CHAPTER FORTY TWO - SHATTERED ILLUSIONS

CHAPTER FORTY TWO - SHATTERED ILLUSIONS
MONA’S POV

The sky was grey like it was about to rain when the guards buried the mole.

I didn’t even know his name but he had been working in my house since the first day I arrived. He had every chance to get rid of my father, to get rid of us but he hadn’t and now he was dead, buried secretly behind his house, with not even a friend present. For some reason that depressed me. I didn’t even understand why I felt so bad for the man. He had tried to kill my father and failed so why was I sympathizing with him like he was some victim.

He had made his choices and gotten the consequences.

The mole had died before he could talk, before we could figure out who exactly he worked for, even before he could send back a message to the rogues.

And yet… no one seemed surprised.

“I don’t have to tell you all that this burial never happened right?” Beta Isa said coldly, his eyes on me while he spoke. Like he was warning me in particular to keep my mouth shut. I didn’t understand that.

Why was the mole’s death to be kept silent? 

And who had killed him before we got here? As far as I knew, the only people who were aware of the mole’s existence were Beta Isa, Gamma Ethan, The pack doctor, Aster, Luka and me. I didn’t count the guards because I knew that they couldn’t break their orders and also the guards were with Beta Isa and Gamma Ethan all night, so who had killed the mole?

It had to be one of the people I was standing with, I realized suddenly, feeling a cold chill on my neck. 

If whoever killed the mole was still here, then I wasn’t safe, no one was.

“Are you okay?” Luka asked me as he drove me back home.

I turned away from the window that I had been staring at and faced him with a forced smile, “yeah, just a little traumatized.” 

“I can imagine,” Luka gave me an understanding smile.

“Just try and get some rest okay?” he advised me as we got to my house. 

“Okay.” I replied mechanically, before walking away.

The pack doctor was seated in the living room when I walked in.

“How is my father?” I asked numbly, not even expecting a response.

“He is awake,” he replied and I could feel life return to my bones. I barely listened to the rest of what the doctor was saying as I rushed upstairs to my father’s room.

“Dad,” I called out, feeling relieved to see him standing by his window.

“Mona,” he replied, his eyes softening when he saw me. 

I ran into his arms, hugging him tightly. “I am so happy you are okay. How do you feel now?” 

“Much better,” he smiled. “Especially now that you are happy with me again.” 

“Did you hear what happened to the mole?” I asked and the smile on his face faded. “I think someone in the pack had him killed to keep him from revealing the truth to us.” 

“Mona?” he called me wearily, like he was trying to silence me.

“I am serious Dad. The mole broke out of our dungeon and went back home almost like he was waiting to meet with someone and whoever he was waiting for killed him and left a dead body for us.” 

“Mona?” he called again, his face stern but I couldn’t stop without allowing him to see my point.

“I have a theory on who betrayed the mole and I think it has to be one of the men who knew about his existence, from Beta Isa to Gamma Ethan and Luka and Aster, it has to be one of them at least that—”
“Mona?!” He yelled at me suddenly and I went silent immediately. From the annoyed expression on his face, I could tell that I had crossed a line.

“I have had enough of this!!” he shouted angrily, “I had a very difficult night and I barely recovered and here you are accusing men that have helped me build this pack into what it is now of betraying me!”

“No, I am not accusing them. All I am saying is that it doesn’t make sense for the mole to be dead and—”

“I don’t want to hear any of it!!!” My father continued to shout and I stepped back to look at him, wondering why he didn’t want to hear me out at least.

“You have no right to make any accusations, you are not even Luna yet. Your only responsibility is to pick the next Alpha of the pack. When you become Luna, whatever accusations you want to make, I hope you can convince your new Alpha,” he said and I stared at him, feeling hurt and angry.

What he was basically saying now was that my opinions did not matter. It didn’t matter if I was his daughter, I was still very much a nobody in this pack.

At that point I realised that it didn’t even matter who I chose as Alpha as long as I picked between my father’s choices. I was a pawn in his game all along, that was probably why he came looking for me in the first place.

I walked back to my room numbly, feeling nothing but emptiness settle in my stomach.

Did my father even love me at all? 

All of a sudden, the golden mark on my wrist started to glow and I closed the door to my room behind me, watching the mark curiously as I remembered the man from my dreams–the one with golden eyes and a voice that seemed to send fire down my lungs.

Who was he? And why did he feel like both a warning and a promise?

I pressed her fingers against the mark, trying to quiet it, but it flared brighter.

Was this all connected?

My  father. The mole. The rogues. The glowing mark. The golden-eyed man.

I needed to figure it out.



School seemed back to normal as I sat down for lunch with Vera beside me, chatting animatedly about something to Luka who sat at my other side while Aster sat opposite me, watching me as I ate my food.

This whole arrangement was weird. Luka and Aster on the same table without trying to kill each other was weird, the whole school felt it too. I could feel how they glanced at us. But right now, my high school drama was the last thing on my mind.

“What are you thinking of Mona?” Aster asked me.

“Yeah Mona, you have been silent all day?” Luka added, turning to look at me,

“Are you maybe thinking of that party we were invited to?” Vera said with a smile and I nodded immediately. Vera could be very helpful at times.

“What party?” Aster asked, seeming confused.

“It’s a girl from our class that is hosting it and she invited us,” Vera explained as I turned my attention back to my food, tossing it around. 

Now that Vera had mentioned it, maybe I should go.There was going to be alcohol, bonfires, everything I needed to distract myself right now.

“So who are you going with?” Vera asked suddenly and the table suddenly turned tense.

Remember when I said that Vera could be helpful? I was wrong about that.

Sighing to myself I turned to Luka, “I was thinking of going with you?” I said and Aster’s fork landed on his plate loudly.

Luka glanced at me, clearly surprised. “To the party?”

“Yeah. I want to spend more time with you,” I said calmly, already bracing myself for Aster’s reaction.

“Are you serious?” Aster asked and I turned to face him.

“I’ve made my choice,” I replied nervously.

Aster scoffed as he stood up. “You know what’s funny?” he asked quietly and I looked up at him, trying to ignore the looks we were getting. “Every time I think we’re finally getting somewhere, you do this. You pull away. And suddenly, Luka’s back in the picture like I was just a placeholder.”

“That’s not fair—”

“No, what’s not fair is you treating me like some tool to get under his skin,” Aster snapped, cutting me off. “I have cared about you from the beginning, and I have put myself through hell trying to prove it. But maybe I should have seen it earlier—you were never going to choose me. Not really.”

I felt my throat tighten as I looked up at him.“Aster, that’s not what I meant—”

“I’m done, Mona,” he said solemnly, his voice sounding hoarse.“I’m tired of fighting for someone who doesn’t even see me. Who doesn’t even ask how I feel. You made your choice? Good. Stick with it.”

He paused, turning to Luka with resignation in his eyes. “Luka will make a better Alpha, anyway.”

Then he turned and walked away, leaving me stunned.

“Well, that was dramatic,” Vera commented as Aster walked away and I turned to her with a glare that silenced her immediately.

Was Aster right? Had I just made a terrible decision by choosing to stay with Luka? 

Suddenly the golden mark pulsed and I looked at it, feeling my heart sink.

Was that a sign that I had made a terrible decision?