Rise Of A Shattered Luna (Natalie) by Kave Derry novel Chapter 21

Chapter 21 Cornered In Silence

Natalie’s POV

The door shut behind him with a soft click.

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I lay there staring at the ceiling, breathing shallowly, waiting for something inside me to

break open.

Anger.

Grief.

Anything.

But nothing came.

The silence inside my head was louder than anything I’d ever known.

The whispers had always been there, even when I slept… even when I tried to ignore them. A low current beneath thought, not voices exactly, but awareness.

Now there was nothing.

No echo. No resistance. No warmth.

Just space.

The nurse stepped closer. I felt the mattress dip slightly as she sat on the edge of the bed.

“You’re safe,” she said quietly.

I turned my head and looked at

VEN

She wasn’t one of the regular staff. Younger with sharper eyes and hands that didn’t fidget, she’d been here every time I surfaced, always just out of the way, always watching the door.

“Are you?” I asked.

She met my gaze. “As safe as I can make you.”

That wasn’t reassurance. It was a warning.

“What’s your name?” I asked.

She hesitated, just briefly. Then said, “Phantom

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I frowned. “That’s not a name.”

“It’s the one I use,” she replied evenly.

I let it go.

Over the next few days, time stopped behaving normally.

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I slept in stretches that felt like minutes and woke up hours later with no memory of dreaming. The fever came and went. Sometimes my hands shook so badly I couldn’t hold a cup. Other times I felt almost normal, until I remembered what normal used to include.

Jensen didn’t come back.

I wasn’t surprised.

He sent healers, reports, and even guards posted just outside the door. Extra security, with silence wrapped in protocol.

Phantom stayed.

She brought my meals, changed my dressings, and made sure the guards rotated often enough that none of them lingered.

“You don’t act like pack staff,” I said once.

“I’m not,” she answered, that was all she offered.

On the fifth day, the doctor told me I was improving–stabilized. No further spiritual degradation detected.

“You’ll live,” he said, like that was supposed to mean something.

“What about my gift?” I asked.

He avoided my eyes. “The damage is permanent”

I nodded.

I already knew.

That night, I lay awake counting heartbeats. Not syncing them to anything, just counting so my thoughts wouldn’t spiral.

Two days.

That’s all I needed.

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My visa was processing, my exit permit was already filed. Once I was discharged, I’d be Out of Nightfang territory and finally out of Jensen’s reach.

I didn’t need justice, nor did I need closure.

I just needed distance.

The next afternoon, Phantom left to collect fresh linens.

I waited ten minutes.

Then I pushed myself upright.

gone.

The dizziness hit immediately, stronger than before. I sat still until it passed, then slid my feet to the floor.

The silence inside me made balance harder. I’d never realized how much I’d relied on that internal orientation until it was gone.

I grabbed the wall and stood.

The hallway was quiet. Afternoon shift with fewer visitors.

I moved slowly, keeping my head down, rehearsing what I’d say to the attending physician. Early discharge, medical waiver, signed risk acknowledgment.

I just need to get out of here.

I was halfway down the hall when voices stopped me.

The fire exit door was cracked open.

I recognized her voice instantly.

“I don’t care how you do it,” Sharon said. “I need documentation stating progression now.”

I pressed myself flat against the wall.

The man she was speaking to sounded panicked “Ms. Summers, I’ve already falsified enough records to ruin my career. You don’t have moon sickness. There’s nothing to progress.”

“You forged my diagnosis,” Sharon said calmly. You can forge this.”

“That was different,” he snapped. “That was years ago. If Alpha Jensen finds out-

“He won’t,” she said. “Because if this comes out, you burn with me.”

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There was a pause.

In Silence

Then Sharon continued, her voice lowering.

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“You told him I saved his life… you signed off on the rib donation. You stood in that room and nodded while he thanked me. If the truth surfaces now, do you think he’ll spare you?”

My stomach dropped.

My hand moved on its own, pressing against my side.

The scar was still there.

Faint but unmistakable. I’d been told it would heal slowly and eventually fade away.

I remembered the operating room now. The restraints, the chanting, the pain that still keeps me up at night.

I swallowed hard.

“I can’t fake progression without a control record,” the doctor said weakly. “I need another patient with confirmed moon sickness to swap markers.”

“And you don’t have one,” Sharon replied. “That’s your problem to solve.”

Footsteps echoed down the hall.

A young nurse turned the corner and stopped short when she saw me.

“You shouldn’t be out of bed,” she said sharply.

Sharon’s voice cut through the door immediately. “Who’s out there?”

The door flew open.

Sharon stepped into the hall, looking perfectly healthy. Color in her cheeks. Strength in her

posture.

Her eyes locked on

mine.

For a moment, neither of us spoke.

Then she smiled.

“How much did you hear?” she asked.

“Nothing,” I said automatically.

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She laughed.

“Stop her.” Sharon snapped at the nurse. “She’s a rogue.”

I turned to run.

I made it three steps.

Her fist connected with my jaw hard enough to knock the air from my lungs.

I hit the floor.

The world tilted, lights blurring, and sound muffled. I tasted blood.

Sharon loomed over me.

“You should’ve stayed in bed,” she said coldly.

Hands grabbed her from behind.

Phantom.

She moved fast… too fast for just a random pack member.

Sharon struggled, shrieking, but Phantom didn’t let go.

Guards flooded the hall.

Everything became noise and motion and shouting.

I lay there staring at the ceiling, dazed, one thought repeating over and over.

It was me.

I had saved him.

And he had let her destroy me anyway.

***

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When I woke again, the room was locked down.

Two guards outside. Phantom inside.

She sat beside my bed, water he door. “She won’t touch you again,” said.

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“But Jensen will protect her,” I replied.

“Yes,” Phantom said. “That’s why you need to leave.”

I turned my head slowly. “You knew.”