The Moon Goddess [3] ✓

☾One of Us

I stopped counting the days. Why? Because it didn't matter. Day twelve felt like day thirty to me, it all felt the same.

Rise early in the morning, hunt at noon and travel when daylight's still good. It was a system, one where I lost the sense of reality and focused on surviving. Everything was starting to disappear. I also noticed that they were kinder to me; it seemed easier for them to let me in. It probably had to do with the fact that I knew their life stories, good and bad (but mostly bad).

It was the early evening, the time when we'd start to move. Sabine was ranting about something and anyone lucky to escape ran ahead to the leaders.

"Who knows if this Moon Goddess is real, right? It could all be a hoax, some exaggerated bullshit that just makes everyone overreact," Sabine rambled, "Lies, I tell you."

Milo was by her side, arguing with her like he always did.

"Come on, Bean, it could be real. I mean, there had to be someone to create werewolves." He tried to reason with her but I'd learned that Sabine never changed her mind once it was set. It was pointless to argue with her. I wish I knew what I believed in.

"When are reincarnations ever real? This is the real world, no such thing."

"Although, it wouldn't explain why there have been less wolves finding their mates." Milo tousled his thick hair so that some of it covered his scar.

"How do you know?" I asked, my face feeling the burn of the cold. "That there have been less wolves finding their mates?" I clarified.

"You're supposed to find your mate young. It's better to have pups and extend the line that way. Anything older than twenty-five is rare," Milo explained patiently, "But in my pack, about half of us didn't have mates. There were some who were thirty, forty or even fifty and hadn't found them. It never used to be like that. The average age you found your mate a hundred years ago was eighteen. Think about it. Know any wolves who don't have mates?"

I wracked my brain for any wolves who hadn't found their mates. Landon was mateless. . . So was Archer and Zack. What about Drake? And Conrad? None of them had mates but they were still young.

But there must be a reason why, right? There had to be some logical explanation as to why many of them were single.

Wait, what about the rogues? I looked at Sabine and Milo, who looked determined to look ahead.

My ears were shocked to hear their true stories of how they became rogues. It was heart-wrenching, so sad that I wanted to cry. All of their stories were intertwined with the notion of having a mate; all ending in tragedy.

Was that why they held a grudge against Cassie?

"I blame it on the so-called Moon Goddess." Sabine sputtered, like she was reading my mind.

"Why?" I asked in an uncharacteristically high voice.

Milo walked infront of us, "If you couldn't tell already, she hates that bitch."

"Like you don't." She scoffed hotly.

"I hate the Moon Goddess, too, but not as much as you."

"Because she gave me a terrible pack. Because she gave me a no-show mate." For some reason, I felt guilty. Like it was somehow my fault they suffered. "I was the black sheep, well, wolf, in my pack. I didn't fit in because I wasn't apart of their pack." Her tone was laced with utter disgust and hatred for her former pack.