Genesis: (Book One of the True Luna Series)

by Texie D. Freeman

  June didn’t even realize that the lights were off, and that she could see, until she caught her reflection in the mirror. Leaning over the sink, she drank in her face and balked at the subtle changes. For starters, the pockmark acnes dots and scars that once marred her skin had vanished. Even the bump from when she had broken her nose a few years ago while training was gone. Her hair, once lackluster, shined with new life.

  As she met her own eyes, the sudden pressure that filled her head had June gripping the rim of the sink. Swallowing, she watched as flecks of iridescence formed in her iris’. Nothing could’ve prepared her to see the blue be replaced by silver that glowed like two twin beacons. Blood dripping into the basin as a sharp pain tore through her gums. She opened her mouth to see two little nubs, canines, forcing their way into the world. A second later, the fully formed incisors hung over her lower lip, stained red with her blood. As if that wasn’t bad enough, when June raised her hands, she saw that her fingernails had lengthened into short claws.

  She turned her hands over, willing the claws to recede. June tried to think like a hyb…shifter, but none of her training, or the books Donovan had her read, covered this. “Shit!”

  “Mate.”

  June whipped around, facing the empty doorway. “H-hello?”

  The voice came in the form of a grunt and sounded so close that she had thought it was coming from behind. It wasn’t until it spoke again that June realized it was in her head.

  “Mate. Find mate.”

  She looked down at her wrist. White gauze covered the bite. Gently, June unwound it to reveal a mess of red skin in the shape of Dani’s teeth. Seeing it made her situation real. She could chalk up her face, the claws, and the voice into a hallucination but not this.

  “Dead,” the voice said. “Almost dead. Pack saved us.”

  “Yeah, I know,” June responded, the words slightly slurred around her canines. She wondered if the creature could even hear her as she continued, “I think it’s time to find Donovan.”

  “Mate,” it purred in delight, “close. So close.”

  “Stop being needy,” June commanded, rolling her eyes when it growled in response. She turned back to the mirror again, but nothing had changed. While she wished there was time to figure out this mess, she couldn’t waste any more time. Anyone could wander into her room without a moment’s notice.

  June kept her head down, covered with her hair, and her hands tucked under her armpits as she left the room. Her heart stuttered with every person she passed in the hallway. Not only was she waiting for someone to stop her, but each smell that hit her nose was a distraction. The scent of rose perfume and bleach made her eyes burn and her skin itch. She felt like she was bathing in everything all at once.

  “Focus,” the voice demanded. “Close.”

  It took ten minutes for June to finally pick out the scent of sandalwood and earth. The combination made her mouth water. She followed the scent to the source. When it was at its strongest, she took the risk of looking up and there he was.

  Donovan was the only person sitting in the waiting room. He was hunched over, head down and eyes closed, as if he was praying. She knew the second he sensed her because his shoulders tensed. He looked up, meeting her gaze from across the hall. The alpha’s jaw fell open and he blinked and then blinked again, taking a moment to process what he was seeing before softly uttering, “Baby?”

  It took all of June’s willpower to not run to him. Putting her head down again, she felt him follow as she pulled open the door to a utility closet. The scent of chemicals was overwhelming, but Donovan’s scent made up for it as he squeezed inside. She pulled on the string above their heads, banishing the darkness.

  “You’re—” Donovan started.

  “I’m staying,” June rushed out, cutting him off. She felt her face flush under his intrusive stare. He had yet to look away. She cleared her throat and tried again, “You gave me a choice and that was all I wanted. I needed you to see me, the real me and not some personification of your religion. And I was going to tell you after the dinner, when you came home but then it was too late. So, I have to tell you now because I don’t want you to think that Dani turning me is the reason my mind changed.”

  The alpha was still and silent for too long, and then, “I’m sorry.”

  “What?” She recoiled in fear. Her throat was tight as she waited for him to say he didn’t want her anymore. It was the only plausible explanation she had for Donovan to apologize after her confession.

  “I didn’t get there in time,” he croaked. “Dani mind linked me right after the crash, but I wasn’t fast enough. I couldn’t save you and it breaks my heart knowing that you have to live with my mistake for the rest of your life.”

  “Donovan, no. Look at me,” June grabbed his hand and put it over her heart, holding it there with her own. Her skin hummed at the heat rolling off his skin and her heart skip. “I’m alive, that’s all that matters. Being a shifter wasn’t in my five-year plan or anything but if it means I can stay with you then I don’t care.”

  He didn’t look as relieved as she thought he would. A second later she knew why when he asked, “What about your dad? Can you really live with me knowing he’s waiting for you to come home?”

  The pit in her stomach expanded. She dropped his hand because it suddenly felt like it weighed a ton. She hadn’t had time to address the Dale situation yet. Just thinking of thinking about her dad hurt so fucking much that it left her in shambles.

  “June?”

  “I’m sorry,” she let out a watery laugh and wiped her eyes. “I guess it’s my turn to apologize. My dad was sent to the Grey Zone, which is a prison camp for hunters. One of the councilmembers guaranteed me that he would die there because I couldn’t kill Dani. That’s why I wanted to go back. I had to make sure he was safe but he’s not. His blood is on my hands.”

  Donovan hauled her to his chest, wrapping his arms around her back. “I wish I had the right words to say but I don’t think any exist. When my dad died, I thought I would follow him to the grave. But if yours is anything like you, with fire for a soul, then he will survive, June.”

  The meager sparks that June had experience while human were nothing compared to now. Where they touched, her skin tingled, not like a live wire, but an entire electrical grid. The feeling was so strong that her bare toes curled against the cold tile. She could feel him everywhere from her physical being to the recess of her soul. It took all her willpower to focus.

  “My mom said we would see each other again,” she spoke into his shirt, “she said the goddess told her.”

  “You saw your mom?” Donovan questioned. He pulled her back so they could meet eyes. “Spirit realm?”

  June nodded. “Yeah, she had a message for me but there’s no time to get into that right now. We need to go. The hunters have people in every hospital across the continent.”

  “Okay, but first we need to fix this,” Donovan said, waving a hand at her face while scrunching his nose. “I’ve never seen a shifter with silver eyes.”

  “Neither have I,” June remarked. She shook her head to regain focus. “How do I change back?”

  “Shut your eyes and imagine looking into a mirror,” he directed, “see her face first and then yours.”

  Her, June thought to herself, repressing a shudder. The idea of sharing her body with another being felt like a one-way ticket to the psych ward. If Donovan wasn’t with her, then she would be on the ground rocking back and forth.

  The thought made her stomach churn. Despite the lack of time, she had to ask, “Do you even like me like this?”

  The alpha cupped her face. “I’d adore you even if you had a tail.”

  She scowled and slapped his chest. “That’s not funny.”

  Inside her head, the wolf was rolling over in delight at his touch. June was quickly sensing that she was the more mature of the two.

  “Close your eyes, baby.”

  June did as she was told. She imagine
d herself back in the bathroom, staring at her shifted face in the mirror. Once she could recall it with perfect detail, she willed the harsh features to change so that silver eyes turned blue, her canines vanished, and claws receded.

  The wave of power that flowed through her body told June that it worked. When she opened her eyes, the closet was notably darker, her vision no longer as sharp.

  “Still beautiful,” Donovan commented, staring down at her with warm eyes and a sincere smile.

  June couldn’t help herself and closed the small space between then, putting her hands on his chest. She ran them all the way up to his neck and perched up on the tip of her toes. “You’re not so bad yourself.”

  The alpha grinned before his expression and then his expression turned serious. “Stop me if this is too soon but would it be crazy for me to ask if we could start over? No more alpha versus hunter bullshit. From here on out, we’re equals.”

  And maybe it was the ambience of the dark room or the bond warping her senses, but suddenly June never wanted to be apart from the man in front of her. She wanted to wrap herself around him and never let go which is exactly what she did, sealing the deal with a kiss.

  /CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE/

  Stealing clothes from the lost and found wasn’t exactly the highlight of June’s day. Lifting the collar of the maroon sweater to her nose, she sniffed and nearly gagged at the scent of sweat and sour milk. “I think I’m going to be sick.”

  “A common side effect to the change,” Donovan proclaimed from the floor, on his knees. Still in the supply closet, they had spent the past ten minutes rifling through a huge box of forgotten items, attempting to find an outfit that wouldn’t draw attention. If June walked out in her hospital gown a lot of unanswered questions would follow. “It’ll take you a while to learn how to block out your stronger senses.”

  June leaned against the metal shelf and tapped her head, questioning, “What about her? Does she have a mute button?”

  Donovan paused his search to look up. “She’s talking to you?”

  “Only constantly since I woke up.”

  The alpha’s mouth set in a thin line. “That is…peculiar. I only hear my wolf while in shifted form.”

  “Well, that’s great,” June grumbled. “I join team K-9 and I’m still the odd one out.”

  “Not odd,” Donovan countered, “just special.”

  June didn’t have the heart to tell him that his compliment made her feel worse. There was nothing special about being a freak among freaks. Instead, she rerouted the conversation. “Find any pants yet?”

  “Um, no, but there is this.”

  Staring at the atrocity he held, she turned her eyes up to the ceiling, begging earnestly, “Goddess help me.”

  Donovan rose from the floor and put it up to his front. He failed at keeping a straight face while declaring, “I heard that long khaki skirts are the new lingerie. What’s wrong with it?”

  “Nothing if you’re a one-hundred-year-old virgin who gets hot and bothered at the sight of ankles.” She sighed, “It’ll have to do.”

  A minute later, they were leaving the closet, hand in hand. Every time they passed someone in the hallway, the wolf in her head would growl. June had to clench her jaw to keep quiet, finding that their entangled emotions were going to be hard to separate. Her instincts were telling her that the hospital wasn’t safe and that she needed to run.

  “Relax,” Donovan whispered. He squeezed her hand. “We’re almost out. The parking garage is up ahead.”

  June looked up from the white tile to the end of the hall. Just as he said, a set of sliding glass doors waited. She counted each step that brought her closer to the exit. When she got to sixty, the doors slid apart, and the sharp scent of antiseptic was replaced with motor oil and rubber.

  The hair on the back of her neck rose and she stepped closer to Donovan. “Do you feel that too or am I crazy?”

  In place of answering, June let out a yelp as she was suddenly thrown over his shoulder. She clutched his shirt to keep herself from falling as the alpha took off in a sprint. Each step jarred her ribs, making it nearly impossible for her to snap, “What the hell? I can walk!”

  “You’re too slow,” he stated, weaving between two parked cars. His truck was in sight. “They’re here.”

  June inhaled. She could make out wolfsbane and something metal lingering in the air. The combination had her head spinning as Donovan set her down by the back end of the truck.

  He opened his mouth to speak but the sudden screech of tires had the alpha balking. A black car sped towards them, the horn honking erratically. June realized too late that it was a distraction. The driver’s side window was rolled down slightly, and the barrel of a gun peaked out, pointed at her. Donovan moved in a blur, putting himself between her and the car as a loud pop filled the air, resonating off the concrete walls.

  As the alpha went down, June screamed. The skirt ripped at her sides as she fell to her knees above him. Sticking out of his chest was a dart which she quickly pulled out, only to drop with a hiss when the metal tip seared her fingertips. The blip of control she had gathered in the hospital melted. Her mouth ached as her canines ripped through her gums.

  She heard a car door open and then slam shut. A pair of boots filled her visions and without thinking, June stood, placing herself between the hunters and her alpha. The two assailants were decked out in black, their faces covered by ski masks.

  The hunter on the right held a gun in one hand, pointing it at her chest. With their free hand, they pulled off their mask and June felt her face drain of color. If she wasn’t scared before, she was now, staring into the cold eyes of her brother.

  “Hello, sister,” Bran greeted with snark. “Miss me?”

  “Not in the slightest,” June said and fixed her face as the wolf in her head let out a low whine. Her eyes flickered to the second hunter. “You can take off the mask, Jace.”

  Her ex didn’t need to be prompted twice and pulled it off. His eyes flickered from the collapsed alpha to her, remarking, “And here I was thinking that this would be a rescue mission.”

  “Things change,” June told him. Her fingers twitched in preparation for a fight. Her wolf willed her to make a move, but she resisted. Hunters were skilled in taking defense. One sloppy mistake and she would end up like Donovan. “I don’t want to hurt anyone. We can all walk away from this peacefully.”

  “We don’t make deal with hybrids,” Bran grunted and adjusted his finger to hover over the trigger of his gun. When he noticed June staring at it, his eyes flashed with pride. “Do you like it? After the attack, every councilmember was outfitted with one for emergencies. The capsules are filled with wolfsbane and the tips were forged from pure silver, guaranteed to knock any hybrid on their ass.”

  Not sure which part she should be more horrified with, the weapon or Bran’s implication, she turned to Jace. “Councilmember?”

  “Dale’s seat wasn’t going to stay empty forever,” he remarked. “After the attack, the council realized they needed hands on protection, someone they could trust with complex business and handle a weapon. Every active hunter was prompted to apply.”

  “And they chose him?” June felt like she was going to be sick. Her brother was borderline psychotic, and she had a feeling that that was why he was selected. He would do anything Rachel commanded without question, the more violent request the better.

  Bran shrugged as if they were talking about what to have for dinner. “It helps that I was part of the team that escorted Dale to the Grey Zone.”

  A chill traveled down her back. Without meaning to, she took a step forward, shouting, “You’re vile!”

  “Careful now,” Bran warned while teasing the gun’s trigger, “let’s not forget who’s in charge here. There’s no reason to waste two bullets. We can all get in the car and go home. I’ll even leave your little friend here.”

  Jace who nodded slowly. “Listen to your brother, June. Come home with us so we can
end this game.”

  “They’ll kill me,” she choked out and looked at Bran. “He’ll kill me! There will be no hesitation, Jace. I’ll be dead before sunrise. Is that what you want? You said you loved me, prove it.”

  Jace was silent but it was okay because Bran spoke for him, “I’ll bring you in one way or another.”

  June braced herself when her brother grinned. She closed her eyes and even said a little prayer in her head. Instead of the sound of the gun firing though, she heard Bran grunt and followed by something heavy hitting the ground, making her open her eyes. It took her brain a second to realize that her brother was on the ground with Jace standing over his limp form.

  “What did you—”

  He held up a small black object in his hand. “Taser. He’ll be out for a few minutes. That should give you a good head start.”

  June gaped at him, stammering, “Jace…you…he’ll turn you in to Rachel!”

  “He won’t,” Jace reassured. “Bran may be vicious but the only person he really hates is you. He would sooner die than have me killed.”

  “Must be nice,” she huffed. “Why did you do that?”

  He ignored the question, saying tersely, “Help me get your friend in the truck.”

  She bent down and took Donovan’s keys out of his front pocket, hitting the unlock button on the fob. Jace moved towards her slowly, like one would a wild animal, and together, they lifted the alpha off the ground by his under arms. While they dragged him to the truck, June confessed, “He’s not my friend. We’re mates.”

  “I figured as much,” Jace said, opening the passenger door with one hand. He grunted as they pushed Donovan up into the passenger seat. “I was hoping I was wrong.”

  “I know,” she sighed. “I’m sorry for leading you on, Jace. I thought…I thought with time I could love you the way you loved me.”

  “Maybe you will,” Jace told her as he shut the door. Crammed between the cars, they were so close their chests almost touched. “He might be your soulmate, but you were mine, as well. I may not have a freaky animal connection with you, June, but what I feel is real. I’ll always love you, hybrid or not, you were it for me.”