Three Days
Before the Full Moon
Age 22
The rain
fell harder now, a relentless sheet that blurred the world beyond Silverfang
Manor's windows into shades of gray. I stood in the hallway just outside
Elena's quarters, my breath still uneven, my mind spinning with the weight of
her revelations. My mother—a seer, murdered by the Mafia Leader. The pendant—a
key to her power, to the pack's secrets. And Seraphina's mother, a traitor
who'd sold her out. My wolf growled softly, a low rumble of fury that matched
the storm outside, and the pendant at my throat pulsed, its warmth a steady
anchor in the chaos of my thoughts.
I needed
air, needed space to think, to process. The manor felt suffocating, its walls
closing in with the weight of history and betrayal. I pushed through a side
door, stepping onto a covered balcony that overlooked the forest. The air was
cold, sharp with the scent of rain and pine, and I leaned against the stone
railing, letting the damp chill seep into my skin. My mother's voice still
echoed in my mind—Trust yourself. Trust the pendant.—but trust felt like
a fragile thing, a thread stretched too thin.
The forest
stretched out before me, its shadows deep and uninviting, and I couldn't help
but scan the treeline, half-expecting to see those glowing eyes from that
night. My wolf stirred, her senses sharpening, and I felt the pull of the blood
oath—a faint tug toward Darius, wherever he was in the manor. The bond was
stronger now, a quiet hum that I couldn't ignore, and it made me uneasy. I
didn't want to need him, didn't want to rely on anyone, but the truth was
undeniable: I wasn't strong enough to face this alone. Not yet.
A soft noise
behind me—a footstep, barely audible over the rain—made me spin, my claws
extending on instinct. My wolf snarled, ready to fight, but it was only Kael,
his dark hair plastered to his forehead, his green eyes shadowed with
exhaustion. He raised his hands, palms out, a silent gesture of peace. "It's
just me," he said, his voice low, careful. "You okay?"
I relaxed
slightly, my claws retracting, but my wolf stayed on edge, her growl a quiet
warning. "No," I said, my voice sharper than I meant it to be. "I'm not okay,
Kael. Elena just told me everything—about Mom, about Seraphina's mother, about
the pendant. Why didn't you tell me?"
Kael's face
tightened, guilt flashing in his eyes as he stepped closer, the rain dripping
from his jacket onto the stone floor. "I wanted to," he said, his voice rough.
"But I didn't know the whole story—not until recently. I've been piecing it
together, tracking the Mafia Leader's movements, trying to figure out who he's
working with. I didn't want to burden you with half-truths."
"Burden me?"
I laughed, the sound bitter, jagged. "I've been carrying this pendant—and Mom's
death—my whole life, Kael. You should've told me what you knew, even if it
wasn't everything. I deserved that much."
He nodded,
his jaw clenching. "You're right," he said, his voice quieter now, heavy with
regret. "I should've. I thought I was protecting you, but I was wrong. I'm
sorry, Liora."
I wanted to
stay angry, to hold onto the hurt, but the exhaustion in his eyes—the same
exhaustion I felt—softened me. Kael had always been my protector, even when I
didn't want him to be. He'd carried our family's shame just as I had, and I
could see the toll it had taken. "What did you find?" I asked, my voice
steadier now. "About the Mafia Leader. What do you know?"
Kael
hesitated, glancing over his shoulder as if the shadows themselves might be
listening, then stepped closer, his voice dropping to a whisper. "He's in the
city," he said. "New York. I tracked one of his lieutenants to a warehouse in
Brooklyn last night. They're planning something—something big. I don't know the
details yet, but it's tied to the full moon. And to you."
My stomach
twisted, a cold dread settling over me. "Brooklyn," I said, the word tasting
like ash. I'd been there, working at the bookstore, thinking I'd escaped the
pack's reach. But if the Mafia Leader was that close, then nowhere was safe.
"What do they want with me? The pendant?"
Kael nodded,
his expression grim. "I think so. The pendant's power—it's tied to the pack's
magic, to the ley lines that run through this land. If he can harness it, he
can control the pack, maybe even more. That's why he killed Mom. She knew too
much, and she was strong enough to stop him."
I touched
the pendant, its silver cool against my fingertips, and felt a flicker of my
mother's presence—her voice, her strength. "She told me to trust it," I said,
my voice barely above a whisper. "In Elena's room, I heard her again. She said
it would show me the way."
Kael's eyes
softened, a flicker of hope breaking through the guilt. "Then we need to figure
out what it does," he said. "Before the full moon. We don't have much time."
Before I
could respond, a sharp, unnatural howl cut through the rain—a sound that wasn't
wolf, wasn't human, but something else entirely. My wolf surged forward, her
growl loud and fierce, and the pendant flared, its light bright enough to cast
shadows across the balcony. Kael grabbed my arm, his grip tight, his own wolf
rising as his eyes glowed gold. "That's not one of ours," he said, his voice a
low snarl.
The howl
came again, closer this time, from the edge of the forest. My heart pounded, my
senses sharpening as my wolf pushed against my control, desperate to shift, to
fight. I scanned the treeline, the rain blurring my vision, and then I saw it—a
shape, tall and jagged, moving through the trees. It wasn't the creature from
the forest, not exactly, but it was similar—too tall, too thin, its limbs
unnaturally long, its eyes glowing a sickly yellow that cut through the storm.
"Kael," I
whispered, my voice trembling, but he was already moving, pulling a dagger from
his belt, his body tense with readiness. "Stay behind me," he said, his voice a
command, but I shook my head, stepping forward instead.
"No," I
said, my voice firm despite the fear clawing at my chest. "I'm done hiding."
The creature
stepped into the clearing, its movements jerky, unnatural, like a puppet on
broken strings. Its body was a twisted mass of shadow and bone, its face a
grotesque mask of teeth and hollow sockets, but those eyes—those glowing,
hateful eyes—locked onto me, and I felt the pendant burn against my skin, its
light flaring brighter, hotter, until it was almost painful.
Your power
calls to me, it hissed,
its voice a grating echo of the creature from the forest, and my blood ran
cold. It was the same voice, the same hunger. My wolf howled, a sound that tore
from my throat unbidden, and I felt my claws extend, my canines ache as I
fought to keep her in check.
Kael lunged,
his dagger flashing as he aimed for the creature's throat, but it moved faster,
swiping at him with claws that gleamed like obsidian. He dodged, barely, the
claws raking across his arm, drawing blood that mixed with the rain. "Liora,
run!" he shouted, but I couldn't—wouldn't—leave him.
I reached
for the pendant, my mother's voice echoing in my mind: Trust it. I didn't know what I was doing, didn't
know how to unlock its power, but I poured every ounce of my fear, my anger, my
desperation into it, willing it to do something. The pendant flared, a burst of silver
light that shot out like a wave, slamming into the creature with a force that
made the air crackle.
The creature
screamed, a sound that rattled my bones, and stumbled back, its body dissolving
into wisps of shadow as the light burned through it. Within seconds, it was
gone, leaving nothing but a faint scorch mark on the wet grass and the echo of
its scream in the air.
I dropped to
my knees, my breath ragged, my body trembling with the aftermath. The pendant's
light faded, its warmth returning to a soft hum, and I felt my mother's
presence again, faint but proud. You're
enough, she whispered, and I
clung to those words like a lifeline.
Kael knelt
beside me, his arm bleeding but his eyes wide with awe. "You did that," he
said, his voice rough with disbelief. "The pendant—it's more powerful than I
thought."
I nodded, my
throat too tight to speak. The creature was gone, but its words lingered, a
promise of more to come. The Mafia Leader was out there, watching, waiting, and
the full moon was only three days away. I looked at Kael, my resolve hardening,
my wolf growling with a newfound strength.
"We need to
find him," I said, my voice steady despite the fear still coursing through me.
"Before he sends something worse."
Kael nodded,
his expression grim but determined. "We will," he said. "Together."
As the rain
continued to fall, washing away the last traces of the creature, I stood, the
pendant's warmth a quiet promise against my skin. The shadows were closing in,
but for the first time, I felt ready to face them—no matter what they brought.