His Blue Moon Princess
Chapter 3

"Stop! No! Please, stop!"

I keep screaming, but Alec won't stop. My pain and supplications never made him stop before. And he was never this mad. My head hurts; all of my body hurts. My arms feel so weak that I can barely hold them up while trying to protect myself. "I'm not done with you, Nora! Stop resisting! Die! Die! I'm gonna kill ya!"

No, no, no, I don't want to die! Please, make it stop! Won't anyone help? The rain covers all of my screams. My brother is beating me so hard, I can't take it anymore. I'm going to die here, on the asphalt. How can one take so much pain? I feel each of his punches. On my face, on my arms, on my ribs, and even on my stomach. His fists just mercilessly hit wherever they can reach.

All of a sudden, he stops.

Is he done? Oh Moon Goddess, I hope he's had enough... This pain is killing me. I can taste my own blood in my mouth and feel some running on my face, too.

All of a sudden, I feel his hands on my neck. He is... He's choking me! I try to fight him, push him away, but his grip is tightening so hard around my throat. I can't breathe, I'm fighting for air! Let me breathe! Black spots start blurring my vision, and my head hurts really badly. I gasp helplessly, but nothing comes; his hands won't let go. My hands try to push him away, but he won't budge. I see the look in his eyes. He's really going to do it.

I feel my consciousness give up.

I can't see anything. This headache overtakes it all.

I can't....

"HEY! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!"

***1 week earlier***

"I won't go," I say

I'm shaking, but I won't change my mind. Alec stares at me with a furious look. I ignore him. I may be afraid of him, but the Alpha's wrath is even scarier.

"What, did you say you won't go? You just shut up and go already; I am not asking for your opinion! You b***h!"

I bite my lip and clench my fist holding the spoon. I try to focus on those appetizers, ignoring the furious eyes of my brother. Alec starts yelling at me, as I expected. I can take his insults. I am no b***h, no w***e, no s**t. I have never once done anything that could make me deserve these names, but he keeps going on and on. Why would he call me such things? I've never even been kissed before or been with a man!

Hang on, Nora. This is not something he's never done before.

He slaps me, but I don't care. I ignore the pain and keep making those toasts. A new slap, and one of the appetizers falls on the floor. Don't look at him, don't. Keep going. "You are gonna go to work right now!" He yells in the kitchen.

No, I won't. I know it's no use talking back, so I don't. Even my wolf is proud of me. She is being fierce, showing her teeth, sharing her strength with me. We won't submit to him.

If I don't make this dinner a success for the Alpha, not only Vince, but the whole pack will be mad at me. I know how merciless the Blood Moon pack can be. That is no joke. Everyone still vividly remembers how they destroyed the Snow Moon Clan two years ago. They didn't just fight them; they killed all of those who didn't pledge allegiance to the Blood Moon emblem.

Compared to that kind of threat, those of my brother are definitely not as fearsome.

He keeps the yelling going, but I ignore him. He slaps me a couple of times, pissed, but that won't work. When he suddenly stops, I raise my head, surprised. The Alpha, Vince, just entered the kitchen.

"What's going on here?" Vince asks. "I can hear you all the way from my office, Alec, keep it down."

"Nothing, Alpha. Just telling this eyesore to work faster..."

"You mind your own business! I need your sister working. Leave her be and stop hindering her work. Do you want to be useful? Go help Greg and Margaret upstairs. And shut up!"

Alec glares at me, but how is it my fault now? He has no choice but to obey and exits the kitchen, towards the stairs. Vince looks at me with disdain and peeks a glance at my work so far. It's not much, but it's not even 4 pm yet, and I know I'm going to be ready on time. Without saying anything, he exits the room. Apparently, he recognizes I've been working diligently and won't get mad. I let out a sigh of relief and go back to my task. At least now I know Alec won't dare to come back here.

The hours go by, and I can feel the tension rising within our pack's building. Everyone is anxious about this meeting. Vince came down to check on my work five times within the last two hours. But I am proud of everything I have done and even feel rather confident about the dinner.

"Nora! Stop daydreaming!"

"So... Sorry Alpha. But I'm almost done!" I defend myself, showing the completed dishes.

Vince nods, but won't compliment me. Then, he takes a look at me and clicks his tongue. I glance down. I spent all afternoon cooking, and thus, my clothes were dirtied. They weren't pretty, to begin with, but now... I look like a beggar. Even my hair is messy. "I will change into new clothes as soon as I'm done."

"Whatever. Just go to your room and don't you dare come out tonight. I don't need the Blood Moon leaders to see your... face."

His eyes are set on where my scar is, behind my hair. I was careful to braid my hair the right way so my curls would hide it, but it's no use, he knows it's there. I avoid his gaze and lower my head.

At the same time, a group of pack members walks by to go to the recreation room, laughing and jokingly pushing one another. Alec is among them, and he stops as soon as he sees me. He goes from a smile to a pissed-off look in no time and keeps glaring at me as long as our eyes meet. I know my brother still thinks about this shift, but it's way too late now. I wonder why he wanted tonight's money so badly. Is he having money issues again?

But he can't say anything right now; Vince is still facing me and watching my every move like a hawk, making sure I finish in time. I feel, however, that this will only delay Alec's punishment for opposing him...

An hour later, I'm in the kitchen with my completed dishes, giving instructions.

"...And this is called crème brûlée. All you need to do is burn the sugar on top a little when you serve it, like I just did."

Jill and Maria are frowning, trying to remember it all. They will be the ones to serve tonight, as Vince doesn't want anyone that is not part of the pack to see me. Jill and Maria are my age, but they are way prettier, though they are not really smart. "Wait, why did you have to make a Russian dessert?" Asks Maria while playing with her blonde hair

"It's not Russian, it's French! Vince said the main Family is originally from France, so..."

They give me suspicious stares, but I don't care. All I need is for them to remember a few names and how to serve it!

Thankfully, about twenty minutes later, I think they finally get it. I hope so... They leave upstairs to get ready, and I can finally clean the kitchen.

It's almost time. Everyone is ready, and it is time for me to go hide in the basement. I'm so exhausted from cooking all afternoon, I just lay flat on my familiar couch.

I'm about to fall asleep when I can hear them. The people from the Blood Moon Clan are here!

I get up, totally awake, and run across the room to the small window. I climb on top of a rundown drawer to reach the opening. I have to stand on my toes to actually get to see something. My eyes are at ground level, and, for a while, all I can distinguish are feet and paws. But I can clearly hear Vince's voice.

"Welcome! Welcome to the Jade Moon Den. I am Vincent Greene, and this is my Beta, Peter."

I can distinguish his big brown boots among the crowd, and Peter, in his wolf form, next to him. Actually, a few members of our pack shapeshifted, too, prior to the guests' arrival, just in case... I suppose both sides can't trust the other.

However, facing them, the Blood Moon pack members are easy to recognize, even from my position: They are all in human form, and wearing dark suits and classy black leather shoes. Look like some mafia g**g has arrived! I'm shocked not a single one of them is in their wolf form. Are they that confident? Or just trying to act arrogantly? One of them answers, with a nice and gentle voice I didn't expect.

"Thank you for having us. You have a lovely turf indeed... How lucky of you to be able to enjoy a run in the forest anytime you want."

His tone is peaceful, so why is it his words seem so... menacing? I feel like he is threatening instead of thanking! Vince must be tense, but he won't show it.

"Oh, we are very attached to our land. My family has protected it for generations. But the forest is everyone's, of course, so please do not hesitate to come whenever you want to escape the city!"

I don't believe they would wait for permission...

Vince finally invites them in, and I leave my spot to go put my ear against the door. The basement is next to the kitchen and pretty close to the dining hall. I can hear all the chatting as they go by, with Vince introducing some pack members and showing them the way. Actually, he is the only one talking; none of the Blood Moon can be heard. I wonder what they look like...

I listen to them enter the dining hall, and then the kitchen goes quiet.

Meanwhile, I change quickly into some clean clothes. I grab a clean pair of jeans that I have left in the old wardrobe and put on a dark blue sweater that's too big on me, but never mind. At least I feel clean.

I'm putting my messy hair into a low bun when I hear some steps coming from the kitchen. Jill and Maria came to take the first plates, chatting as always.

"Gosh, I could barely breathe in there; everyone is so tense! If only they would relax a little," says Maria.

"Oh, I wish I could relax with that Nathaniel guy. I'm sure he's a wild beast behind the pretty boy look..."

"Keep your paws off, girl. Amber already is eyeing him. That girl is such a slut... But even without her, I wouldn't go near one of them. Those Black brothers are scary. I mean, those guys killed their own father and Alpha!"

"And it's only two of them here. But I heard the oldest brother is the worst; he is the crazy one of the lot. Okay, you got all of them?" Jill whispers.

They go back, and the kitchen goes silent again. Did they really kill their Alpha father? I didn't know that part! No wonder everyone is so afraid of them... Jill and Maria come and go again in the kitchen, but the chatting is reduced to them trying to remember what they are serving. It's nerve-wracking to hear them struggle when I'm just behind the door, but I can't disobey Vincent's orders just to help those two!

Thankfully, it seems the dinner goes well. I can hear everyone exiting the dining room, and their voices reach me again when they go out. It's dark by now, but never mind, I can still hear them talking.

"....was impressed. It's been a while since we've enjoyed some authentic French cuisine," says the guy from earlier.

They liked it! I replace myself smiling and let out a sigh of relief, as Jill and Maria never said a thing about the guests' impressions for the whole dinner.

"Glad you enjoyed it! It was our honor to have you here tonight."

"Surely our brother is going to regret missing this. Who knew the Jade Moon Clan had such cooking-skilled members... By the way, you have exquisite ladies here."

Vince must be overjoyed. This is the same as saying they would agree to let our packs members court each other, an excellent way to improve relationships.

"Hey. Is that all your girls?" Says a voice I haven't heard before.

Judging from his arrogant tone, that must be the other brother. What's with his question? He sounds so disdainful!

"Hmm, well, yes. You've seen all our young girls who have yet to replace their mate tonight..."

"Never mind. Let's leave."

They exchange a few greetings and soon leave. I can hear some of our pack members letting out sighs of relief.

"What's with this attitude of his?! Are we not pretty enough now?" Growls Amber.

"None of the Black Brothers has a mate yet. Maybe they were also looking for some prospect wife..." Says Lily, Vince's fiancée.

"Anyway, that went well. We should be content with that alone. I don't want any issues with the Blood Moon Clan. Their brother is pissed at the Sapphire Moon Clan these days, and trust me. No one wants to take their place..."

I step down, as Vince is now just giving orders for the patrols. What a night... Even without being in the room, I was still on edge because of this dinner. Again, I wonder why those brothers and their guard bothered to come all the way here. They own half of the city and scare the other half. Are they interested in the outskirts of the city now?

I just keep thinking about the dark rumors surrounding those three Black brothers, and slowly fall into a deep sleep...