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.

to face me. I had Elva in my lap, but she was busy stuffing her face with all the delicious

I heard

a cloudy head and tired eyes, but otherwise okay

and left my half of the breakfast uneaten on the plate

pick at.

It took great strength to keep

point last night and returned to his

for the first time that day, I took

now, at least, I was

thoughts of last night continued to linger in my mind, even

couldn’t help but feel Terry’s cold hands on me or

breath.

in the black dress who seemed to have my wolf. Who was she? Where had she come from? How had she

so many unanswered questions. It felt worse now, somehow, because I would never be able to find the answers. Not since Nicholas had forbad Julian and me

for the kingdom, but it frustrated

it would protect people like me from ever being manipulated into giving away their wolves and their abilities. It was the only true way to keep Elva safe.

Nicholas.

stop me from protecting my daughter or any of those innumerous other souls out there who just wanted to

Elva safely into the care of her nanny and Mark,

check the empty ballroom. I found him sitting alone on the bottom stair, deep in thought.

like him to be so isolated or so reflective.

heard the click of my heels on the tile steps, he turned back to

had questions and demands, but

look of vulnerability faded. In its place was

if it’s

took a seat on the same step he

hadn’t forgotten that Julian was also there last night. He had bome witness to

he had the decency both to tell me it wasn’t my fault, as well as to

Nicholas moved away.

He wouldn’t have. But Julian’s

circumstances of my

I was still

for Nicholas. I had wanted him to kiss me on the balcony. In time, I might have wanted to