Luna Lena

Chapter 27 - Traitor's Mark

The next day, Elijah and I awoke next to each other, naked, with a mess of blankets tossed across our bodies. I'm sure we were quite the sight, with our hair a ruffled mess and sweat from the night's activities dried onto our skin. I wouldn't change a thing, though. I loved waking up like this. I loved us.

I knew today would be a serious day though. Our Alpha guests were still here to witness Alpha Dean's punishment – his branding in front of the entire Polar Moon pack.

Elijah awoke shortly after I did. His golden eyes fluttered open, quickly shooting my direction to make sure I was still next to him. A smile slowly formed on my face at his small, simple action. That was the Alpha mate I knew – always concerned about my safety.

The rest of our morning went on rather casually. We cleaned up and prepared for our day, even though Elijah had decided not to tend to his daily Alpha duties due to the important events taking place.

While I was making my hair and makeup look somewhat presentable, Elijah decided to cook us a light brunch. Once the meal was finished, we sat down to eat together and chat before we had to carry on with the rest of our day. It was most certainly a good way to start the day off, and seeing Alpha Dean branded as a traitor would be the cherry on top.

"How about we pay your parents a visit before the branding?" Elijah asked me before biting into a croissant.

My body quickly tensed; I was anxious at the mere thought of interacting with my parents. It made me feel like a shitty daughter. I'd wanted nothing more than to be reunited with my family, and now that I was, I didn't want to be around them. Nothing could have truly prepared me to deal with my mother's condition. It was hard to witness.

"I suppose we should," I finally answered, pushing my plate towards the middle of the table. I'd lost my appetite.

Elijah pretended to ignore the action and simply smiled at me – a large, beautiful smile. The smile I'd so quickly fallen in love with, and that comforted me even during the darkest of days.

"Let's head over there now then. That'll give us enough time to visit for a few minutes before the branding," Elijah told me, standing from his chair.

I nodded and followed his lead, standing from my chair and pushing it back under the table. We quickly made our way out of our personal quarters and downstairs towards the infirmary wing, where my parents would continue to be housed until my mother was cleared by the pack doctors. My father was likely already well enough to leave and set up a home for my mother and himself in pack members quarters, but I knew he wouldn't leave his mate. No werewolf would leave their mate during a time of distress.

The hallways of the infirmary were quiet, as usual. The occasional sound of a nurse walking down a hallway or typing on a computer were the only disturbances. Polar Moon didn't typically host training intense enough to cause severe injuries, and werewolf illnesses were rare.

Soon enough, we rounded the corner into the hallway that led to my parents' large, double room. My heart pounded in my chest, desperate to break free, desperate to escape any awkward or stressful situations to come.

When we approached the door, I reached out to turn the door knob, ready to get this over with, but Elijah intercepted me by grabbing my hand. I looked up at him, confused, to see him staring down at me with a thoughtful look in his eyes.

"They're getting better, Lena," he told me with a stern nod. His actions told me that this was not only a reassurance, but a promise.

I nodded back and released a sigh before reaching out once again to open the door to my parents' hospital room. With one gentle push, the door opened.