Mellisa's POV
My chest feels like it is breaking into a million pieces, I thought I was over him but I guess not.
I regret coming here, I didn't know he was here but I needed some air and this is my safe space.
"I should go now, I just remembered something." Noah clears his throat awkwardly and briskly leaves.
"How long were you standing there eavesdropping?" Adam asks defensively, his once guilty expression changed to one of irritation.
"How dare you think you can talk to me like that after your stupid allegations."
His eyes go black in fury, "You refer to the death of my parents and the betrayal of a mate as stupid?"
I roll my eyes in annoyance, "Yes, because no matter how much I try to make you see that I was innocent you refuse to see."
"Every evidence showed your betrayal, in fact if you had just betrayed me it would have been better. But you also betrayed the pack that you were supposed to cherish and lead."
Anger surged through my veins. "A pack I'm supposed to cherish and lead you say. But they treated me like trash even though I knew nothing of my mother's betrayal."
His expression softened slightly.
"A pack that was supposed to be my family but was my greatest nightmare. Much worse my good for nothing mate that was supposed to be my protection, easily let them do what they all wanted to me."
His eyes shot to the ground looking everywhere but me.
"You know it's funny how a betrayer could protect her pack so well from the very people she allegedly was in cahoots with to annihilate her pack."
He gave me a long thoughtful look and walked past me.
"That's it? Run as you normally would." I scream after him.
A stream of hot tears rolled down my cheeks, I'm feeling so overwhelmed. The attack and his presence are almost too much to bear.
For the first time in a long time, I poured my heart out, not caring if anyone was around or could hear me. My back hit a large tree and I sat there rather clumsily on the bare floor.
A cold firm arm wraps around me, it makes me go completely still.
"Pour your heart out little one, you've been through too much already." A familiar voice of an older woman fills my ears.
I raise my blurry eyes and sight, Elder Cheryl, the only one that stood by me when I needed someone that night that changed my life forever.
"Cheryl? I..I didn't know you survived the massacre in your pack."
She smiled softly, wiping my tears off. "I know my dear, that's why I came in search of you before it's too late."
Little sniffles pass through my lips, "how do you mean, Cheryl?"
She sits beside me with an expression I couldn't decipher.
"I almost died today in the bunker, you know. My life flashed before my eyes, and I was so scared because there's so much I need to do."
I tilted my head slightly and asked. "What are those things?"
"Did you know that I was really close to your mother?"
My eyes widened in shock cause I can vaguely remember a few pack members that were friends to my mother but I never saw Cheryl so close.
"I didn't know that." I said, it now makes sense why she was so kind to me despite everything.
"You wouldn't because I was really close to your grandmother so I always saw your mother, Mabel as mine."
She was always so detached, I'm now guessing it was because of the betrayal of her mate.
"You mentioned something the night I was banished, that your mate had left the pack. I can't fathom the pain you went through."
Her eyes get glossy with tears. "My mate Bryon was a strong warrior wolf, in fact it was said that his wolf could rival that of the Alpha if he so wished. His ancestors had settled in our pack and were not originally from the Red Crescent."
"Did you guys have a misunderstanding before he left or something?" I feel like she needed to talk to someone about this, she has held it in for so long.
"No, nothing like that but he changed. He became distant, with a short fuse. Later, he started spending so much time outside the pack borders coming back smelling like another she wolf."
My eyes widened in surprise. "He was cheating! Didn't he care that it would physically hurt you badly?"
"I have no idea but he definitely didn't care. You know how Red Crescent is, no one really cares as long as it doesn't hurt the pack so I kept it to myself. Worse, I had no proof."
"How did you know he finally left you for another?"
"He walked up to the Alpha at the time who was Adam's grandfather, and told him he no longer wanted me and had fallen in love with another."
"What did the Alpha do?"
"He was so mad, the usually calm man was livid." She chuckles softly.
"But he left anyway." I muttered sadly.
She heaves a sigh. "Yes he did, no one, not even an Alpha could force a mate bond. I was even lucky that he came and officially rejected me."
"Wait, why would you call yourself lucky after being hurt."
"At least I was expecting it and I could no longer feel the pain of his infidelity."
I nod in understanding, "You're right about that."
The clouds grew visible in the dark night sky and several thunderbolts broke through the silence, droplets of rain began to fall on my cheeks.
"I bored you with my unending tale right?" Cheryl asks after some moments of comfortable silence.
"Not at all, it just got me thinking about how much pain you've had to bear after everything."
"It's nothing actually, anyways I have something to tell you."
I give her a thoughtful stare. "Is everything okay?"
She remains silent and places her hands behind her neck gently taking out a necklace with the pendant of the moon.
"Bend slightly, let me place this on you." I do as I'm told so she places it on my neck.
A weird electrifying feeling buzzes round me, I can feel power surging round me.
Vivid images of a beautiful white haired woman flash my vision, she smiles slightly. Her neck downwards was covered with strange intricate markings that shone brightly like they had light in them.
"You're finally here." The strange woman says, pure power radiating off her.
"Mellisa! Mellisa! Are you okay?" Cheryl's sharp voice filled with concern pulls me from wherever that was.
I place my palm on my chest and breath hard, trying to stay calm.
"Your eyes blazed like fire." She muttered softly, if not for my heightened senses I wouldn't have heard her.
"What is this?" I tried ripping off the necklace from my neck, when her warm hands held me down.
"It was always yours, always yours."
"Whose pendant is it?" I asked, still scared at what I saw.
"It was your mother's, she gave it to me a few weeks before her death. She claimed that her time was near and she didn't want the pendant to fall in the wrong hands."
"You've had it for so long. Why give me just now."
"Your mother specifically asked me not to give you until when the time was right, she said I'd know."
"And why now?"
"Something in my bones tells me the time is just right."
"I'm scared though, it feels like so much weight is on your shoulders."
"You're not alone anymore, you have your wolf, and family. Even me, I'd help you as much as I can."
I hugged her tightly yearning for the love that was radiating off her.
"You didn't ask me what I saw?" I said, after pulling myself off her and sitting beside her once more.
"The very ground has ears. Be careful, child. Evil seems to be lurking closer than ever."
My brows furrow in confusion at what she said but my wolf, Selena interrupts me.
"I can sense a strange presence lurking in the dark, I'm surprised that even I didn't notice it earlier."
I stand up swiftly and crouch slightly in a defensive stance covering Cheryl, who was staring at me confused.
"Who is there? Come out, now!" I say with so much authority.
Soon I heard a crunch on the ground behind me, before I could rush to it, a swish sound went past me and Cheryl collapsed on the ground convulsing.
Shit! She's been shot, I kneel by her and pull the arrow stuck in her shoulder blades and blood gushes out. It's made of silver and smells of Wolf's bane.
"Noooo! Cheryl, look at me, I won't let you die on me." Fresh tears pour from my eyes.
Foam pours out of her mouth, and she goes still in minutes, her pupils go above her eyelids.
I pull her body close to me a loud painful howl erupts from my mouth in the dead of the night.