Page 4
LUNA
I didn’t know how long I’d been out, but the sluggishness in my body told me it had been too long. My senses felt muted as though I were drowning in fog. I tried to push through it, to force my mind to clear, but it wasn’t working.
The first thing I registered was voices. They were low and rough, yet they carried a weight that felt like they were meant for me. They weren’t close, not right beside me, but near enough for me to hear every word.
“Doesn’t matter,” one voice said, calm but firm. It was deep, commanding. Protective. “Whatever happens, we protect her. That’s the job. It’s what we do.”
There was something about those words—an edge to them that made my heart beat a little faster. Protect her. But who? I couldn’t remember why I’d need protecting. The haze in my mind clouded everything, like a dream I couldn’t hold onto. But still, the words lingered in the air.
Another voice, this one a bit softer, but still strong, responded. “What if she’s not meant to be ours—or rather, yours?”
I tensed, trying to focus, to understand. What did that even mean? Not meant to be ours?
“I’ll deal with it. Later.” The first voice again, more final this time. “For now, we get her back to full strength. We find out what happened. One thing at a time.”
What happened? I tried to piece together any memory of what had brought me here, but there was nothing. Only more fog. More confusion.
They were still talking.
“Just… be careful, Ash,” the second voice, Connor, said, a quiet caution threading through it. “She’s not like Claire.”
The name—Claire—struck something deep inside me, but I couldn’t grasp it. Another life, another time, perhaps? I couldn’t bring myself to care enough to untangle it, not with how strange everything felt. Why wasn’t I questioning this more? I should’ve been.
The silence between them hung heavy. I wanted to move, to open my eyes, to say something—anything—to make this stop. But I couldn’t. Instead, I just listened, something stirring in the pit of my stomach.
I didn’t know what it was that was pulling me towards them. Not a force I could explain, but it was there—an undeniable pull in the air between us, like a thread tugging at me, luring me closer.
Ash’s words cut through my thoughts. “She isn’t just another stranger. She’s ours.”
I froze, my chest tightening at the sound of the word ours. The weight settled on me, but I couldn’t make sense of it. Ours? Was that meant for me? For them? The fog in my head grew thicker; I wished to escape it. For a brief moment, I wondered if I was losing my mind, hallucinating, or dreaming.
I blinked open my eyes, then light pierced the haze, and I registered the spacious bed I was in, soft and comfortable. But not mine. I sat up slowly. I had the worst headache. Memories crashing down on me. I was running in the woods, for some reason. A creature attacked me.
An inventory told me I wasn’t going anywhere fast. My ribs hurt with deeper breaths, my legs felt battered, and my head hurt. But where was I?
It was a large, light-filled room with tall windows and a ranch slider looking out to a small courtyard. A giant bed, bedside tables, and a door leading into what looked like a wardrobe, with another door likely a bathroom. I had to go to the toilet. And that was when I realised I was naked.
Everything seemed quiet, and I felt safe enough.
Very carefully, I shuffled to what I hoped was the bathroom door, or this was a giant waste of energy.
My legs nearly crumpled in relief when I found it was a bathroom.
I shut and locked the door. Looked in the mirror over the vanity with a generous-sized sink.
I couldn't believe what I was seeing: bruises across my face and scratch marks on my side and back. A fresh white robe was hanging on the back of the closed door. Hopefully, my host didn’t mind if I borrowed it.
Using the toilet, washing my face, and manoeuvring into the robe proved exhausting.
My body was a mess of angry green bruises and, miraculously, only light scratches.
Leaning against the vanity, I plucked up the energy to go back to find out where I was, wrapped tightly in the robe. Using the door frame to hold me up, I released a breath. What had happened? Where was I?
I nearly jumped out of my skin—two giant guys were standing in the doorway, watching me like I was made of glass.
Despite the fright, I didn't truly feel danger from them. I felt like I knew the taller one, but I really didn’t.
The conversation I’d overheard floated back into my memory.
Confusing me. What was memory, and what was dream?
“We won’t hurt you,” the bigger one said.
His head barely fit through the door frame, and muscles layered his shoulders and arms, like a bodybuilder, maybe one who’d stopped training so hard but was still built.
He stepped into the room but stayed back.
The other was a little shorter but made leaner.
He was still muscular and much bigger than I was.
The first had dark hair, brown eyes, and olive skin; the second had lighter hair, blue eyes, and light skin.
“How are you feeling?” the second asked.
My head flared; I grabbed it. “Not great.” I needed to sit down, so I walked on wobbly legs to the bed and carefully sat down on the back edge by the headboard. I lay my head back on it, relying on it to hold me up. “Who are you? Where am I?” I needed some details before I slept again.
“I’m Ash. That’s Connor. We found you unconscious and brought you here.” The big one, Ash, introduced them.
“Thank you. I’m Luna.” My mouth felt like it was filled with cotton wool, and it hurt to think.
Everything about them—especially Ash —should have terrified me.
They were huge, strangers, and I shouldn’t have been alone in a room with them.
But even as my mind whispered danger , my body stayed stubbornly calm.
No, more than relaxed. Like I was home . What the hell was wrong with me?
“Do you know what happened, Luna?” Ash stepped closer, like he couldn't help himself.
“I’m not really sure. I don’t know what the truth was, and what was some kind of hallucination. I was attacked?”
“I would appear so.” Ash looked tight, on edge. He was clenching his fists.
“Do you know who hurt me?” I asked.
Ash growled.
“We don’t know, but no one was around when we found you. You’re safe here,” Connor answered.
I looked into Ash’s eyes. Read the truth there. “I feel like I know you.”
“I feel like I know you, too,” he said softly.
“Could I please have some water?” I asked because I needed it and to break the intense moment.
“Of course. And…do you need any first aid? Any injuries still bleeding?” Connor said.
“I don’t think so. Mostly bruises. My ribs are sore.” I looked at my lower legs, peeking out from the robe. “I borrowed this.”
“No problem. I’ll be back,” Connor said and strode out.
Ash was closer now. He came to sit on the edge of the bed. When he sat, my muscles flinched, expecting rough hands. But there was none of that. He moved like I was glass—gentle, reverent even.
“You can relax. You need more rest. We want nothing but for you to heal.”
I couldn’t drag my eyes away from his. But I shuffled down, inside the covers. Gratefully, I lay my head on the pillow. Closing my eyes briefly, I couldn’t hold them open.
I heard Connor return. I opened my eyes, and he was stuck, watching me with something like awe and sadness on his beautiful face.
Ash took the glass of water, came over, helped me sit up, and gave it to me.
I drank several small sips and handed it back.
I needed to go back to sleep. Connor took the water and gave Ash an icepack.
“You should put this on your ribs,” he said gruffly.
I lay back down, pushing the covers aside, and folded the ice pack between my arm and chest, resting it on the robe.
A groan escaped me as I shifted. I settled in the middle of the bed and released a breath, noticing the tension they were holding.
They were angry that I was hurt, but it felt like they cared too much.
A warmth buzzed under my skin, a tangible sensation humming between Ash and me.
I looked up at him. “Thank you.”
He stood up and cleared his throat, looking torn.
I felt I couldn’t let him leave. Panic set in as I reached my hand out. “Will you stay?”
He took my hand and sat back down, his large hand dwarfing mine. “I’d be honoured,” he murmured, looking like he was feeling some big emotions.
I didn’t quite understand, but I was too tired to mull it over now.
I closed my eyes, a sense of peace falling over me. “Good,” I said, and was out.
I woke in the dark, feeling the hard, warm body of Ash behind me. It should have frightened me, made me recoil, but it didn’t. It felt safe. And right now, that was the priority—safety.
A large dog materialized beside the bed.
It was bigger than any dog I’d ever seen.
Of course, they had a giant dog. Rescuers, or kidnappers?
Either way, the dog was definitely on brand.
It sniffed at me and placed its paws on the bed, as if waiting for an invitation.
I wondered if its owners minded having their dog on the bed, but I wasn’t about to argue—I welcomed the company.
I patted the bed, and it jumped up softly, settling beside me.
I was surprised to see that it was longer than I was.
Tentatively, I reached out to touch its thick and comforting soft fur.
It sighed happily. Despite everything I had ever done to protect myself, like avoiding vulnerable situations, I felt comfortable enough to go back to sleep.
Safe. That was all that mattered for now.
Table of Contents
- Page 1
- Page 2
- Page 3
- Page 4 (Reading here)
- Page 5
- Page 6
- Page 7
- Page 8
- Page 9
- Page 10
- Page 11
- Page 12
- Page 13
- Page 14
- Page 15
- Page 16
- Page 17
- Page 18
- Page 19
- Page 20
- Page 21
- Page 22
- Page 23
- Page 24
- Page 25
- Page 26
- Page 27
- Page 28
- Page 29
- Page 30
- Page 31
- Page 32
- Page 33
- Page 34
- Page 35
- Page 36
- Page 37
- Page 38
- Page 39