Desiree

We had finally graduated, and it was time to move on. I knew it would be hard to say goodbye to my friends, but I knew I did not intend to hang around anymore. Janet, my best friend, was going to miss me the most, and that was why I decided to tell her at the last minute so she wouldn't do anything to spoil my plans. I had enough of my mother's mate. I couldn't take it anymore. The fact that she chose to stay with the asshole made her seem weak to me.

I could not understand someone as beautiful as her, the daughter of the former Alpha could stoop so low to staying with Rob the slub. He started beating her three months after he claimed her and never stopped. That was seven years ago. I tried to convince my mother to leave him, but she was too scared to be alone.

Everyone knew what was going on, and people chose to look away. The man did not only beat her, he also cheated, and he was not discrete about it too. I did not like him, and the feeling was mutual. He started beating me up too, and my mother never defended me. Instead, she would beg me to keep my head down.

The man was a coward. Rob must have felt intimidated by my mother and me. He was a Zeta that my mother chose to help her cope with the loss of my father, the former Beta of our pack. I guess he came short and started messing up to compensate for it. I had saved a lot of money, enough to take me far away from our pack and settle elsewhere.

I rushed home after graduation to pack my stuff and prepare for the graduation party. I needed to spend time with my friend before I leave and I believed the best way to do so was to spend time with her at the party. I had to avoid Zeta Rob the slob, so I needed to be very discrete. I was very unfortunate when I got home because I found the asshole beating my mother. He was carrying something, and she was trying to prevent him from taking it. When I saw what it was, I was in shock. If I had gotten my wolf, I would have shifted and killed the bastard, but I was just seventeen, I still had a year or two to go before my wolf came.

Rob had beaten my mother beyond recognition. I ran towards them, and she tried to stop me from approaching.

"Run, Desiree!" she screamed, but I wouldn't listen. That was all I had. The man had found my stash of cash and carried it. He punched her in the stomach and ran out of the house, leaving my mother on the ground. I ran to her to help her, and all she could say was she was sorry.

I was crying. It wasn't because of what he had done to her, but because the bastard had messed up my plans. That was my ticket out of the hell we were all living in, I worked hard to save that money, and he had just stolen it. I left my mother on the floor. I hated her so much for bringing Rob upon us. There were times I wished she had gone instead of my father. She was too stupid and weak to protect both of us. I left her and decided to dress up and go to the party.

I felt numb while dressing up that I knew I looked underwhelming. I had to go somewhere. If I stayed, I would break down. I just graduated, I couldn't let my mother's bad choices mess my day up. She didn't even have the decency to show up at my graduation, and I was valedictorian. I doubt if she knew anything about my life.

"Desiree," my mother's shaky voice said to me, standing at the door of my room. I turned to look at her, she was already healing. That was the only thing she was good at, healing her physical wounds, but I also noticed that she wasn't healing as fast and as well as she used to.

"How was the graduation?" She asked, and I looked at her with so much hurt.

"Mom, I want your husband out of my father's house. Both of you should find another place to stay. My father left this house to me, and I think I have accommodated you and him enough." I said to her, and she was stunned.

I would have left the house for her because I intended to leave, but now that he had taken my money, I had to make do of what I had. I was turning eighteen in some months, which meant I had the right to do just that. I did not love my mother because she did not love herself. She didn't care enough to want what was best for both of us. She brought Rob into our lives and did not summon the courage to leave him when she realised he was bad for both of us. When he started to beat me, she should have walked away, but she stayed. She didn't care for my well-being. I did not need to care for hers.

"I need both of you out before my birthday, and I never want to see or speak to you again,"

"Honey, he was my mate too," she protested, sounding hurt.

"You have sold everything he left you. This is all I have, and the only reason you couldn't sell it was because of the clause in his will. Your new mate is a thief and an asshole, and you indulge him. I do not need a guardian anymore, so I am telling you now, I need you out of my house.

"Sweetheart," she said, but I wouldn't listen. I walked past her and left the house. I hoped she took my warning seriously because I wouldn't hesitate to kick her out when the time comes.

My father had left us a lot of money. My stupid mother had squandered it all. I dreaded what the future held for me. Unlike the past when the Moon Pack was thriving, things had changed. War had left our lands desolate and impoverished. We now lived in a society where the rich was very rich, and the poor was very poor. The rich people were the Blood Pack. They were the victors, while the Moon pack were the poor ones. We wore blue crescent moon badges to separate us from Bloods. We had a separate school, hospital ad social infrastructures from the Blood pack members, and we lived to serve them, which was why I wanted to leave in the first place. Thanks to my mother, I now needed a new plan. Surviving in my part of the world was not easy especially if you were on the losing team.

I walked to the party venue in tears, hoping the nightmare of my life would end.

I arrived at the party and everywhere was bubbly. Janet spotted me and brought me a drink. I collected the soda from her and gulped it down. She led me to the dancefloor, and we began to dance to the music while the light flickered and changed colours giving me the false feeling of being alone in my private world.