The Rise of the Fallen Queen

Chapter 2

Author's Warning: Chapter contains incidents of bullying.

CHAPTER 2

Mona Talts never said much to anyone. Her father's mate had died and he chose her mother to become his unified mate. They were both workaholics who dedicated their lives to their duties to the pack. Her father was the Alpha of the Luna Rising Pack, located near Chicago. He produced two children but only wanted one. Being a girl, Mona was brushed aside by her father and neglected by her mother because she wasn't a "pretty" baby. Her younger brother, Ernie, was the pride and joy of both parents.

^Mona Talts^

Mona's paternal grandmother was the one who raised her for the most part. They would spend hours in the kitchen baking cookies and breads for the pack. Mona began to associate food with comfort and her asthma made it difficult to exercise, soon found herself overweight which led to a lot of bullying making her want to eat more. Her grandmother would always defend her and try to kiss away her hurt. She told Mona that food was like people.

"Never turn to it for happiness. Instead find your happiness within yourself. Not in your appearance though you should keep yourself up. Not abilities because there are always limits. Be happy in your soul with who you are."

Mona was never sure what that meant but she did stop looking for food to comfort her. She tried to exercise more in secret to avoid ridicule but she was still a big girl. She enjoyed cooking so she focused on helping and feeding others in her own quiet way.

The teasing lessened as Mona learned to be invisible. No one ever noticed that she was there and she never reached out. She learned quite a few secrets because people talked freely in front of her as if she were no more than a lamp or table. She found out that her father and his Beta were having an affair with his secretary, who was half their age. Her mother was sleeping with two high school boys in exchange for scholarships for college. Mona avoided all of them as much as she could.

When her grandmother died, the Alpha nor Luna wanted her to be around so they sent her to live with her father's younger brother, Emile, who was the Beta of the Indigo Sky Pack. Emile and his family were nice to her but didn't have a lot of time to spend with the young girl. Emile's daughter, Suzie, who was around Mona's age was no longer around because she had met her mate. Mona missed her cousin who had always been kind to her when they were kids. So, she continued as she always had, to be as unseen and unheard as possible.

It was a shock when her uncle informed her that she would be traveling with some of the warriors to aid the Cub Creek Pack. She didn't understand why, she could barely pass the beginner's training. Yet here she stood in the middle of organized chaos. Ignored once again as if she were an inanimate object. Observing the unloading she noticed that they had forgotten a box.

Picking up the small wooden crate she walked towards the building she guessed was the armory. A loud screech followed by popping noise caught her attention distracting her from her purpose. There was an overturned ATV next to the truck she had arrived in. The drivers were arguing and the Head Warrior called everyone to come and get their bag and take them to their room. Forgetting about the crate in her hands, Mona rushed over to collect her bag. Placing the light purple knapsack on top of the box she carried it to the outbuilding that she would be sleeping in.