Chapter 203

Then, the truck began to float, and I shrieked.

“Put it down. I’m still on it!”

Someone nearby scoffed. “Then get the fuck out of it like everyone else, you dumb ass!”

Before I could reply, the truck flipped over and dumped me out. I landed with a hard thud on the ground and a cry of pain. I felt my arm crack. Maybe it was broken. It hurt so much that I could barely see straight.

“You can't treat me like this! Candido, help me!” I looked around. “My leg! My arm!”

I grabbed it, looking around, but Candido didn't show up. I didn't hear his voice. I didn't even see him, but I saw the rest of the caravan limping through the narrow passageway of the gorge as I saw it, I realized exactly what she meant when she said it was way too narrow for anyone to get through. She had been right and that only made me angrier.

She was suspicious. She kept showing me up. She kept taking away all the attention from me and making me look bad in front of Candido.

But the fact that we were at a gorge like this was even more suspicious. If she knew that there was a gorge here, she should have tried harder to make us change course. How had she even known that this gorge was so narrow? She had to be the reason why we were headed this way in the first place. This all had to be a trap to kill us or to get me killed.

My heart lurched at the thought. Maybe the moment on the truck had all been a setup, a test. Maybe she had been planning to get me killed this whole time. I couldn't let her be alone with Candido and the rest of Blue Moon. I couldn’t let her poison them against me anymore. I couldn't let her be the reason why Candido could no longer see me as his luna. I was going to make her reveal herself as a traitor. I was going to be luna at any cost.

I was going to be with Candido no matter what it took.

I got up and hurried after them as the jeeps and trucks started to drift towards the opening. I got just past the opening as the jeeps and trucks were stacked at the mouth of the gorge and seemed to be melted into a solid wall. I stumbled forward, cradling my arm to my chest as it continued to throb.

Someone above me snorted. “Seems like your leg is just fine.”

I looked up, but I didn't recognize the vampire. He looked like he had just come to the battle since his clothes were so clean, so I guessed he was part of Peter's battalion. His smile was vicious and mocking.

“Are you really related to Princess Raven? You're nothing like her.” He snorted. “Could you imagine Princess Raven? My leg!”

He wailed, mocking me. “Candido, help me!”

Another man laughed. He looked to be dressed the same way. They had the exact same face.

“I mean, they look alike, but you know Princess Raven's got a little more heart than most.”

They dropped down beneath the shadow of the ledges they’d been occupying. Neither of them stopped to help me up. Instead, they eyed me.

“Looks like the Lieutenant doesn’t want you dead,” one of them said. “Better keep up. We’re not in the business of carrying people who make it their business to pretend to be injured.”

They walked past me towards the rest of the caravan and left me to struggle to my feet and follow. I heard Estella panting just ahead of us, seemingly waiting for them. She looked even paler. Light rippled across her skin

“How much time is that wall going to buy us?” Estella asked.

“Not enough. What do you have in mind?”

“Cillian–” She swooned a bit and got her bearings again her entire body started to tremble.

One of them darted forward. “You need to—”

She swatted his hand away. “Help the others. I can stand. I can fight.”

She leaned against the rock and pulled out a mirror. “Cillian, the plans have changed.”

“What happened?”

“We were forced into the gorge.”

“How the hell—”

“It doesn’t matter right now. Can you give us an opening near my location? Is His Majesty around?”

Cillian sighed. “You look like hell.”

“I feel like it, but I'll be fine as soon as I get some rest. Is it possible?”

“I'll talk to His Majesty and get back to you. Take a potion, rest if you can, and keep moving. The further into the gorge the better. Keep your mirror handy.”

She nodded and put her mirror in her breast pocket. She looked up and took a firm grip of her rifle, using it as a walking stick. I wanted to push her and make everyone see exactly how unfitting she was I wanted to make her confess about trying to steal Candido from me trying to take my place.”

“Let's keep going we can't afford to stay here long,” she panted. “We head further into the gorge. As far west as we can and–”

I pushed onto my feet and stormed towards her. Someone blocked my path.

“You're the traitor! That's the only way to explain it, and —”

“No one has time to listen to you,” Falcon said. “If you don't shut up—”

“I don't have to listen to you! And I'm not wrong!” I turned back to look at Estella who looked like she might pass out at any minute. “How did she know we were heading to a gorge when no one else did? She said earlier that she’d be the only person who was going to survive! What’s to say that this isn’t a part of that plan to kill us all, too?”

I glared at her. “She might be a werewolf, but she's on the side of the vampires!”

“In case you’ve forgotten,” someone said. “The only reason you’re alive right now is because of a vampire.”

I glared at the man. “Candido is stronger than you think. If she wasn’t poisoning him, then–”

Falcon stepped towards me her fist raised as if she was going to punch me.

Then, Estella said, “Enough. We don't have time for this. We have to keep moving let her stay there and rant all she'd like, but the rest of us need to get moving.”

She turned away from me. “Starlight, June, get who you can on carrying those who can’t walk. Link up with Moth to get us some surveillance of the area. I want at least a mile in all directions…”

I stopped listening to the orders she was giving as I looked for Candido. Candido would believe me. Candido wouldn’t let these traitors treat me like this. I could see people further down the path where Candido was already moving ahead. Falcon looked like she would rather punch me than listen to Estella, but she turned and followed the rest of the caravan helping someone else stagger after the rest of the group. I couldn't believe them. I couldn't believe that Falcon would call herself a member of Moon Shadow and side with Estella when it was so obvious that this was all her fault! It was so obvious that she was tainting everyone’s mind against what they knew was right. Against me. This was all a plan. I bet she hadn't even been sleeping on the truck.

I should have pushed her harder. I should have made sure that she had died and sent that man right after her. He turned back to look at me with narrowed eyes and I glared right back at him. As soon as I had another chance to get rid of him. I would.

“She shouldn't be armed,” I hissed. “None of them should be they were all traders, as far as I can tell. At any time, they can turn their guns on us and kill us all.”

Why couldn't Candido see that? Why could no one see that even though the vampires were helping us for right now, they could turn on us at any time?

“You know, you have a point,” someone said, coming up to me. “I didn't recognize him, but from what he was wearing, he was a member of Moon Shadow.

Finally, someone who understood! Finally, someone who was actually loyal to Candido and me, the future luna.

“It's good to see that someone isn't taken in by all of her scheming. Everyone knows that I'm supposed to be luna, that I'm Candido's mate. I’m made for Candido and she's made all these people doubt that just by showing up! Who cares if they knew each other when they were kids? Who cares that she's a healer or whatever she's been in the vampire world all this time she's nothing more than a traitor.