From Rejected Mate to Luna Chapter 134

Julia's POV

The fluorescent lights of the Star Shadow medical center buzzed overhead as I injected another dose of fever reducer into Mrs. Keller's IV line. My hands were steady despite having been awake for nearly seventy-two hours straight. The elderly she-wolf smiled weakly at me, her skin hot to the touch despite the medication.

"Thank you, Julia," she whispered. "The others said you were a traitor, but my grandson followed your advice. He's still healthy."

I squeezed her hand gently. "Rest now. I'll check on you again soon."

The makeshift treatment ward had overtaken our community center's main hall. Thirty-four beds, all filled with pack members suffering from the werewolf influenza that had swept through Star Shadow like wildfire after Nathan's insisted-upon Moon Gathering. The irony wasn't lost on me – the same space where Nathan had publicly ridiculed my prevention protocols was now lined with the victims of his arrogance.

John approached with fresh supplies. Dark circles shadowed his eyes, matching my own exhaustion.

"You need to rest, Julia," he murmured. "You're no good to anyone if you collapse."

I shook my head, checking the clipboard of patient vital signs. "I'll rest when the crisis stabilizes. Any word from Nathan?"

Daniel's expression darkened. "He's called an emergency pack meeting for sunset. Something about 'seeking the Moon Goddess's guidance on our affliction.'"

The hair on my arms stood up. Nathan using religious rhetoric was never a good sign.

The meeting hall adjacent to the medical center was packed despite the epidemic. Nathan stood on the raised platform, his expression solemn yet smug as he surveyed the diminished crowd. I noticed many of the masked pack members who had followed my guidelines stood toward the back, physically distancing themselves as I'd recommended.

"Brothers and sisters," Nathan began, his voice carrying that artificial depth he used when trying to sound authoritative, "the Moon Goddess has sent us a trial."

I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from scoffing audibly.

"This illness that plagues us is no ordinary disease," he continued. "It is a divine message – a punishment for those who have strayed from our traditional ways."

His gaze found me in the crowd, and the whispers began immediately. My spine stiffened as I felt dozens of eyes turn in my direction.

"Modern medicine has its place," Nathan said, his voice dripping with false reasonability, "but when it comes at the expense of our sacred traditions, when it encourages disobedience and doubt..." He let the implication hang heavy in the air. "The evidence speaks for itself. Those who defied our ways, who hid behind masks rather than showing their true faces to the moon, they have invited this punishment upon us all."

Anger surged through me, hot and electric. He was blaming the victims while positioning himself as the spiritual savior. Worse, many in the crowd were nodding along, desperate for any explanation that absolved them of responsibility.

"This is ridiculous," I said, my voice cutting through the murmurs. "This is a viral infection, not divine punishment. And those who followed preventative measures have remained healthy—"

"Silence!" Nathan's Alpha voice boomed through the hall, making several wolves flinch. "You forget your place, Julia White. Your modern ideas have divided our pack, weakened our bonds. The Goddess demands unity and faith, not your human science."

I opened my mouth to retort when an unexpected voice spoke up.

"Actually, I have data that suggests otherwise."

My brother Eric stood, tablet in hand, his expression unusually serious. A collective gasp rippled through the crowd.

"I've tracked the infection rates," he continued, projecting a graph onto the wall screen. "Of the one hundred and twelve pack members who followed Julia's protocols, only seven have fallen ill. Of those who didn't..." He swiped to the next slide. "Seventy-eight percent are now sick."

Shocked whispers filled the room. Nathan's face flushed with anger.

"Numbers can be manipulated," he spat. "This is about faith, not statistics."

"Perhaps," came the gravelly voice of Oliver, our eldest pack member and spiritual advisor. "But if there is doubt, there is a way to resolve it." He stood slowly, his ancient frame commanding respect even from Nathan. "We must seek direct guidance. I propose we conduct the Moonlight Revelation ceremony at the Sacred Grotto tonight."

My stomach dropped. The Moonlight Revelation was an ancient ritual where accused pack members stood before the moon in judgment. According to tradition, the Goddess would either bathe the innocent in her light or turn away from the guilty.

Nathan's smile was predatory. "An excellent suggestion, Elder Oliver. Tonight, at midnight, we will let the Goddess herself judge whether these modern methods are blasphemy or blessing."

---

The Sacred Grotto was a natural amphitheater in the forest, a half-circle of stone with a pool at its center that reflected the moon when full. Tonight, the moon hung heavy and bright in the sky, its light filtering through the canopy to illuminate the gathered pack members.

I stood at the edge of the pool, my heart hammering against my ribs. The ceremony had been rigged, of course. Nathan had positioned me facing west while he stood east – ensuring the moonlight would fall on him, not me, as the moon ascended.

"Moon Goddess," Nathan intoned, arms raised dramatically, "we come seeking your wisdom. Show us who has honored your ways, and who has defied them."

I kept my expression neutral, though Kaia snarled within me at the manipulation. The choice before me was impossible: accept defeat and abandon the medical protocols that were saving lives, or openly defy pack tradition and lose what little support I had left.

Oliver approached, carrying a silver bowl of water from the sacred spring. "Each shall drink and speak their truth," he announced, offering the bowl first to Nathan.

Nathan drank deeply, then spoke with theatrical sincerity. "I have always honored our traditions, put our pack first, and respected the ways of our ancestors. I seek only to preserve what makes us strong."

Oliver nodded and turned to me, extending the bowl. I accepted it with steady hands, feeling the weight of dozens of eyes.

As I raised the bowl to my lips, I noticed something odd – a shift in the wind, causing the tree branches above to sway. Suddenly, a shaft of moonlight broke through, illuminating the water in my hands with silver radiance.

Gasps erupted from the crowd. This wasn't supposed to happen – the light should have favored Nathan according to how he'd arranged our positions.

I drank from the shimmering water, its coolness spreading through me as clarity followed. I knew what I had to say.

"I honor our traditions and our Goddess," I began, my voice stronger than I expected. "But I believe she gives us minds to learn and hearts to heal. My modern methods aren't a rejection of her wisdom but an extension of it. The moon doesn't fear knowledge – she illuminates darkness."

As if in response, the moonbeam widened, bathing me in silver light while leaving Nathan in shadow.

"Look!" someone cried. "The Goddess favors her!"

Nathan's face contorted with rage, but before he could speak, Oliver stepped forward, his weathered face thoughtful.

"The Goddess has shown her will," he announced. "Julia White's healing work may continue with the pack's blessing."

A mix of murmurs – relief, surprise, and some discontent – rippled through the crowd. Nathan's supporters looked confused, while those who had followed my protocols nodded in validation.