power shone, the way he'd thrown himself at the wolf for her. Guilt twisted inside her, sharp and bitter. Beneath it, a new fire flickered, resolve, tough and solid. She'd seen alphas command with that kind of steel in the pack. She wasn't there yet, but she could get there. She had to.

A rustle broke her focus, faint like a breath on the leaves. She froze. Her head lifted fast. Her breath locked tight in her chest. The hollow hid her, but her eyes scanned the dark. She hunted for the cause. Was it just the wind? Another deer passing by? Or Jaxon's wolves, back to take her? Her hand clenched into a fist. Nails cut into her skin. She waited. Every nerve buzzed with fear and grit.

Then she saw it. A figure rose above her hiding spot. It stood tall. Its shape blurred in the night's gloom. Her heart stopped dead. A scream caught in her throat. She braced herself for the end, or a fight she couldn't win. Friend or enemy, she couldn't tell. One thing burned clear in her mind. She wouldn't go down without a struggle. Not anymore.