"How?"
Michelle's question hung in the air for a good minute before Alpha Rodriguez dismissed everyone as the meeting was over.
When everyone cleared the hall, Rodriguez turned to his mate, now a traitor in his eyes, and said, "I will test you! When, where, how, or with what, you'll not know. It could be today, tomorrow, or any day or night, you won't know. If you pass, I swear by everything I have, I will put everything behind us, and we will move forward. Fail, and I will kill you!"
The way Rodriguez stated his answer made Michelle flinch. The dark, no-emotional expression on his face was just as cold. He was gone before she had time to process what he meant.
Michelle sat on the chair for an additional hour, crying, thinking, and then crying again. When she finally got up, she felt her knees buckle, and she almost fell, but someone caught her just in time.
"Easy there," Arya's voice came through.
Michelle steadied herself and stood up straight. "Thanks," she mumbled.
"Can we...." "No. I don't want to talk with anyone. I just want to be left alone!" Michelle said before Arya could finish her sentence. She slowly walked out of the hall, and Arya didn't say anything else. She understood that Michelle needed this time alone.
The people who once called her 'luna' were now looking away, disgusted.
She walked to her room but couldn't open the door. Taped to the closed door was a note that read, Traitors don't live in bedrooms. They belong to the garbage!
More tears ran down her cheeks. She grabbed the note and tossed it aside, trying for the door one more time, despite knowing it wouldn't budge, as if through some magic, it would open.
Michelle heard giggling, but when she turned towards the sound, no one was there. Whoever it was ran off.
Not knowing where to go, Michelle walked outside, where more laughter was heard. Unable to bear it anymore, she ran toward the forest, eyes blurry with tears and one broken heel.
She ran until her shoes broke and her feet were free, and her beautiful gown was almost all tethered. She only came to a stop when her legs finally gave up carrying her weight, and she collapsed on the root of a tree.
It was only when her throat burned with thirst that she finally realized that the sun had set and the stars twinkling in the sky.
"It was my mistake, and I promise to make everything better. You are my mate, and I will do everything to win back your trust and love. I swear on the moon Goddess, Rodriguez. I love you, and I won't lose you," she said aloud.
She got up slowly, with the help of the tree, and began walking, hoping to get to the pack house, only to realize that she was lost.
She tried sniffing her way back, only to know that her nose was stuffy, and she couldn't breathe through it. "Perfact!" She exclaimed, not knowing what to do.
She knew trying to mindlink Rodriguez would be futile, as he must have blocked her, so she tried to mindlink Arya instead, hoping she'd hear her plea.
'Arya, can you hear me? I need help. I'm lost!'
'Michelle? Oh God, where are you?' Arya replied within seconds.
'I don't know! I'm somewhere in the middle of the forest, and I don't know how to get to the pack house.'
Arya could feel Michelle sobbing and feeling alone and hopeless.
'Can you describe anything around yourself that will help me locate you?'
'I'm under a huge tree, and it looks like the surrounding area has Jasmine flowers growing. I can smell them.'
Arya felt a shift in Michelle's voice. She was now full of hope. Her crying had also stopped, and it seemed from the change in her voice that she was trying to find any details about that place that might help Arya in locating her.
'Stay where you are. I'm on my way. I know the exact tree you're under.'
For the first time since the afternoon, Michelle felt hope bubble in her. She had wronged Arya as well, but here she was, trying to help her.
Soon enough, Michelle saw a flashlight swinging from tree to tree, and she smelt the scent of a human mixed with witch. This was Arya's scent now, not fully human, not fully witch.
"Arya?" She called out, trying to get up. She couldn't stand, and after trying for what felt like hours, Michelle finally gave up and hoped that Arya would hear her call.
"Arya, over here!"
The flashlight stopped. Then it zoomed toward Michelle. She waved her hand until the light landed on her. Michelle narrowed her eyes, placing a hand in front, and she felt the scent getting stronger.
Arya was running towards her. "Michelle, I'm here!" She called out.
Arya ran to her and got down to her knees, examining her. "Oh God, you're bleeding," she observed.
"That's okay. I'll heal. Thank you so much for coming!" Michelle said, trying to get up again. She failed again.
"It's okay. And you're welcome. Here, let me help you," Arya said, holding Michelle's arm with one hand and sliding the other hand on her waist.
"I'll pull you up on three. Okay, one, two, three..." Arya pulled Michelle up, and Michelle put in every effort she could muster to get up.
The night air was damp, and a musty forest smell surrounded them. Arya could sense someone watching them, but looking around, she saw no one. She didn't say anything, as her sense of smell wasn't as strong as Michelle's, and if there were someone there, Michelle would have sensed him way before she did.
"Aahhh!" Michelle let out a cry of pain, which pulled Arya back to her.
"What happened?" Arya asked, turning the flashlight toward her face, then following her eyes to her feet.
"Oh God!" Arya exclaimed. "Michelle, how long have you been running for?"
"I... I don't know," came the reply.
"Your feet are covered in blisters. Try to walk."
Michelle lifted one foot off the ground, whinced in pain, and screamed as that foot touched the ground again. She almost fell, and Arya tightened her grip on her.
"Michelle, it's okay. I'm here, but I need to get help. I'll be back..."
"No! You're not leaving me alone here!" Michelle tightened her grip on Arya's hand. "Please, don't leave me alone."
"Okay... we'll try something else... try calling your wolf forward. She can help you heal, and she can walk while you rest," Arya said.
"Michelle hung her head as fresh tears streamed down. "I can't," she whispered. "She's too broken to..."
"Hey, it's alright. Let me think of something else... "
The only solution that Arya could think of was calling Rodriguez. But would he even answer?