From Rejected Luna To Lycan Queen (Eloise and Edward) novel Chapter 18

Chapter 18 Measuring Up

ELOISE

I didn’t look up from the fire. “I’m not here to be anybody or your teacher, Summer. If you want to learn, pay attention; otherwise. stay out of the way.”

Summer’s lip trembled. She looked down at the floor, her shoulders shaking as if she were holding back a sob. “Are you still mad at me, Ellie? I don’t even know what I did wrong. I just want us to be sisters again.”

Beside me, I saw Dolly and Natalie share a look; they actually rolled their eyes. After a day of watching Summer whine and complain about her shoes and hair while the rest of us worked, they were finally seeing through the sweet girl act.

Give it a rest, Summer,” Dolly muttered, loud enough for drones to hear. “She’s busy cooking our dinner. Stop acting like a kicked >uppy.”

High above, the drones hummed, and I knew that back in the pack city, every werewolf was watching this: my parents, brothers, nd Edward. Including Damon, the thought of him made my insides mush, but I cleared my throat and stopped thinking about him mmediately before the dirty thoughts kicked in. My father was probably staring at the screen in shock. He had sent me here to be a tepping stone for Summer.

le wanted her to look like the perfect Luna, while I looked like the broken daughter. But now, the plan was failing, I was the one eading, and Summer was the one falling apart.

he next morning, the Elder gathered us outside.

The next trial is about resourcefulness.” He announced. “Deep in these mountains grows the Moon–shimmer herb. It is rare and ital for our healers. Your task is to bring back at least three stems. Be careful because the mountain is steep and the forest is not lways kind.”

We started to climb immediately after he finished addressing us; the path was nothing but jagged rocks and thick thorny bushes. I ook the lead, using a sturdy branch to clear the path. I moved like I knew what I was doing, at least as much as I could.

ly sense of smell was alert to the smells of the damp earth and the hidden plants.

¡ummer, however, was miserable again. She had traded her heels for some borrowed boots that were too big, and she was gasping or air every five minutes. I still wonder if she had any sense sometimes, or if she was just dumb, because I found it hard to believe hat she brought heels all through.

This is ridiculous.” Just the person I was thinking about. Summer cried out, leaning against a tree. “Is the King trying to kill us? No eal Luna should have to climb through dirt like a common scavenger.”

Dolly, who was breathing hard but kept moving, turned around with a glare. “Will you just shut the fuck up? If you’re too weak to climb a hill, just go back to the hall. You’re slowing the rest of us down with your complaining.”

Summer’s eyes welled up with tears. “I’m just…just worried about everyone’s safety. The rocks are slippery.”

“Then watch your feet instead of complaining out for everyone to hear,” Natalie replied coldly without stopping.

Suddenly, my weird senses kicked in again, and a faint sweet scent hit my nose. I followed it toward a cluster of grey rocks near a small stream. I brushed aside some moss, and my eyes lit up.

“Found one,” I whispered.

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Chapter 18 Measuring Up

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The other girls crowded around. Nestled in the shade that was in front of me stood a Moon–shimmer herb. Its leaves are glowing with a faint silver light.

“You found it already?” Natalie asked, sounding impressed. “How? We’ve been looking for an hour.”

“It likes staying close to water,” I explained, carefully digging it out by the root.

“You’re like a survival pro, Eloise. Where did you learn all these?”

“Honestly, I don’t know how I knew it. But I have lived a wild life.”

Summer stood to the side, her face twisting. She couldn’t stand that I was getting all the attention. She started frantically looking around, desperate to find something, anything to prove she was better.

Then her eyes brightened as she spotted a bright, purple, speckled mushroom growing under a log that looked like it had been there for a while. It looked exotic and beautiful.

“Look!” Summer shouted, running toward it. “I found something even better! This must be a royal herb. Look how pretty it is.”

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