Claimed by the Alpha Luna’s Awakening (Carmine and Theo) novel Chapter 4

Chapter 4
Carmine cried silently as humiliation played in her mind repeatedly. On top of that, she just couldn’t figure out who she had S** with last night. She just hoped and prayed to the goddess that she wasn’t pregnant.
After what seemed like an eternity, she rose to her feet, wiping tears from her cheeks. It was almost evening. There was no way she was going to stay back and there was no point in wallowing any further. She had to do what rogues were best at doing. Escape. Over the last few years, what her father had taught her best was how to escape.
Here went to the cold lunch that was kept on the table in front of her. She didn’t realize when Ada came and kept the lunch in the room. There was wine along with i
She chuckled humorlessly as she walked to the bathroom and washed her face. Her eyes were swollen and so were her lips. Her braid was lying over her shoulder. She looked at the golden tips of her hair. Picking up scissors, she chopped them off. The tips would become golden within a few hours, but until then, she would escape. They were a big giveaway. She called upon Ember to explain to her the escape plan, but Ember didn’t respond. Had she gone off to sleep? Carmine just hoped that Ember. responded soon and was in a healing mode.
She went downstairs and noticed Ada was watching TV. Quietly, she padded her way to the attic from where she pulled out an old black satchel. She stashed lunch in it, threw the wine in the toilet and flushed it, and then stuffed one pair of clothes. Then she went down, retrieved a water bottle, threw it in her satchel. Ruby had given her a lot of money. She wasn’t a fool to leave it.
Carmine waited for the night to fall. She had already studied the movements of the guards. There were five warriors, four of which would continuously guard the cottage while one took rest. She identified that exactly at 10 PM, the guard patrolling the backyard changed duties. That was her window to escape.
The map she had drawn of the cottage and the surrounding forest were lying open in front of her. It was a simple sketch she memorized, comprehending her exit route.
“Carmine!” Ada knocked on her door.
Nervously, Carmine collected her map, folded it, and shoved it beneath her bed before opening the door.
“Why did you close the door?” Ada asked as she walked inside, examining the room, and placed the dinner on her table.
“Must have done it on a reflex,” she said, shrugging. While internally, she was extremely
Chapter 4
scared, she had to keep a calm façade.
“Eat it. The Alpha will come late at night. There had been a war in the outskirts of the pack’s territory on the west, and-” she pursed her lips. “Then there’s your situation!” She rolled her eyes and hurried out of the door, muttering curses under her breath. “It’s all so messy!”
Carmine needed energy. She ate her food, went downstairs to wash her plate and came up steadily to show Ada that she was calm and composed. Kade was supposed to come anytime. She just hoped that she escaped before he was here. She pulled out the map and studied the exit points. If there was a war yesterday, she had to avoid that path. She crossed west and focused on the cast. It was slightly longer, but nothing she couldn’t
manage.
Ready for the escape, she stood by the window with her satchel. As soon as the guard left, she jumped out and dashed towards the forest. Ten minutes was enough for her to run as far as she could to reach the east side of the pack’s territory. Actually it was casy because she took the route through denser forest, jumped in a brook and veered left, keeping herself in the middle of the stream so that she didn’t leave her scent.
She followed the brook for as far as she could and once she was at least a mile away she jumped out of it and, using the north star as her guide, she turned to the south. She didn’t stop until she reached the highway.
She was tired and hungry and a little scared. Ember had made no contact with her and she felt… lonely. “Please Ember,” she said in a h o ars e voice. “Where are you?” she called to her. She needed her help, her guidance, as always. She had guided her through many
bad times.
When her father and stepmother used to beat her, Ember was the one who would listen to her woes. Her parents would leave her at the mercy of rogues after thrashing her. It was a surprise that they did not rape her. Maybe because she kept to herself. On the other hand, Deena, her half-sister, was always the one who threw herself at the wolves in the herd. She had seen her taking part in many or gies. Once, when she tried to report Deena to her stepmother, she slapped her hard, saying that at least they liked. Deena and that Carmine was a burden she wanted to get rid of
A small truck whi zzed past her, snapping her out of her thoughts. It stopped a few meters away. She froze but was immensely relieved when an elderly woman rolled down the glasses. “Need a lift?” she asked.
She licked her lips, nodding lightly in doubt.
“Don’t worry,” the woman rolled her eyes. “Hop in!”
Feeling confident, Carmine gathered her satchel and went to the passenger seat, thanking the woman politely.
With silvery hair and a strange glow around her kindly face, the woman looked ethereal and beautiful. “Where are you going?” she asked.
“I can drop you till Columbia,” she said, cutting her off. She shifted the stick to the first. gear. “Is that okay?”
Anything was okay. “Yes!” Carmine replied. “H-how far is that?”
She gave Carmine a side glance as if she was asking a stu pid question. “About elevent hours.”
“Thanks, it’ll do,” Carmine said, tucking a loose strand behind her car. “I am Carmine.”
“I am Selene.”
On an instinct Carmine felt she could trust this woman. “Nice to meet you, Selene. How much do I owe you?”
“I’ll let you know when we reach the destination.” Selene focused on the road ahead. “And don’t trust strangers just like that. Always trust your instincts, okay?” Selene’s gaze dropped to her belly, and a smile ghosted on her lips.
Tired, Carmine nodded, resting her head on the backrest. She sighed, exhausted as hell, while Selene drove. She didn’t know when she drifted off into deep slumber, but when she fluttered open her eyes,
eyes, she was lying on a bench in a children’s park. The board in front of her read, ‘Columbia’s Children’s Muscum.