Page 30 of Forever My Siren Luna (The Hidden Cove #2)

Riley

“Daddy Kent. What are we doing today? Why are we going to the packhouse?”

I stared up, wondering what we were going to do.

I thought he said we were going to hunt today, and he was going to teach me how to tan a hide.

I still don’t know what a hide is, but I know that when Daddy Kent goes hunting, we get to eat the yummy stew with the parsnips for dinner.

I like the deer stew. It makes my tummy really hot and full.

“We have to bring a friend to see the Luna,” Daddy Kent smiled down at me.

“The Luna?” I look at him like he’s crazy, because he is. I’ve never seen any Luna here. I’ve never seen no Luna ever.

I know there used to be one, because people talk about her a lot.

They said she had pretty hair and she liked to play in the water.

I like to play in the water too. Westley and I do it all the time when we visit.

Westley even said that he played with the Luna in the water a lot, but then she ran away in the water by swimming.

“The Luna is back,” Daddy Kent rubbed my hair, making it go in my face. He laughs at me when I blow on it and tries to make it go away. “We’re meeting someone on the way that is bringing Westley, then you can meet her finally.”

Oh, wow. I hope no one lets her play in the water this time. It would not be happy for a lot of people in my new pack if she swam away again.

My tummy started to feel funny as I thought about her. What if she doesn’t like me? Westley said she was nice, but then she ran away and he was sad. Everyone was sad. I don’t want her to run away again and make Westley and everyone sad.

“What are you looking all blue about, little man?” Daddy Kent asked, helping me to get my new boots on my feet. The boots have lots of hooks and it's hard to make the strings go the right way on them. I mess up a lot when I try to do it myself.

“What if the Luna doesn’t like me?” I couldn’t help but to let my bottom lip poke out. I try not to, because Daddy Kent doesn't like seeing me sad. It makes him sad too. I can’t help it, though.

Instead of getting sad, Daddy Kent laughed really low, and his smile made me feel better. I know when he smiles that he has something happy to say.

Daddy Kent is very easy to understand. He does everything he says he will do, and he doesn’t make the fake smiles like my old daddy had to do a lot.

I think it’s because this pack is happier, so Daddy Kent can be happy too.

He doesn’t have to hide being sad or worried either.

When Daddy Kent is sad or worried, he tells me why, and he always has a way to make him happy again.

I wish I could do that someday. I still try to hide when I’m sad a lot. It hurts when I do. It hurts my chest. Daddy Kent said that I don’t have to hide being sad. I can just tell him and he will help me.

It’s hard to trust adults sometimes, but I’m trying. I trust Daddy Kent. He likes me being happy.

“The Luna is a very special woman, Riley. She is very kind, and very protective, especially to people like you.”

“People like me?” I tilted my head, not understanding.

“Yes. She likes to stick up for people hurting. She was actually from your old pack. Did you know that?”

“She was?!” That’s not good. My old pack was not nice. “How did she get here? Did you save her too?”

Daddy Kent laughed in his low voice again. “No. She married our Alpha. It turned out they were mates.”

“Oh,” I tilted my head the other way while I thought. “So he saved her?”

“I think it was more like she saved him,” Daddy Kent said. “Our Alpha is really nice now, but he used to be mad all the time. She came and he became a lot happier.”

“He didn’t seem happy last time I saw him,” I muttered, hopping down from the stool, following Daddy Kent outside.

“That’s because all his happiness left with her. I bet when you see him next time that he will be much happier again.”

I hope so. The Alpha looks like he is going to cry every time I see him. When he sees Westley, he does cry sometimes. Westley has to pat his back and make him feel better, which is silly. It makes me like the Alpha more, though. I don’t know why.

The Alpha is really big and looks really strong. When I saw him cry, it made me not scared of him. The other Alpha, the bad one, is just scary. He likes to make other people cry.

I much prefer my Alpha now.

I keep asking Daddy Kent questions as we walk through the town. He stopped by a bakery and got us both fried dough, and let me get extra for Westley.

Daddy Kent is always feeding me lots of yummy food. I never feel my tummy growling at me anymore. Even before I’m hungry, Daddy Kent is getting me food.

I started going to the school on some days, and Daddy Kent sends me to school with a metal box with a lid that is as big as my face.

He fills it with all the best stuff, like cheese and bread.

I got fruit called bananas last time, and I got apples and carrots too.

My favorite is dried meat. It is chewy but so yummy.

Daddy Kent puts lots of it in my metal box and calls it jerky.

Jerky is my favorite because it tastes like deer meat stew.

When we got to the fountain in the middle of town, I saw Westley walking on the edge of it, so I ran ahead to get him his dried donut while it was still hot. It tastes yummier hot.

Daddy Kent laughed as I ran, which made me happy. I like his laughs.

There are two men with Westley. I have seen them before. One is the Gamma. He is kinda grumpy, but he reads at the orphanage sometimes, so Westley likes him. I think his name is Meldec, but Westley calls him Uncle Mel.

The other guy is really weird looking. He has long hair.

Really long. It is really pretty, like a girl’s hair, and the color of the snow.

He doesn’t look like a Lycan or a werewolf, and I know he isn’t human.

I want to ask him what he is, but that’s rude.

I don’t want to be rude. I’ll have Westley ask instead.

Westley is rude lots of the time anyway.

“You ready, Gamma?” Daddy Kent asked Uncle Mel.

“I am, but he’s not,” the Gamma pointed to the pretty-haired man.

“What’s wrong with you?” Westley asked, poking the long-haired guy with his foot and offering him a piece of fried dough.

“I just don’t want her to still be mad at me,” the long-haired guy says.

“She won’t be,” the Gamma rubbed his shoulder. “Cherum told me that she and the alpha talked yesterday and she has been a lot more accepting of being back. She wanted to talk to you too, but you went to the sea with her father.”

“Went to the sea?” Westley kicked the long-haired guy again. “You could have taken me. I need more shells.”

“Not this time, squirt,” the man tickled Westley’s tummy, then took the next piece of fried dough right out of Westley’s hand. “I’ll take you later this week.”

“Can the Luna come?” Westley asked. “She likes shells too.”

The long-haired man’s face made a really sad expression, but he still tried to smile. It makes him look like he has to poop.

“I hope so. You will have to ask.”

“Well, let’s get going then,” Daddy Kent said, lifting me off the wall of the fountain and setting me on my feet.

“I know the way,” Westley ran ahead, and I ran to chase him.

Seeing the long-haired man nervous and sad is making me scared again. I hope that meeting the Luna makes everyone happy. I don’t like seeing people sad.

~

Cedric

“It’s going to be okay,” Mel rubbed my shoulders with both his hands, massaging his fingers into my tense muscles.

“She wouldn’t even look at me yesterday,” I muttered, trying to keep my voice down so the warrior, Kent, who is with us wouldn’t hear. He was a few paces ahead, chasing after the boys, but Lycans have very good hearing.

It shames me to not be in my princess's favor.

“She didn’t look at any of us. I’m telling you, she was better yesterday after talking to the Alpha and her father.

Did King Brennus not seem happier when you were with him?

Both talks went really well, according to Cherum.

She was even smiling and laughing at dinner.

She stayed in the castle again instead of going back to the pirates. ”

I frowned, remembering my King and the sadness in his eyes yesterday evening.

Yes, he seemed happier, but it also looked like he was losing something the more we talked about his daughter and all her new pirate crew revealed to us.

It was almost like he was in mourning. Mourning for what, I do not know, but it makes me feel uneasy.

“It’s going to be fine, Cedric. She was even looking for you last night. It’s your turn to clear the air as well with her.”

I hope so. I really do. I don’t know if my heart could take much more of her scorn.

When we reach the castle, there is a commotion coming from the warriors’ training grounds. People passing by are frantic trying to get there. Their carrying voices keep mentioning the Luna, and fighting.

Without even thinking about doing so, my body started moving faster, pushing through the hurried bodies, leaving Meldec and his friend to manage the two boys on their own.

Meldec yells for me, but his words fall on deaf ears.

The words ‘Luna’ and ‘fighting’ just keep playing over and over again in my head.

Even if she is upset with me, and she no longer sees me as her friend, she will always be my princess. I will always serve her, and right now, I feel an anxious panic to rush to her side, thinking the worst.

Who could she be fighting? Is she fighting, or is she trying to break up another fight?

She may look fierce now, but she is still my sweet, kind-hearted Ela. I can’t even stomach the idea of her trying to fight or getting in the middle of one.