The Luna Choosing Game

By the next morning, the drug had worked its way through my system and I felt like my old self again. I

went down to breakfast, where I was reunited with Elva, who had stayed with Susie the night before by

order of Nicholas.

I was grateful for his foresight. Mortified as I was by my actions and sounds, I was at least spared the

embarrassment of explaining any of this to Mark or the nanny myself. Or worse still, to Elva..

A thought so stomach–churning, I dared not even think of it.

So when I did finally greet her, it was with a tight hug and big smile, the same as always.

Susie and I didn’t always sit together, but we chose to that morning. There were still many empty chairs with the previous elimination, and I was feeling vulnerable from what had happened the night before. I needed my friends.

Around us the girls were chattering about the curiousness of the evening’s events. Terry was to be one of the main judges of the night, but he never came to ballroom.

Also as curious, both Nicholas and Julian disappeared sometime in the night, only to reappear this morning, one with a black eye and the other with an injured hand.

“You don’t suppose the princes got into a fight with each other?” one of the girls asked.

“No,” Lilliana said flatly. “He is too mature to take part in such childish antics.”

“Julian does love to tease,” said someone else.

“Not enough to tempt a prince away from his decorum,” Olivia added. “Prince Nicholas been around Prince Julian for years. He’s surely built up a tolerance.”

“Well, then what happened with Sir Terry?“”

“Maybe he started the fight,” someone said, and another laughed. A third shushed them.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Olivia said, rolling her eyes.

in her seat to face me. I had Elva in my lap, but she was busy stuffing her face

heard some

her concern. I felt hungover some, with a cloudy head and tired eyes, but otherwise okay Except for

the bile rising in my throat, and left my half of the breakfast uneaten on

to pick at.

the grounds?” I asked. It took great strength to keep

Terry left at some point last night and returned to his own

filled me with a sense of relief and for the first time

For now, at least,

continued to linger in my mind, even as we

feel Terry’s cold hands on me

breath.

that girl in the black dress who seemed to have my wolf. Who was she? Where had she come from? How had she gotten it? And why was she teasing me with

many unanswered questions. It felt worse now, somehow, because I would never be able to find the answers. Not since Nicholas

me and for the kingdom, but it frustrated me that he could not

being manipulated into giving away their wolves and their abilities. It was the only true way to

be cowed by Terry, or by Nicholas. I had my own heart and my

condemned, I wouldn’t let him stop me from protecting my daughter or any of those innumerous other souls out there who just

the care of her nanny and Mark, I set off on my own to find Julian.

of the palace before I thought to check the empty ballroom. I found him sitting

to be so isolated or so reflective.

of my heels on the tile

be alone?” I asked him. I had

its place was the same sort of cocky

if it’s

a seat

that Julian was also there last night. He had bome witness to

it wasn’t my fault, as well as to make

Nicholas moved away.

Nicholas would have taken advantage. He wouldn’t

the circumstances of my desire

I was still

about it. I did have desire for Nicholas. I had wanted him to kiss me