Chapter 43 Serena’s Scheme Begins 2

Chapter 43: Chapter 43 Serena’s Scheme Begins 2

Talia’s POV

’She forged the contract, it’s all fake, she’s not really his mate, and she does not belong here.’

I opened the door to my room and stepped inside.

The fire had been lit, and the room was warm. I walked to the window and pressed my forehead against the cool glass.

SERENA, SERENA, SERENA...

She had been sweet to my face, saying, ’I hope you are comfortable. This must be so overwhelming for someone like you.’ And all the while, she had been spreading lies behind my back.

Those four words, ’for someone like you,’ burned in my chest. She meant poor, she meant ugly, and she definitely meant unworthy.

I had heard those words before from Celeste, from Vivienne, from every person in Cresswood who looked down on me, and now from Serena.

Some things never changed.

I knew she was not a friend, that she was an enemy, but not to this length. I should have seen it coming.

A knock came at the door, and I did not answer.

But the door opened anyway, and I turned around to see who it was.

Nora walked in, carrying a food tray with rice and juice. Not the usual bread and water.

She set the tray on the desk and looked at me. Her face was soft, but her eyes were worried.

"I see you’ve heard, Luna," she said.

I looked at her. "Heard what?"

Nora sighed. "The rumors about the contract, and about you."

My chest tightened. "They are not true."

"I know." Nora walked to the bed and sat down on the edge. "But it does not matter what I know. It matters what the pack believes."

"It is Serena’s doing," I said.

Nora nodded. "Yes, I know it was Serena."

I walked to the desk and sat down on the chair. I did not feel like eating, but my stomach was empty. So I picked up the spoon and took a bite of the rice. It was very warm and well seasoned.

"Tell me everything," I said.

Nora leaned back on her hands. "Serena has been telling anyone who will listen that you forged the blood contract. She says you are not really the Alpha’s mate, and that the bonding stone was tampered with."

"That is insane." My eyes went wide.

"I know." Nora shrugged. "But she is Serena Vane, and her family has been in this pack for generations. So people trust her."

"Why is she doing this?" I asked.

Nora looked at me like I should already know the answer. "Because she wants to be Luna. She has wanted it for as long as anyone can remember, and now you are here, and she is not the Luna anymore."

I set the spoon down, because my appetite was gone.

"She is trying to destroy me," I said.

"Yes." Nora’s voice was quiet. "She is trying to make the pack turn against you before the trials even begin."

"And if the pack turns against me?" I asked.

Nora hesitated. "I’m afraid the Alpha will have more reason to reject you, the elders will pressure him, and Serena will be waiting to take your place."

I stared at the tray of food. The rice was still steaming, and the juice was still cold. But I was not hungry anymore.

"What do I do?" I asked.

Nora stood up. "You survive, Luna. You pass the trials, and you prove them wrong." She walked to the door and looked back at me. "And you do not let Serena see you bleed."

She left, closing the door behind her.

I sat at the desk for a long time after Nora left, staring at the wall and thinking about her words.

’You survive, you pass the trials, and you prove them wrong.’

’Do not let Serena see you bleed.’

I picked up the spoon and forced myself to eat the food. The rice was good, and the juice was sweet. But I tasted none of it.

When the tray was empty, I pushed it aside and stood up.

I walked to the window and looked out at the valley.

The sun was setting, and the sky had different colors of orange and pink and purple, as the mountains stood dark against the horizon.

Serena wanted me to fail. She wanted the pack to hate me, and she wanted Kaelen to reject me.

She was just like Celeste and Vivienne. So if I was not careful, she would get everything she wanted.

But I would not let her.

I had survived fifteen years in Cresswood. I had survived Vivienne and Celeste and the storage room and the hunger and the cold.

So I would survive Serena too.

I pressed my palm against the glass. The sun was almost gone now, and soon, the stars would come out.

I wondered if Piper was looking at the same sky, and I wondered if she knew I was thinking of her. I hoped she did, and I hoped she was safe. Just to know she was safe, because she was my only real family right now.

Because of her, and the hope that my mother might be alive, I could keep fighting.