Page 54 of The Wolf Moon

As Caleb moved to head out, he reached out as though by habit towards Diana who quickly stepped just out of reach. Caleb paused, tensing his outstretched hand into a fist, and turned away before leaving without another word. I looked after him and then back to Diana, feeling my own heart twist at the sight.

“I know,” Diana said with her own pain in her voice to whatever thought must’ve crossed my face. “He just needs to wait a little longer…”

With Roman and Caleb meeting with the brother pack visitors, I was left back to the familiar guest room within Diana’s home. In the night, I thought I could hear her quiet cries which broke my own heart listening to, but I reassured myself they would be okay once Caleb knew why his mate was keeping her distance.

I was restless. Were the packs demanding that Roman pick another Queen Luna right this moment? He wouldn’t tell them of me until I was fully shifted, as he’d said so many times before, so what kind of answer would he be giving them in the meantime? I rolled over in my bed, uncomfortable.

Maybe I could just go eavesdrop a little…

I shouldn’t. I had already done one thing to anger Roman tonight. I shouldn’t add another. I hesitated, but then reached out for him tenderly across our mate bond. I couldn’t feel him. He was blocking me again.

I sat up sharply. This meant he wouldn’t know I was nearby if I did eavesdrop. I laid back down. I really shouldn’t. Honestly, how much could I get away with in one night? I rolled over with a sigh. I couldn’t hear Diana anymore. She was probably deep in slumber by now. I could just go peek, just for a moment…

I flung myself from the bed and began to make my escape. No one stopped me as I snuck out of the house, making my way towards the King’s Corner. I had no doubt that’s where they would be. I’d gone there plenty of times to learn how to sneak around, too. Besides this, I was Queen Luna, and the entire Trinity pack knew this. So I didn’t have to sneak around if I didn’t want to.

I approached two of the lycan guards; Ben who was Deb’s mate and Thomas who was without a mate so far. They nodded to me as I entered without a word, not making any move to stop me as I expected. Roman probably hadn’t thought I would come. He would learn one day, I’m sure.

I was a lot sneakier once inside the building. While I didn’t mind pack members seeing me, I didn’t want any non members to announce my presence. I went the back way towards where a private entrance to Roman’s office was. I carefully opened it to find no one within, but I could hear Roman’s voice in the distance.

In the room adjacent to this one was the large table room Roman took me often to teach me about the world we lived in. The wolves were in there, speaking with vigor and full of dark emotions. I carefully approached the door as quietly as possible, listening intently as I did so.

“I don’t believe you,” A man declared sharply. “Why wouldn’t you send word of what happened if it was that simple? Lillian lost the challenge? And the challenger died as well? It’s a ridiculous claim.”

“It’s a true claim,” Beta Caleb stated angrily. “There is no Queen Luna of this pack. How many times does your King have to tell you this?”

“Then pick another.”

“I won’t,” Roman said darkly. “It was a foolish thing to do in the first place and a wast

Twenty Three

Chapter 22

Ididn’t know where I was running to until I was already there. I collapsed just in front of the hidden entrance to the temple, pulling on it desperately before climbing down wildly. I stumbled as I tore through the passageway, knocking over preserves of food, and pushed forward anyway.

I ran into the temple, straight towards the stage before the row of pews, and turned blindly. I couldn’t see her. I lifted my hands to my head in a panic, my chest rising and falling before I cried out.

“Cynthia!” I yelled, feeling like I had run out of time completely. I forgot about keeping quiet. I couldn’t think of anything beyond my panic. “Cynthia!”

I felt her hand on my shoulder before I saw her and turned blindly to bury myself into her arms without even taking a moment to glance at her. It was similar to how I would do my own mother in my most desperate of times. I felt her hand stroking my hair down to my back and over again as I stood shaking in her grasp.

“I can’t stop it,” I finally said, shaking my head back and forth.

“You can,” She answered softly.

“I can’t. I’ve seen it. Even now, after everything, he’s going to kill them all,” I lifted my head, looking into those dark sable eyes that were wise with knowledge I couldn’t dream of gaining. She grasped my face in her hands delicately, peering at me adoringly as though I were her own child. It comforted me.

“You have to be patient, Mila. The Hunter’s Moon is still months away,” She reminded me easily, patting my face before grasping my shoulders and rubbing them gently.

“It’s so close,” I denied her logic, the anxiety biting at my soul fearfully. “I won’t be able to stop it. I can’t.”

“You can,” Cynthia continued to argue against me warmly. “And if you can’t, then so be it. This cycle will end and perhaps a new one will begin, don’t you think?” I was struck by her words, as though she had heard Diana speaking to me just a few hours before in the lake. I was also struck by how, despite her past seemingly desperate pleas for me to help the werewolves and humankind, she suddenly didn’t seem so bothered by my own ideas of failure.

“I don’t want this cycle to end,” I frowned unhappily, much calmer now in her presence than before. I turned to look around briefly, noticing the cool emptiness of the temple, as though she hadn’t expected me at all. “You didn’t know I was coming?”

“I was speaking to the Crone,” Cynthia admitted simply, lowering her hands from my shoulder to her sides. Something seemed off about her, but I couldn’t pinpoint it.

“When you say speaking…” I hesitated, remembering Diana and I calling to the Crone in the night. Was it different for oracle wolves? Could they hear directly from the Goddess themselves? I wasn’t an oracle wolf myself. I had lied about it to protect Cynthia since the beginning, even though I did see visions… but maybe that had been a onetime thing. I didn’t ever hear any Goddess speaking directly to me.