202
Lucy
In the bustling shopping district of a different witch city, Stacy and I were on a mission to find the perfect shoes for the Crescent Moon Festival. I had no idea what she and David had been talking about for ideas, but she seemed excited. The air was filled with excitement and magic that fizzled on my skin. This city was off-limits to most humans, so there was nothing but supernatural people around. Amidst the array of shops and shoppers, I couldn’t help but smile and wonder if this is the kind of city David had in Blood Moon’s territory.
“This one first!” Stacy said as her driver for the day opened the door of the shop. “I’ve heard so many good things about their spellwork. There’s no need to suffer for beauty!”
I laughed and followed her inside. I didn’t know much about shoes, but I would have been happy with a flat pair of shoes.
All of these shoes had heels that seemed too tall to walk in. It reminded me a little of being back at Blue Moon.
“What are you thinking?” Stacy asked, leading me down the aisle. “I’m always one for a stiletto, but I know you don’t have much experience with heels. How about two inches?”
“How tall is that?” I asked, eyeing a monstrous heel warily.
Stacy snickered and pulled me further along. “That was at least eight. Maybe later.”
She grinned. “Maybe as a surprise for David? I don’t know a man, teenage, supernatural, or not, that wouldn’t like the idea of a woman in sky-high heels.”
My face burned. “Stacy!”
She threw her head back. “I’ll give you lesson. I used to be in pageants, you know? There isn’t a heel I can’t strut in… Let’s see.”
I followed her down the aisle past a bunch of shimmering heels when I felt something. I looked up and noticed a woman watching me. Her gaze was intense, a mix of curiosity and recognition. It wasn't long before she approached, her steps confident and purposeful. I exchanged a puzzled glance with Stacy as the woman stopped in front of us.
"You're her, aren't you?" she blurted out, her voice edged with both surprise and hostility.
I met her gaze, trying to place her face, but I didn’t recognize her.
“Do I know you?” I asked. “I don’t recognize you..”
“You’re Lucy, right?” Another woman came up, and my stomach churned with the thought that they’d ask me about being the Moon Goddess.
But before I could say anything, the first woman spoke again.
“Not much to look at,” she laughed. “Though I guess that was true then, too. Now you’re just a traitor.”
She stepped closer, eyeing my neck. “Getting your mating marks removed, you fucking slut. I can’t believe anyone would still want you.”
My stomach plummeted. I would have preferred them to be talking about being the Moon Goddess rather than anything to do with Matt or Tony. She pulled out her phone, and Stacay jumped in front of me before they could take the picture.
“Excuse the hell out of you,” Stacy said.
“What’s a human doing in Black Heart?” The woman asked.
“What’s a rude wench doing in Blue Rose Boutique?” Stacy asked. “I thought this place was home to the best magical cobbler in the Witch States.”
Their friend emerged from a nearby dressing room, her eyes widening as they settled on me. It seemed I was more recognizable than I thought.
“The nerve of a half breed these days,” One of them rolled her eyes.
“The nerve of random no-name wenches these days,” Stacy said, rolling her eyes. “If you want Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, go put in an application, but leave Lucy alone.”
She chuckled. “I’m sure they’re looking for a bimbo to fuck as they please. They’re under a lot of stress these days, I hear.”
“Did you just call me a bimbo?”
“I call it like I see it.”
My eyes widened as I looked between the two. The woman’s eyes flashed gold, but Stacy didn’t seem worried at all.
“No one gets away with betraying their alpha,” one of them sneered, her tone dripping with disdain. “You make every female werewolf’s life hard when you go against the natural order of things.”
Stacy scoffed. “No one gets away with kidnapping, human trafficking, abuse, rape, and wrongful detainment either. If you read any news besides their bullshit mating announcement, you’d know.”
The other woman scoffed, her expression twisted with a mockery that reminded me of being back in sixth grade.
"What would a human know? She should be honored that they had any interest in a half-breed like here. Women with better families and standing were in line.”
“Let me play you a dirge on the world’s tiniest violin,” Stacy scoffed.
I snickered.
“To think they're calling a half-breed like you the Moon Goddess. What a joke." The woman sneered around Stacy’s shoulder, trying to take a photo of me. “We’ll see what people think when they see how pathetic you are.”
I turned away and caught a glimpse of a familiar face heading our way. It was a member of the Blood Moon Escort. I smiled and turned back. Stacy reached for her wrist, but I put a hand on her shoulder and stepped around her. Though their words were meant to sting, I was unbothered. The tension and fear eased out of me. I wasn’t alone.
David was still looking after me.
“Would you like my right or left side?” Stacy looked at me with a wide-eyed, impressed look. “Maybe we should go outside for better lighting.”
I heard the Moon Goddess laughing in the back of my mind, cackling, and it only made me more determined. The woman sneered.
“It’s not true.”
“I never said it was,” I said. “But you haven’t answered my quest either. Right or left.”
They seemed dumbfounded by my question and I turned to Stacy. Her anger was written all over her face, but I smiled at her.
"Let's go to another store," I suggested to Stacy, my voice even. "There's no point in wasting our time here."
Stacy hesitated and nodded, shooting the women a final glare before turning to walk away. Just as we were leaving, the air suddenly crackled with tension. Before I could react, the three women from before lunged toward us, their faces twisted with anger and determination. It happened so fast that my mind struggled to process the danger.
But then, a group of black-clad Escort operatives appeared out of nowhere, stepping between us and the aggressive women. Protective barriers shimmered into existence between us, and the women shrieked as they were detained.
“Let me go!”
My heart pounded in my chest as I took a step back, my eyes widening with disbelief. Hecate witches in Enforcer uniforms shook their heads, looking at the three women. Stacy hummed and cooed.
“Oh, look at these,” Stacy said. “What about something like these?”
I looked at her surprised. I blinked, torn between shock and amusement at Stacy's casual attitude. The situation had escalated quickly, and now there was a standoff between the protective escort and the would-be attackers.
"Are you two alright?" a Hecate witch asked, her eyes locked on the women who had tried to attack us.
"We're fine," I managed to stammer, still processing what had just occurred.
Why did all the women who wanted Matt and Tony have to be so violent?
The Blood Moon wolves maintained their position, their expressions stern and unwavering. The Hecate witches, on the other hand, were speaking in low, authoritative tones to the attackers.
“You will be detained and barred from Hecate territories on pain of incarceration.”
“Let’s go next door,” Stacy said. “While they handle this.”
“Oh, but Miss—“
“I don’t shop in places where there is riff-raff,” Stacy said, pulling me out with her and past the attendant, who looked really disappointed. Stacy pulled me into the next-door shop within a few moments and led me through more rows of shoes. I could tell she was still upset from the way she muttered to herself, but I felt great.
Maybe it wasn’t exactly ending the fight, but I didn’t back down, and that had to be progress. I wondered if one day I’d be able to say things the way Stacy could.
“You’re… really cool.”
Stacy finally turned to me with a grin with a pair of shoes dangling from her hands. “You’re learning. Pretty soon, comebacks will be second nature.”
Her gaze softened. “Are you okay?”
I nodded. “What are those?”
She grinned and held up the shoes. “Depends on what you think about them.”
I couldn't help but smile back. "They're beautiful."
They looked comfortable and not too high that I thought I wouldn’t be able to walk comfortably in a deep red like blood.
My face burned as I met her gaze. She wiggled her eyebrows. “I may have talked with Lucian too who is over the moon about you wearing a certain someone’s pack colors.”
She wiggled her eyebrows and held them out to me. “Why don’t you give them a whirl?”
I took the shoes and nodded. “I will.”
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