The Hidden Luna

Chapter Twenty

Werewolves didn't have normal funerals. There was no priest, no eulogy, no coffin, or headstone. They didn't wear black to mourn the loss of life, instead, they wore silver as a symbol of faith that the fallen would be guided into the afterlife under the power and protection of the moon. Werewolves didn't believe in a specific god or goddess, but they did believe in the power of the moon. Although he was bitten and not born into this world, Scarlett hoped Zion believed in the moon.

Asher stood by her side, silent, as they watched the flames of the pyre flicker in front of them. Zion's body was wrapped in silver cloth, lying in the middle of the flames, enveloping him. Tears streaked her face and at this point, Scarlett couldn't tell if they were solely from the sadness she felt or if it was from the heat and smoke drifting in front of her face, stinging her eyes.

Even long after the flames died down and the rest of the pack left, Scarlett stood there, watching. She couldn't believe he was gone, that the last time she had seen him, they had gotten into a fight. How long after she left was he murdered? If she had stayed longer, could it have gone differently? Scarlett shook her head; she couldn't think like this right now. Scarlett needed to focus on finding the killer, so that this could all be over and nobody would die because of her.

"Scar," Asher said gently, placing a hand on her shoulder. "It's over."

Scarlett turned to Ash, her eyes feeling dried out, her tear ducts all tapped out. "Do you think this is my fault?"

"What?" Ash questioned, cupping her cheek, forcing her to look him in the eyes. "Scar, no. None of this is your fault."

"What if he was too upset about the fight to defend himself properly?" Scarlett asked, her voice sounding nasally from all the crying she had been doing.

"Zion was a good fighter. But Scar, he was completely outnumbered," he kissed her forehead and then took her hand. "Let's go back to the house. We will figure this out, together."

***

Scarlett attacked the punching bag, trying to unleash all the anger she was feeling. Which wasn't too hard seeing as another full moon was coming up soon and her emotions were cranked up to one hundred. Scarlett punched the bag with all of her strength and it went flying off the chain that strung it from the ceiling.

There was a knock on the door and she whipped around to see Lilith standing there. Scarlett tightened her ponytail and let out a sigh. "I'm not in the mood right now, Lilith."

"I know," she replied solemnly. She took a few hesitant steps into the room, fiddling nervously with her fingers. "I just wanted to apologize. I didn't treat you with the respect you deserved when you first came here, which was especially shitty of me given everything you've been through."

Scarlett's eyes widened, surprised at her apology, but even more surprised that she seemed to mean it. "Thank you." She said finally, ensure how to respond.

Lilith tucked a piece of her blonde hair behind her ear and then nodded her head. "I know I'm the last person you'd want to confide in or even be friends with, but I just wanted to say that I'm here for you, if you need to talk. There aren't many girls in this pack, so I know how lonely it can get."

When she didn't respond, mainly because she didn't know how to, Lilith started for the door. Just as she reached the doorframe, Scarlett said, "Asher, Carter and I were going to have pancakes for dinner. They were Zion's favourite so we were going to have them sort of in honor of him, I guess. Maybe if you aren't busy, you can have some with us?"

Lilith offered her a small smile. "That would be nice."

***

Scarlett went back to her and Asher's room after dinner to get changed for bed. It went pretty well; Lilith was nice and was actually kind of fun to talk to. As she rummaged through her duffle bag to find her mom's cardigan that she wanted to wear to cling on to some sense of comfort, her hands stilled on a picture of her and her mother in a forest trail. Scarlett had still been a baby at the time and she held her in her arms. She looked exhausted but her smile was filled with love, her dark hair thrown up into a messy bun, and wearing oversized flannel with some ripped up skinny jeans. God, she never realized how young she looked when Scarlett was little. She smiled as she stood up to place the picture on the nightstand, wanting to keep it close to her.