I blinked, taken aback. The man talked like he was familiar with me. Whoever was watching would believe his acts without a doubt. He was an amazing actor.

The head court member cleared his throat and pointed towards an empty chair beside the strange man. I stood shakingly on my feet, feeling the gravity of the situation.

Especially since the man has excellent acting skills. This would be hard to get out of. If ever I come out alive. That thought made my heart sink to my stomach.

I sat beside the man. I had seen him once or twice in the pack. We had never exchanged a word. I remembered him as one of the younger warriors. He appeared to be in his late twenties.

As soon as my butt hit the chair, another court member raised a question, “We’ve seen all the evidence of your crimes with this man. Are you ready to tell the truth, Luna?” He mockingly stressed the Luna.

This set of men had never liked me. Beneath the scorn in their eyes, I saw the glee hidden behind. They couldn’t wait to get rid of me.

“The truth is I have no idea of these accusations,” I turned towards the strange man, “I don’t even know who he is!”

“Baby, I know this is hard…” the man started but I didn’t let him finish his sentence as I grabbed him by the neck of his shirt.

“Tell them!” I pointed towards the elders and Jack who had been watching me intently with hate and something else I couldn’t decipher.

The man's expression softened. But that only got my blood boiling harder. I was almost getting hysterical, “Tell them these are false! That we’ve never met and you were paid to do this. To destroy me!”

“Claire! Sit down right now,” Jack growled, “you can lie and act all you want. But I won’t sit and watch you harm this… this man.” He finished, his voice lower, quieter.

My lips trembled at the humiliation as I sat back down. The only sounds were the sound of my heart breaking.

“Patrick right here told us everything. How you’ve been together for two years. He told us the name of the hospital where you got your abortion done,” the head court member paused. He gave a guard some papers which he brought to me.

“Those papers right there are the hospital reports of your visits from the first abortion to the fifth. Take a look at them and tell us what you think.”

I couldn’t bring myself to look down at the papers. I knew they were all flawless like the man’s acting beside me. Daring to take a look at the first document, it was dated two months ago.

“Since you have nothing more to say, you’ll be taken to the dungeon. Your trial starts in four days,” another elder said and two guards came to escort me to the dungeon.

All the while, I couldn’t keep myself from looking at Jack. How easily he had betrayed me. How easily he had believed the evidence against me.

I was put in the dungeon for three days without food or water. Patrick was put in another cell far away from me.

And honestly, I was happy about it because I knew I could demand the truth from him all night. But something in me knew I might as well not have said a word to him.

The fourth day when I felt I might as well die from lack of food or water, my ears picked up the sounds of footsteps. And from the sound it made, it was the sound of heels hitting the concrete floor.

Soon, Freda came into view. She smiled when her eyes fell on me. The smile soon turned into a scowl, “I told you I was going to pay back for what you did to my parents.”

I looked at her wondering how I had ever shared a home with Freda. Her parents adopted me when I was eight months old. I was in the foster home as it was said by the head matron that I was found at the pack border when I was barely a month old.

Two years later, Freda was born. Mom and Dad who showered me with love turned into a monster. They mistreated me at every given opportunity.

One day when Freda was out of town attending a friend’s birthday party, and I was out in the woods fetching water because our faucet had gone bad, the house caught fire with mom and dad in it. Freda had blamed me that I was the one who was supposed to die that day. If I hadn’t gone into the woods, it should have been me.

Freda walked closer to the cell gate. Her neat manicured fingers curled around the bars. Her eyes were red and inhuman as she glared down at me.

“Always proud. Always haughty. Did you for once think you were above me when you were made Luna?” Her hand tightened on the bar, “a nobody like you deserves a cruel death.”

She threw her head back and laughed hysterically, her laugh making goosebumps rise on my arms. Freda hated me. I’ve always known it. But I underestimated how much she would go to bring me down.

Her laugh died down, “And guess who’s going to get that?” She chuckled, walking closer to the bars that her head pressed against them, “You’re right. You are going to get it today because your trial starts at sunset. I only came here to give you a farewell as a loving sister would.”

“I might be weak now and unable to fight for myself…” I choked out, my throat burning because of how dry it was. But I continued, “The moon goddess will fight for me. Your sins won’t go unpunished.”

Freda stepped back and scoffed, “But I win because I’m pregnant for Jack.” She laughed, “See you in hell, sister.” She turned around and left, leaving me in the darkness and silence of the cell.

Pregnant. That word hung heavy in the air minutes after Freda was gone. Memories of my life flashed through my eyes. I’ve always been unlucky.

First my parents, now my husband and mate. I always thought I had gained everything the moment Jack accepted me as his mate. I thought I was the luckiest girl alive.

I felt too many things at the same time I couldn’t fathom which was which. But the most was pain. Emotional pain. I didn’t know how long I sat in the same spot thinking about my life until footsteps were heard once more. I stood to my feet waiting for the guard to come into view and take me to the pack square where I would be tried.

Instead, Jack came into view. His head was bent low as he looked at his feet while he walked towards me. His hands were in his pocket. Seeing him again after four days, after I had had time to think about it all made my heart thunder in my chest.

I felt sad, hurt and tired. I didn’t want to feel that way. I wanted to feel anger; anger to yell at his face for betraying me, for not listening to me when he promised to be by my side always, to love me and protect me.

Instead, I stood there with a breaking heart and watched him stand in front of me.

Jack raised his head. There were visible eye bags under his eyes. He looked like he hadn’t slept in days. He looked tired and my chest ached, making it hard to breathe.

“Freda is pregnant for me. I found out on the day of the trial,” he muttered “And I can’t reject her or the baby. I don’t want my baby to be without a father.”

My throat closed up. I looked away, unable to look into his eyes. Silence stretched between us, heavy as my heart broke into more pieces I never knew was possible.

“I… I spoke with the elders. They agreed to let you off the trial. Instead, you will be banished from the pack never to return,” he swallowed and continued, “I tried to make a lighter punishment for you. But…” he stopped.

“I guess this is inevitable. I’m rejecting you now,” he shrugged and looked back at me, “I, Jack Brown, reject you, Claire Stone as my mate and Luna.”