Rejection on the Full Moon (Rejection Series) Chapter 116

[Gem? Geminie, can you hear me?] I groan as a voice fills my head, the effects of the wolfsbane finally gone and my body well rested and ready to escape.

[Geminie, darling, where are you?] Ariven! It is his voice reaching out to me. Bolting into a sitting position, I feel tears of happiness fill my eyes, an entire week of not being able to communicate with him taking its toll on me as the mate bond throbbed, needing the touch of my mate.

[I'm here, baby. I've missed you.] I call out, forcing myself not to cry. I want his warmth, to be held in his arms and hear his heartbeat beneath my ear as I lay against his chest. I need to have his scent envelope me, remind me I am safe.

[Gem, where are you?] I can hear the desperation in his voice, the pain of being separated from me without any contact clear as day. My heart breaks, wanting to rush to him and fall into his arms.

[Underground. Lupus made a base by the pink lake I told you about.] I answer, giving him a general direction where the entrance to the base is. I hear my mate curse into the link, asking to wait a few minutes to talk with the others before our link goes silent, but this hum of the mate bond is stronger than it has been the last seven days, making me feel complete with the small interaction.

[Geminie?]

[Still here, Ariven.] He sighs, and I can just picture the tension of not knowing where I have been these days seeping away.

[Mika, Lace, Amberle and Dominic sent their best to scout the area, we will know more within five minutes ,and be there at latest in thirty minutes. Do you think you can escape?] Ariven fills me in and I smile, seeing Mira and Abigail outside my door with scared eyes, as they look back and forth down the hall.

[Yes. I'll be bringing a few wolves with me too.] I reassure him. Hearing his deep familiar chuckles sends my heart fluttering.

[Why does that not surprise me? I'll see you soon, my darling. I love you.] I smile, closing my eyes to regain my composure.

[I love you too, Ariven.] I reply before the link ends. We have thirty minutes to escape, and escape we must. I have no idea what Abigail and Mira will face if we are caught. The door opens slowly, and I rush to the sisters waiting for me, their fear seeping into the air.

"Calm yourselves and take a deep breath. Your fear will give us away," I calmly explain, keeping my senses on alert for any chance of being discovered. The girls do as I say, their bodies relaxing with each deep breath they take until Mira looks at me, her eyes holding excitement, and I smile back at her.

"Lead the way, hun." I motion for Mira to take the lead, making sure not to touch and rub my scent onto the two. If by chance they get caught or questioned, not having my scent on them will save the sisters from being punished. We walk down the tunnel in silence, Mira in front, Abigail in the middle, and me taking the rear, our steps quiet as we each listen for an approaching wolf so we can hide quickly. Suddenly, Mira stops just before we are meant to turn right, turning to look back at me with panic in her eyes. Ready to ask her what's wrong, I smell the familiar scent of Lupus and instantly grab the girls, making sure they stand flush against the dirt wall of the tunnel and activate my power. A dirt wall covers the three of us, the sisters thankfully staying silent as footsteps approach our hiding spot.

"What do you mean they are marching towards us!" Lupus growls, slamming his fist into the wall I have made. Mira winces in fright, and Abigail covers her mouth, trying not to say a word while I focus hard on keeping the wall solid and unshakable.

"Someone must have tipped them off to our location. It makes no sense how three days ago they searched just outside our base and gave up, only to be coming back ready to attack," A voice answers, his voice nasally and small. I smirk, thinking of my mate and our allies coming to destroy Lupus and his army.

"Your Majesty!" A she-wolf calls out urgently, her rapid footsteps stopping just outside the wall. I hold my breath, making sure that Abigail and Mira make no sound while we listen in.

"Your prisoner is gone! We went to gather her per your orders, and her cell is empty!" the she-wolf exclaims. Once again, the wall in front of me is hit as Lupus lets out an angry roar. Mira and Abigail are shaking with fear, but they stay silent. Their freedom from this cruel man is worth more than giving away our hiding spot.

"How did she fucking escape?! She had wolfsbane in her system and should have been weak!" Lupus roars, the tunnel shaking from the power of his anger. Something inside me clicks and I understand why this wolf has so much power and why so many wolves want to bow to him. He is a Royal!

"Sir, I think she had help," The she-wolf voices timidly. A tearing sound is heard followed by the scream of a woman and the stench of Soulless blood. I have a feeling that the she-wolf is now dead.

"Find my Queen now!" He orders, followed by a flurry of ‘Yes Sir' and wolves frantically running around. We wait in silence as I allow a small part of the wall to open up, just enough to see what is happening. Abigail is shaking beside me, so I squeeze her hand, hoping to reassure the she-wolf that everything will be fine. It takes a few minutes for the hallway to clear, many wolves affirming that no one is here and go off searching in a different direction. I count to ten, not wanting to expose our hiding spot so early before lowering the wall and making sure that the surrounding did not look disturbed before turning to Mira who holds Abigail in her arms.

"We need to change our scents," I whisper, my eyes darting around to keep a lookout for any Soulless coming back to recheck this tunnel.

"I know a place. The clothes may stink though." Abigail voices, taking mine and Mira's hands and leading the two of us straight down the tunnel instead of turning right like we were supposed to. The halls are silent as we pass by different doors, some muffling growls and snarls coming from behind the heavy steel doors.

"Those are the Damned, Soulless the King release to wreak havoc on unsuspecting packs," Mira explains and I nod, wanting nothing more than to put those wolves out of their misery and send them to Mother to heal their souls and send them on their way to rebirth. But they will have to wait. Abigail ends our walk in front of a wooden door, using a key to unlock it, and pushes her sister and I inside before following after us and shutting the door. The smell of death and decay reaches me instantly, and it takes everything in me not to throw up what little substance I have in my stomach.

"Sorry about the smell. No matter how much the others assigned to laundry and I try to wash them out, the stench remains." Abigail explains, rummaging through the racks of clean clothing.

"How many Rogues are here?" I ask, curious as the sisters before I do not have the red eyes of the Soulless.

"Per base, there are one hundred Rogues either sold or captured by King Lupus and about three hundred Soulless at a time, give or take. When some reach the Damned state, they are either held back or released into the world to die or wreak havoc. Some Rogues turn Soulless because they lost all hope, and the cycle of having to find Rogues to do the chores or warm the bed of the King and his advisors begins again," Mira explains, taking the shirt handed to her by Abigail and changing into it without hesitation. Abigail sighs as she continues searching until she finds what she is looking for, a large, black hoodie that she throws at me. I gag, wanting to throw it back at my new ally but instead put it on with a grimace and make sure to hide my white hair underneath the hood, allowing part of my face to be hidden. Abigail then changes into a baggy, long-sleeved dress and smiles at me as she motions for us to leave the room quietly.