All Chapters of Rejected Luna, Secretly the Werewolf Council's Vice Chair: Chapter 1 - Chapter 8

My father braced one hand against the moonstone floor and tried to stand.Blood slipped between his fingers.Evelyn did not look concerned. Her eyes dropped to the dark stain spreading beneath him.“Mr. Vale, please be careful.”She pointed at the silver crescent carved into the floor.“That is the Moon Goddess’s sacred seal. Blood stains are difficult to remove.”My mother's lips trembled.She lowered her head, her voice barely above a whisper."I'm sorry."Her custom-made gown was soaked in wine. Angry red welts from the Firethorn extract spread across her cheeks.She picked up a clean cloth and quietly wiped my father's blood from the stone floor."We didn't mean to cause any trouble."She was the one who had been humiliated.Yet she was the one apologizing.I knew why.My parents had spent their entire lives as outsider Omegas.I'd grown up watching them bow their heads, swallow every insult, and smile through every humiliation just to survive.They believed Lucian and I were diffe

When I walked back into the Moon Hall, Lucian was standing outside the dressing chamber.Evelyn sat on a velvet chair, her eyes red with tears.Lucian bent slightly, patiently wiping the corners of her eyes with a clean handkerchief."Please don't cry."His voice was softer than I had heard all day."This wasn't your fault. You were only trying to help."A healer's kit rested on the table beside them.Fresh herbs, bandages, and Moonroot salve lay untouched.My father's hand was still bleeding in the supply room. Yet the first healer summoned that afternoon had come for Evelyn.It wasn't the first time.Last year during the Midwinter Hunt, I had fallen from a cliff after shielding a young cub from a rogue wolf.My ribs had cracked.I waited outside the healer's den for Lucian until sunrise.He never came.Later, I learned Evelyn had twisted her ankle during training.Lucian had stayed beside her all night.When I asked him about it, he simply said,"Evelyn has no family in this Pack.""

The guards still held me firmly in place. Their grips tightened instinctively, as if unsure whether they should let go.The lead Council Guardian walked straight past Alpha Lucian.Then he stopped in front of me. Without hesitation, he bowed."Vice Chair Vale. The Werewolf Council apologizes for arriving too late."Behind him, every Council Guardian lowered their heads in the exact same salute.The guards released me with fear and stumbled backward. Evelyn stared at the Guardians as if she had lost the ability to think.Then she laughed desperately. "No. This has to be some kind of mistake."She pointed at me with a trembling finger. "She's an outsider Omega! A low-born Omega!""How could someone like her become Vice Chair of the Werewolf Council?""Someone is pretending to be the Council!"Lucian stepped forward. "If the Council truly has business with Selene," he said camly, "it can wait until after the Marking Ceremony."His eyes met mine. "This little game has gone far enough."I

I took my parents straight to the Pack Healing Hall.The moment we stepped outside the Moon Hall, hurried footsteps followed behind us."Selene!"Lucian called my name.I didn't stop.He caught up just before I opened the carriage door.His ceremonial cloak hung crooked over one shoulder. The silver crest of House Blackthorn had fallen from his chest.His suit was wrinkled, as though he'd forgotten he was supposed to be the Alpha of the most powerful Pack.For the first time since I'd met him, he looked lost."Selene." His voice was hoarse. "Let me take your parents inside."My father stepped behind me, and my mother was clutching her torn ceremonial dress.As if they were still afraid of causing Lucian trouble.The sight pierced straight through my heart."No." My voice was calm. "Thank you, Alpha Blackthorn. But we're not that close."His face turned pale. He reached for my hand.I stepped back before he could touch me. "Don't.""And don't frighten my parents again."The words hit him