RIA'S POV
The cup of tea is still warm in my hand as I burst the door open. I had knocked, but she did not answer like she normally would.
"Luna Elara?"
This is unlike her.
I push the door open and step inside the dark room. The curtains are still closed. That is strange...she always leaves them open before she sleeps. The Luna loves to wake up to sunlight peeking into her room.
"Luna?" I call softly.
My eyes gradually adjust to the darkness while at the same time, I set the tray on the small table by the window and hurry towards the bed.
She lay there motionless.
"Luna Elara." I called her again, louder this time but deep down, I already know what my eyes have refused to see. I kneel by her side and reach out for her hand. It feels so cold and stiff.
My eyes widen in shock as I yank my hands back.
I stand up and move backwards in disbelief while shaking my head.
"N-n-n-no."My voice shakes and I almost choke.
I lean over her and rest my forehead gently on hers then wait for her chest to rise or to feel her warm breath on my cheek.
She does not move, no movement at all.
Those beautiful green eyes of hers that once held so much love and kindness towards me when no one else did, are open. The same eyes that saw me for who I was and loved me regardless of our status were staring at the roof without blinking.
My chest tightens. I stumble backwards and fall back against the door in shock. My heel hooks the leg of a chair and I crumble to the ground but I feel no pain.
At once the room spins. The air suddenly feels suffocating.
No! This isn't real. This cannot be happening-
I scramble up to my feet and run.
***
In less than an hour, the hallway outside the late Luna Elara's chambers is full. Some wail and some shake their head while putting their fingers under their jaw and supporting it with the other hand. Pack members shove up against each other like animals, craning their necks and speaking in low tones. Luna was dead.
The news had spread like wildfire around the whole pack.
I wrap my arms around myself as I stand pressed against the wall. My heart feels empty. I cannot stop myself from looking at her face. I still haven't been able to process what is happening.
This cannot be real.
Just then, Alpha Roderic walks in through the crowd, his amber eyes look cold and lifeless. He clenches his jaw.
Everyone quickly moves aside for him as he strides past me without a glance and enters her chambers while we wait.
Finally, he comes out and stands in the doorway. He slowly sweeps his gaze across the crowd as if he is assessing the room. Then his gaze rest on me. In that instance, my spirit jumps out of my body.
"Ria Vale." He grits his teeth.
All heads turn to look at me. I push my body away from the wall. "Alpha, I just-I…"
"My mate is dead." He speaks calmly "it shows that she was poisoned last night and you are the last person seen entering her chambers last night."
"I brought her tea." My words rush out. "I always bring her tea before bed. That's all I did. I came back this morning to see her lifeless in her room…"
"You were jealous. Because you had access, you killed her." He cuts in. There was no hesitation in his voice.
"I swear by the Moon Goddess!" My voice cracks and I hold my hands together to stop them from trembling. "I loved her. She cared about me. I had nothing to lose by…"
"Take her."
Two warriors appear on either side of me and grab my arms tightly so much that I struggle to breathe.
"Wait…please" I twist and struggle in their grip. "Please, just listen to me…"
One of them pulls out a silver rope. It is used to trap one's wolf so one cannot escape. The moment it touches my wrists it feels like my spirit is chained and clamped down into my bone. My knees buckle as shards of pain shoot up my body.
"Please." I look at the faces around me. "Someone…please…"
But nobody moves nor utters a word. I search with my eyes and find my mother amidst the crowd. Her face is full of pain. Our eyes meet and I can see tears running down her cheeks. I pleaded with my eyes that she should come out to clear my name. She presses her lips together and lowers her head. Finn is beside her consoling her while avoiding my gaze.
My heart breaks.
The warriors drag me away.
***
The cell is cold and smells of damp earth and metallic rust from human blood.
I sit on the stone floor and count the cracks in the wall over and over, just to keep myself from screaming.
Two days pass and I'm not given food or water. No one visits except the guard who comes to slide the bolt on the outside every few hours to check if I am still there.
I think about her non-stop.
I need you to be careful, Ria. She had said that to me, just three nights ago. She was sitting in her vanity, and I stood behind her, brushing her hair.
She sounded worried as she looked at me through the mirror and said, "I think he is hiding something. I sense it's bad. I don't know what it is yet, but I feel it."
Who, my Luna? I had asked.
She had hesitated. "My mate."
I didn't know what to say to that. I mean, I am only an omega. The matters of Alphas and Lunas are beyond me. All I knew was that she was afraid, and she had trusted me enough to tell me. So I kept them to myself and told no one
Now…she is dead.
I rest my forehead against the cold wall and close my eyes.
Think, think Ria. But what is there to think about? The Alpha has already declared that I murdered his Luna. No one dared to question him. I am just an omega, the lowest rank in the pack, my words mean nothing.
He, on the other hand, is the Alpha, and what he says stands and is law. Even if it is a lie.
So this is how I'm going to be punished for something I did not know about.