Chapter 3
Poisoned.
A slow acting poison, Mane had said. It's been acting for weeks now.
Who could possibly poison her? What could they want? Her death? Her position? Logan....no, that couldn't be. Logan was raised by her father, she knew him very well. And he didn't have a history of possessive exes.
Who could it possibly be?!
She was slowly losing her mind thinking about it. And it hadn't even been 24 hours yet.
She needed to find Logan, immediately.
She bolted out of her room, using her keen sense of smell to locate her mate. As she approached his location, there was also another scent that she picked up. Sasha's. Her heart jumped into her mouth and she crept quietly to the door, trying to conceal her presence.
"Are you sure about that?" Logan was saying.
Sasha's high pitched giggle reached Claire's ears, and her stomach churned at the sound. Was Sasha seriously making moves on Logan?!
"A hundred percent," Sasha said. "I'll prove it to you."
"That's wonderful."
Claire peaked through the slightly open door. Sasha was advancing on Logan, her movements very sexual in manner. Claire turned and left, unable to watch anymore. Her heart was racing and blood was rushing through her head.
Sasha and Logan huh?
She walked back to her room, suddenly feeling very calm and level headed. It was a disappointing thing, but she couldn't say that she was surprised. She didn't feel surprised, she didn't even feel anything at all, just a twinge of disgust.
The next day was the Founder's ball, an event held once a year where all the previous Alphas and their Luna's gathered to celebrate and discuss the prosperity of the Vermont pack with the current leaders. It would be her first time attending the Founder's ball as a Luna, and she was looking forward to it. The very last thing she needed was distraction.
As she drew a deep breath, her stomach sank and she felt dread. It was so strong she couldn't breath, like a cold hand was strangling her to death. She rushed to her window, threw it open and inhaled a huge breath of fresh air. It helped ebb the feeling a bit.
She had a lot of things to get together for the ball, and she had to start immediately.
The morning of the ball was full of activity and excitement. All pack members gathered together, aiding where they could all trying to make it work.
"Make sure to prepare a separate main course for Luna Elise, you know she's on a special diet"
"Yes, Luna, I will."
Claire breezed through the kitchen, inspecting the food preparations. She paused in front of a chef making a sauce. She tasted it, analyzing it on her tongue
"Add more white pepper."
"Yes of course."
She nodded and moved away. Her eyes caught someone committing a blunder. "Oh no no no, you do not melt chocolate directly over a fire!" The chef, a young pack member jumped and turned to face her immediately.
"I'm so sorry Luna, I'll fix it right away!"
"Perfect!" Claire said, "Everything must be perfection, is that clear? This is the Founder's ball, and not one of our parties."
The chef bowed in apology, profusely saying he'd do better.
"Luna dear, please lay it off easy. You're terrifying the poor kid."
Claire felt a spark of irritation in her belly upon hearing Sasha's voice. She turned sharply. "You know what this ball means tonus, Sasha. And you know nothing must go wrong."
"Relax, really. Why are you so uptight?"
Claire stared at her, unamused. "Founder's ball?"
Sasha rolled her eyes. "How are you feeling? Are you strong enough to be doing this?"
Claire turned from her and went back to inspecting the food. "Oh I'm strong plenty, thanks for asking."
"Sheesh! Relax Luna." Sasha said with a sigh. Claire paid her no heed.
"How many dozen pastries did you bake?" She asked the head baker.
"Thirteen exactly."
"Hmm, make three more dozen."
"With pleasure, Luna."
"Here," Claire turned to see Sasha holding up a drink. "It'll help you relax."
Claire stared at the drink, she could tell it was sex on the beach. How Sasha was able to whip it up was lost on her.
Poisoned.
Claire gasped and stumbled backwards, holding her chest. No, it was impossible. Sasha would never poison her. She was more than a best friend, she was like her sister. There's no possible way Sasha could be poisoning her for weeks on end now. Claire looked up at Sasha, her best friend was looking at her with alarm and panic.
"Oh my gosh, is everything okay? Ate you pregnant, is that why you can't drink?"
That's right, Sasha wouldn't poison her. She would find the person behind it and personally exact her fury upon them.
In a second, she regained her composure and glared at Sasha jokingly. "I can't drink, I have a lot of work to get done."
Sasha shrugged. "Alright. More for me instead." And she proceeded to chug down the entire glass in one gulp.
"Damn girl....way to go." Claire said, applauding mockingly. "Maybe you should enter a talent show for widest mouth ever!"
Sasha batted her eyelashes and did a graceful spin. "Oh darling, the boys like it."
Claire laughed, feeling some tension dissolve from her shoulders. "How did I ever end up with you?"
"Destiny."
"Some destiny that is. Since you have so much time to spare, kindly oversee the decorations. We have only few hours till the ball."
Sasha groaned loudly, looking up to the ceiling with a vexed look on her face. "Fine, do I ever say no to you?"
"Never."
That's right, Sasha wasn't the one. That was just insane. It was impossible, somethings are just unimaginable.
Oh, how she desperately wished she could believe herself.
The preparations went smoothly. Soon, it was the time for the ball. By tradition, the ball was held in an open space, under the full moon, at the peak of the ball was a run involved all the alphas and lunas in attendance.
Claire stared at her reflection in her vanity mirror. She skin, normally so pale looked even paler. Her eyes had dark circles, her lips were dry and crusty, her hair lacked color. All side effects of the poison, Mane said. But even with all those, there was a beauty about her. Her bright blue eyes shone as bright as jewels, untouched by her suffering. She took a free steps back and examined her form in the mirror.
Logan had chosen a silver ball gown, encrusted with crystals. It caught light and shone with an ethereal glow, made to fit her body. She liked the gown, it was pretty. But she would've preferred it in blue.
She did her makeup, trying to add colour to her face. It worked, her blood red lips contrasting her alabaster skin and further accentuating her blue eyes. She did her hair into an elegant braid and pinned it to her nape, making sure to let some tendrils frame her face and neck.
As she was finishing up her look, she heard her door open.
"I told you you'd look more beautiful." Logan said as he hugged her from behind.
"Thank you very much," I'd have preferred blue. But she didn't say the last part. He was dressed handsomely, on a three piece suit a darker shade of her gown. In the mirror they looked powerful. She liked that.
"I have a gift for you" he said nuzzling her neck, already beginning to pepper butterfly kisses over her exposed skin.
"What is it?"
"It's our bond, a symbol of our love." He put a necklace delicately on her neck, his eyes staring intently at her through the mirror. She blinked an looked down at the necklace. It was a crystal filled with a red liquid, hanging on a silver chain.
"It's beautiful, Logan. Thank you so much." She raised a hand an touched the crystal, a thrill resonated through her hand and spread to her entire body.
"You're always welcome, my Sundrop. Now, we must go or we'll be late."
They walked out her room, hand in hand. The pack house was mostly empty, and they took their time walking to the ball. At the venue, Claire could feel the power in the atmosphere. All the leaders who had made the Vermont pack what it was, gathered in one place. She felt a twinge of pain in her heart that her parents couldn't be with them.
"They're here." Logan said, giving her hand a comforting squeeze.
She turned to him, confused. "Who?"
"Your parents. They're here. In spirit."
Claire smiled sadly. "I believe. They are."
"Let's make sure they have a good time."
She nodded. "Of course."
They walked to the former leaders, exchanging greetings and asking about the state of affairs.
"Claire, my darling, how have you been?" Claire turned to see Luna Cher, the Luna that handed over to her mother. A bright smile appeared on her face as she embraced Cher.
"Oh my goodness I have missed you so much! You look good!"
"As do you my dear." Cher said with a pleasant smile, her liquid gold eyes scanning Claire's body. "I see you've been running the pack perfectly fine."
"I try. Plus I have Logan and Sasha, who are very supportive of me."
Cher sighed. "We miss them too, everyday."
"Yeah, I wish they were here too."
Cher's eyes suddenly narrowed and she sniffed the air. Then her eyes filled with alarm. "My goodness, what a nasty thing they've done to you."
Claire smiled sadly. "I have it under control. "
"This is control?!" Cher whispered fiercely. "Girl you are halfway gone! We cannot lose another Luna, you know that! Have you found who is responsible?"
"Cher, really, it's fine. I'm okay, I'll solve this on my own."
Cher narrowed her eyes. "If you say so. Would you like a drink?"
She shook her head. "Thank you, Cher. But I can't. Enjoy the celebration, I'll meet you at the run."
Cher didn't look convinced. But she nodded and walked away, catching up with another Luna. Claire sighed, already feeling a headache brewing. At the corner of her eye she could see Logan and Sasha, taking and laughing a bit too comfortably for her liking. She still hadn't forgotten about the first time she saw them together. Except this time, it rubbed her off the wrong way. They were in public for crying out loud. Claire walked up to them and pulled Sasha aside.
"I need to talk to you." She said, a hunt of urgency in her voice. "Like, now."
Sasha raised a brow. "Sure. I'll see you later Logan."
"Have fun girls."
Claire grabbed Sasha's hand and pulled her out of the ball arena. They walked silently through the forest till Claire was sure they were out of earshot. The spot was one of Claire's favorite spot, Sele's well.
"What is wrong with you?" Sasha asked, folding her arms and flashing Claire a look of annoyance.
"No, what is wrong with you, Sasha?"
"What do you mean?!"
Claire ran her hand through her hair. "You damn well know what I'm talking about. I saw you and Logan the other day