AUTHOR'S POV
Scott was standing right outside the door when Lucas went out of Christina's holding room. He heard everything. Hearing Christina's reasons made him feel nothing but pity on her. "She's sorry?", Scott asked as he stare blankly at Lucas.
"Murderers.. bad people.. they don't say sorry because of their crimes. They only say sorry when they get caught", Lucas walked Scott out of the hotel. "She's a friend, but, this is way too much", Lucas said as he sighed deeply.
Scott could see how much Lucas is hurting for Christina. Overhearing his best friend get too furious on what she just did was something he never expected of him. As a friend, Lucas has always been understanding. Especially about how difficult it is for Scott to accept his Luna. One thing Scott couldn't ferret out, why Lucas haven't asked why Diana didn't turn to her wolf form during the attack. "I'll cast Christina out the clan", Scott said without blinking. "She once saved us after all. So maybe now, we can call it quits. Diana is fine now, that's more important", Scott remembered when Christina drew her blood to attract the attention of a vampire that attacked Lucas and Scott way back when they were young.
"Fair enough.. How's the investigation going?", he asked.
"The bastards beat Diana so hard. Christina ordered them to rape and throw her in the ocean.. She fought back on her own until the last bit of her strength", Scott said as he feel his heart flutter in anger, remembering how Diana looked like when he found her. He couldn't believe that it happened on his watch. "A Nagual came to her rescue", Scott whispered in a serious tone.
"What? Are you sure?", Lucas stopped as his eyes widen in shock. "A wolf under the care of a Nagual?"
"That's what the bastards said. I don't know what's going on, but she's protected for sure." as he put a cigarette in his mouth and searched for his lighter. "A Nagual with a wolf is never better", he added while he check for his pockets.
"Why don't you get some rest? It's 4 am, we can deal with more of this at first light.", Lucas said as he took Scott's cigarette from his mouth throwing it in the bin nearby.
"Sure", Scott said in approval but in his heart, he wanted to see Diana first. He walked down the stairs unsure where to go - to the villa or to Diana's.
"Oh by the way.. the one who invited Diana over? It was me." Lucas said who was standing right behind Scott. Scott looked back and was stunned in bewilderment. He wasn't even sure if he heard Lucas right. "Diana.. Diana Woodsworth was your bride." Lucas recalled recently that the woman under the veil was her all along. Scott was lost for words. He just nodded at Lucas and went on.
Bewildered with the truth, Scott took a while to follow what he just heard. Diana was his bride, all along. As he trudge on the sandy beach where the stars have started to fade, Scott dragged his heavy feet going to Diana's bungalow. He doesn't think he still have a face to show Diana. 'What will I say?', he asked, having it known that Diana left the altar in tears because he never came. That he left her standing alone when she offered genuine friendship. That... what was supposedly a time for her to clear her mind in this beautiful island, became a total disaster leaving her devastated and wounded inside and out.
He stared at the door for quite a while. He was hesitant to knock. How can he look at her on the eyes when he still haven't figured out if he can accept her wholeheartedly? His mind and heart are battling whether chasing his luna is the right thing to do. Suddenly, the door creaked open. His heart stopped, as it fell on the floor.
"Alpha Scott!", Emilia gasped, surprised to see Scott as soon as she opened the door.
"Is Diana awake?", Scott didn't move from where he's standing.
"She left an hour ago. We were trying to tell you but you were busy interrogating the attackers", Emilia explained. "The moment she woke up, she insisted of getting out of the island immediately. Also, she wants me to give you this", she said, showing Scott's lighter. "She wants to tell you to choose to be kind to Christina", she added.
Emilia held Scott's hand as she handed out his lighter. "You've been in grief and anger for so long, Alpha. Maybe, the moon goddess thought that it's time for your heart to beat after being frozen for a long time", Emilia said as she held Scott's arm with her other hand. "Give yourself a chance to move forward. Your Luna is a very nice person, you know.", she said as she leave Scott with her thoughts.
'When I think of Diana, I feel like I'm betraying my dad and myself', he thought. Scott stared at his lighter. He must've dropped it when he changed to his wolf form. He never thought that a battle against yourself is much more difficult than with an actual enemy. He sighed as he graze the engraved moon on his lighter, standing all alone by the door.
DIANA'S POV
Coming to this island may be a mistake. It was supposed to be a quick escape for me to finally make personal happy choices, yet, I got myself into a nightmare in this paradise. My mother's right again. The safest place will always be under her wings. Maybe that's the reason why I'm still with her after all these years. As I walk on the overwater bridge, I noticed something shiny at the corner of the baluster. I picked it up and to my surprise, it was Scott's lighter. How could I forget the moon and the howling wolf? Seeing the engraved artwork, I always thought that this personalized lighter might too important to him.
"Please return this to Scott. He might be looking for this", I handed it to Emilia, before tugging my luggage.
"We should tell him at least that you're going?", Emilia said as she pocketed the lighter.
"There's no need for that", I said as we head onto the dock.
I overheard that Scott was confronting Christina and my attackers. At some point, my heart aches for her. My wounds will heal and my bruises will clear.. but as for her, she tainted her hands with violence and will always live with that reality. For all its worth, I hope she gets what she covets and she'll never do to others what she did to me. "Can you send him a message for me? Please tell him to choose to be kind to Christina.", I told Emilia as I board the plane. As it take off, I left all the heartaches and pain in the small beautiful island that became my paradise for a little while.
The flight was short and breezy, owing it to the young pilot who streamed the clear skies effortlessly. As soon as we landed, I headed towards my car and drive straight home to the Villa Estates. In no time, I arrived before the sun could even brighten up the sky. I stayed in the car for a bit, glanced at the rear view mirror to check the bruises on my face and fix the bandage wrapped on my head. "Welcome back, Diana Woodsworth", I said before opening the car door, and set foot on the soil of our property.