Chapter 20

I almost dropped the will I was so shocked, this had to be a coincidence. There was no way my father would leave me something like this in his will… as if he knew he was going to die. What if his suicide was actually something more gruesome?

I couldn’t let myself think such dark thoughts and tried to shake myself back to reality. Double checking my work seemed to be the only thing that made sense, could my father have made a mistake? No, my father never made mistakes, except for plunging me into debt. But now that I saw the secrets embedded in his will I began to question everything. Perhaps my father really was the man I’d always known him to be and there was more to his story. More to his story that I had somehow gotten caught up in now.

I stared at the answer to the puzzle, a pit forming in my stomach as I realized there was just one thing left to do: I needed to leave Blue Moon. But where would I go? I decided to solve one problem at a time and lept into action.

Repacking after just moving into a new apartment should have been easier, but even in the short time I lived there I had grown attached to it. Throwing clothes in my suitcase felt like a fever dream as I rummaged through drawers. I had to think of the essentials, nevermind the boxes of memories I was about to lose forever. Undergarments? Check. Warm clothes? Check. Toothbrush? Check. My mother’s ballet shoes? Absolutely. If I was going to allow myself to keep one sentimental item it would be those.

I threw on my coat and shoved my father’s will into the inside pocket, hoping to keep it as safe as possible before looking around the room one last time. So much for moving here for safety, but I was driven forward by my father’s warning. Deep down I’d always felt something was off about my father’s death, and now I was going to find out why.

As I descended the steps of my apartment I wondered distantly where I would go, but as I looked around at the streets of Blue Moon I couldn’t help but feel unsafe. It didn’t matter where I went, as long as it was away from here.

I must have looked insane with my massive suitcase precariously strapped to the back of my bicycle but I didn’t care. I pedaled furiously through the streets, gaining speed as I descended the hill to the Black Moon territory checkpoint. I felt almost home free until I noticed a large crowd of Blue Moon guards assembling at the border. Hitting the brakes hard, I almost flipped over the handlebars as I screeched to a halt.

The only thing I could hear was the sound of my heavy breathing and my heartbeat in my ears as I watched Blue Moon guards whisper to themselves. Then one started to approach me and I braced myself for what would come next.

“Excuse me miss, please dismount the bike and step away from your items with your hands in the air,” the Blue Moon guard called in my direction. His tone wasn’t threatening, but the air was charged with tension. I did as the officer said.

“Is there a problem officer?” I asked as calmly as possible, hoping to escape this situation as soon as possible.

“Is there a reason you’re trying to cross the border so late at night miss? We’ve had a lot of disturbances tonight, including some activity from rival packs. You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that would you?” I gulped as the officer took a step closer, one hand reaching slowly up to his belt. I kept my hands in the air, trying to remain as still as possible. I had to come up with something, a lie, a reason for leaving, anything.

“Um, I am on my way to an early morning rehearsal. I am a member of the Black Moon’s ballet troupe,” I said with a smile, hoping they would appeal to my innocent nature and let me pass. But the guard just looked at me skeptically.

“Right, please wait here ma’am, I’m going to need to check our system,” the guard said and with that I was left standing in the middle of the road. I took in my surroundings, noticing how severely outnumbered I was. Panicking, I wracked my brain for ideas, and when a solution finally came, I was so embarrassed at how I hadn’t thought of it before.

I pulled out my phone and quickly dialed Lorenzo’s number, turning my body to not provoke any of the Blue Moon guards. Lorenzo picked up after one ring, just like last time.

“Eleanor? Are you okay?” Lorenzo seemed genuinely concerned which almost distracted me. He had always been thoughtful. I blinked and refocused.

“Lorenzo, I am at the border crossing trying to get into Black Moon but the guards have stopped me. I think they’re suspicious after what happened between the two packs earlier and they won’t let me through,” I explained in a rush. Before I could even think, I added: “I’m scared Lorenzo.”

“Okay don’t move Eleanor, I’m sending someone with a car to come get you. I have men stationed near your house so they should be there any moment,” Lorenzo said and I heard rustling in the background, as if his men had burst to life trying to solve my problem. I sighed in relief but I couldn’t let my guard down completely.

“Would you mind staying on the phone with me? At least until the car comes?” I asked in a voice so shy I almost didn’t recognize it as my own. I felt like a teenager again, reaching out to my boyfriend for comfort. But Lorenzo wasn’t my boyfriend and I wasn’t a teenager anymore, I needed to take this seriously.

“Yes of course. Why are you trying to cross the border Eleanor,” Lorenzo asked.

“I found some information from my father, I’m not sure if it’s safe to share over the phone but just trust me that I need to see you,” I tried to keep my voice low to not provoke the guards who started to seem agitated as they noticed me on the phone.

“Your father? Okay I understand, have you made contact with anyone else?”

“No just you, I told the guards I was going to a dance rehearsal in Black Moon,” I filled Lorenzo in on my lie, and couldn’t help but feel my heart swell a bit as he expressed his pride.

“That was good quick thinking, just like the Eleanor I remember,” I blushed at Lorenzo’s words. “Wait, I just got word that your driver should be approaching, do you see a black limousine coming your way?”

I glanced up the hill and noticed the notorious ALPHA LS license plate zooming my way, except this time to my rescue instead of to run me over. The driver pulled up in front of me and rolled the window down, nodding for me to get in.

“Yes they’re here, I’m jumping in the car,” I replied, doing as I said as quickly as possible. I wasn’t even fully in my seat before the driver tore off, and I could've sworn I heard the guards shouting in the distance.

“Good, I’ve ordered the driver to take you to a hotel where you can lay low until I can come get you. I’m on the other side of Black Moon so it will take me longer, but just sit tight Eleanor I’ll be there soon.” And with that, Lorenzo hung up. I held on for dear life as we weaved through the back streets of Blue Moon and then into the parking lot of one of the shadiest hotels I had ever seen. Well, at least people wouldn’t think to look for me here.

As I entered the hotel, I turned on the TV in my room to see if there were any updates on the pack rivalry issues. What I saw instead surprised me and I stared at the screen with my mouth wide open.

“This just in, we have just received word that the Black Moon alpha announced in high profile that he has found his luna. She is reportedly the best ballet dancer of the Blue Moon pack!”