Chapter 8 Chapter 8
Sophia's POV
Despite my weary eyes, a soft whisper roused me from slumber, and when I slowly opened them, I found myself stretched out on a massive bed.
At some point I had been removed from my soiled evening dress and donned loose fitting attire that was unreal-soft.
The style was very different to what I’m accustomed to in the Shadowmoon Pack.
Two servants stood before me, cautious as they observed me.
"Oh! You're awake Miss Sophia!"
"We were just about to wake you! You've missed breakfast already and we thought you'd be hungry if you ended up missing lunch too."
I rubbed my eyes and glanced out of the window at the sun high in the sky.
I just couldn’t believe it was already noon the following day.
Had I really been so out of it from dozing off in the car and being carried into bed that I’d missed everything?
“Hello, my name is Sophia Evergreen, I’m from the Darkridge Pack.” I did my best to say, as warmly as I could when I sat up hopped a polite smile on my face.
Good manners and the understanding that looks were everything were drilled into me from early childhood.
Clearly my conduct had taken the maids by surprise, as they simultaneously dropped to their knees and bowed their heads.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Sophia. My name is Kira, her name is Elara. We were both dispatched by Alpha Ethan to handle your needs.
Kira and Elara were radiant and eloquently informative, telling me surrounding details about the Wolfalpine Pack and their Alpha, Ethan.
"What would Miss Sophia like for lunch? Is there a particular dish that you like?”
I couldn’t stop from frowning. Nobody had ever asked me that.
When my mother died, my father went all in on making sure that I followed in his.
I was the one who would bring more glory to our pack in the future and taught me how I should be careful with my words and my deeds.
Everything I needed to know in order to be a good Alpha and a good Luna were taught to me by him.
After I wedded Marcus, as my father had wished, I'd been doing my best to be the best Luna.
Handling the pack business from top to bottom, eating only the food a Luna could eat, taking part in the things a Luna might be remotely interested in… nobody had ever wanted to know what I wanted, or even if I liked it.
Even what should be as simple as what I wanted to eat… nobody bothered to ask.
"Um...I really like the simplicity of mashed potatoes... the type that's sprinkled with cinnamon powder and is very creamy. My voice became softer and softer as I looked up.
After all, it was the food of the normal folk... Marcus would rather die than let it be served at his table.
But Kira and Elara just nodded as if it was
no big deal and wrote it down, not even surprised that a Luna would even like to eat something so simple.
I couldn't help but think of the banquets at the Shadowmoon Pack. Every time we had an event scheduled, every dish and every meal set had to be checked meticulously and if anything didn't fit Marcus's idea of what an Alpha and his Luna should eat, then he would be furious.
The other high ranking wolves would also blame me for not knowing what a Luna should do, and not performing my duties correctly.
Why hadn't I realized that this was wrong before now? What had been blinding me for so long? I swore internally.
They said that love was blind, perhaps it was my love for Marcus that had allowed me to turn a blind eye.
As I was thinking, Kira and Elara helped me to get dressed. It was only a white dress, and there was no overly heavy pattern on the material, just a single blue belt attached to it.
The fabric was soft and light and felt almost blissful against my skin. I had not worn such a simple-looking dress for such a long time.
“ As Luna of the Shadowmoon Pack, both you and your clothes represent us, as the face of our pack." Marcus, the bastard, had said constantly as he gifted me with clothes that fitted like they were trying to murder the person that wore them.
"Oh Miss Sophia! You look so beautiful!" Elara marveled as she brushed my hair.
"Oh... erm... Thank You!"
I looked at myself in the mirror, my light brown hair was casually hanging loose, my long white dress was simple and elegant and it was the first time in my life that I had been allowed to relax this much.
"Kira?"
"Yes?
"You're right. I've been repressed and held back for far too long."
Ethan's POV
"Ethan, Max has been standing with the paperwork for ten minutes now, if you don't take it off his hands and sign it, I'm afraid his hand is going to break."
When I came to my senses, I saw Max standing respectfully before me, holding the document in such a clumsy manner that I could tell he had been holding it for a very long time.
I took the documents from his hand, skimmed through them, read the particulars, and then put my name on them and handed it over to him.
“What's on your mind?”
“I was trying to decide if I was a good mate.”
“Why? We were more than strong enough!” Jax said with his chest puffed with pride. And again, He deserved it.
He had, after all, helped me run Marcus’s men off with hardly any resistance.
But I’d missed one thing.
Sophia had definitely raffled some distance between herself and me, in the car.
I was hurt and a bit confused until we got to the palace. As I had been taking her out of the car and holding her, I saw a bright red lipstick print on the jacket I had given her.
Fuck. I’d never remembered that. The day before, on the orders of all the Elders, to be introduced to the she-wolves in the meeting, and one of them had the nerve and the temerity to try to kiss me. Max had whipped me away but not before she placed an imprint of her gaudy lipstick on my jacket.
"Baby? I heard a little rumor that you brought your mate home with you?" My mother's voice came, and I looked up just in time to see her walk in the room.
She had a reassuring smile on her face as I got up to greet her.
"You're absolutely right, mother." I grinned, "Jax and I are very happy."
"It is indeed a wonderful thing, but I felt that I should warn you..." She paused, hesitating uncertainly before she continued, "I just came home from a shopping trip and while I was out, I'm afraid I heard some terrible things being said. The rumor mill has already started." she grimaced.
"What? What rumours?" I frowned, my face darkening suddenly.
As I learned from my mother's shopping trip, rumors had already begun to circulate
among the packs about Sophia.
Many people were under the impression that Sophia was a wicked woman and a poor Luna who had poisoned an innocent woman before abandoning Marcus because she coveted the fame and attention to be gained by standing at my side.
I sat heavily in my chair and drummed my fingers on the tabletop as I tried to quell the murderous rage that was stirring inside of me.
"Go and find out what's going on." I growled at Max.
"Yes Alpha." he said as he hastened to do as he was told.