Chapter 108

Aria

The ache in my chest wasn’t sharp or unbearable, but rather a slow, relentless pulse that spread out through my body like ripples spreading across the surface of water. My head felt heavy, my limbs weighed down, and for a moment, I thought I was still trapped in the darkness that had consumed me for what felt like so long.

And then the world came into focus, and I blinked my eyes open.

The soft glow of the infirmary lights met me, and the scent of antiseptic filled my nose. My breath hitched, memories clawing their way back to me in disjointed fragments. The darkness, the cold. Charles. His voice echoing in my ears. The strange, awful stillness that had gripped my body.

And then… a voice.

It started off distant at first, an echo in the darkness.

“Aria…”

At first, I ignored it—chalked it up to my imagination, a distant dream. But as it moved closer, surrounding me like a gentle hug, I knew it was real.

And I knew what it was without even having to be told.

My wolf.

“I protected you,” she said, her voice like a thousand tiny bells ringing in my ears, the sweetest harmony I’d ever heard—like a piece of myself that had long since been forgotten, buried by time. “You’ll be alright now…”

Even now, as I returned to consciousness, she remained with me. I knew that she would always be there, always remain by my side. It was a little jarring, but also comforting.

And comfort was something I sorely needed right now, as I returned to the waking world and suddenly felt overwhelmed with an onslaught of colors, smells, and sounds—senses that hadn’t been nearly this intense before, but were now like a tidal wave with my wolf fully emerged.

“You’re awake!” Wendy’s voice was like a gunshot to my new ears, and a second later, her warm hands were gripping mine. I turned my head to see her, her face lined with worry and relief. She looked like she hadn’t slept in days. “Oh, thank the Goddess. We didn’t know if…” Her voice trailed off, but her grip tightened on me.

I swallowed against the dryness in my throat. “How long?” My voice came out hoarse, barely more than a whisper.

“Three days,” Wendy said gently. “You’ve been in a coma. Dr. Edward said it was your wolf… trying to protect you…”

Her words trailed off, her eyes widening as it hit her: I had a scent now. Not a human scent.

“Your wolf—”

I simply nodded, cutting her off. But now wasn’t the time to dwell on that. I remembered what happened before I fell asleep; I remembered not only what I had read in that journal, but also what he had done to me.

“Charles,” I murmured, my heart lurching as the memories came flooding back in full force. “Wendy, he… he’s planning on taking over the pack. Not just Moonglow, but all of the packs.”

Her face hardened, and she leaned in closer. “What did he say, Aria?”

I took a shaky breath, willing the words to come. “He… he used something. An artifact. It… it froze me. I couldn’t move. Couldn’t… fight back.” My voice cracked, but Wendy stayed silent, waiting. “He said he had Michael killed. That it wasn’t an accident.”

Wendy’s breath caught, her eyes darkening. “Go on,” she urged.

“He… he wants to isolate the werewolves. Cut off all ties to the human world. He said humans don’t belong here. That I don’t belong here.” My fingers curled into the blanket beneath me as I recalled those harrowing moments, that feeling of helplessness as that strange artifact kept me suspended in time, frozen as he had circled me. “And he’s been drugging Darren’s father for years, but now he found the artifact, and he says he’s going to use it to finally take control.”

Wendy’s face went pale, but her grip on my hand never wavered. “The artifact,” she said slowly. “Did you see what it looked like?”

I nodded. “It looked like a… a pendant. Old. Silver. He said it gave him the power to control even Alphas, and he couldn’t be commanded by the Alpha Voice. That it was thought to have been destroyed a long time ago, but he found it.”

Wendy’s expression tightened. “The Lunar Pendant,” she said quietly. “I… I’d heard rumors about it when I was young. It was said to have been destroyed centuries ago, but if Charles has it…” She shook her head, her voice trembling. “This is so much worse than we thought.”

My eyes widened. “We?”

She nodded. “Darren figured out that Charles had something to do with your coma.”

“Where is he?” I asked abruptly, sitting up despite the wave of dizziness that hit me. I didn’t care about how I felt; all that mattered was Darren.

Wendy hesitated, her eyes scanning my face. “He’s gone after Charles,” she admitted.

All at once, it felt as if my stomach bottomed out. My wolf began to roil inside of me, like lightning flickering amongst jet black storm clouds.

“Charles still has the pendant,” I urged, throwing the covers off of myself and swinging my legs over the edge of the bed. “I have to help Darren. He could be in—”

“Aria, you’re too weak!” Wendy stopped me with a hand on my shoulder and attempted to push me back onto the pillows. “Darren is with Liam. He’ll be alright. You have to rest.”

“I can’t rest!” I shoved her hand away with more force than I knew I even possessed, and Wendy flinched slightly. Guilt twisted in my chest, but I could apologize later. Right now, I needed to go to Darren. “Wendy, you don’t understand. He could use the pendant on Darren. He could make him do… anything. I have to go to him.”

“And what will you do if you collapse halfway there?” Wendy countered. “You said it yourself: you couldn’t fight back against Charles before. What makes you think you can now?”

Because I wasn’t alone anymore. I could feel her—my wolf—stirring inside me, her presence strong and steady like a heartbeat.

“I can feel her,” I said softly, meeting Wendy’s gaze. “My wolf. She’s there. She’ll help me.”

Wendy’s eyes softened, but there was still worry etched into every line of her face. “You don’t know how to shift.” It wasn’t a question.

I shook my head, and she sighed deeply, pushing herself to her feet. “Then we’d better start now. If you’re going to do this, then you need to do it right.”

The cold air outside bit at my skin as Wendy led me into the courtyard. A few pack members lingered nearby, their gazes following us as we crossed through the space. Lucas was among them, bundled up in his coat, and his small face lit up when he saw me.

“Mommy!” he called out, running toward me. He stopped just short, his eyes going wide and his nostrils flaring as he caught my scent. “Are you gonna turn into a wolf?”

“I… I’m going to try,” I said, smiling faintly despite the knot of nerves twisting in my stomach.

Wendy crouched beside Lucas, her hand resting on his shoulder. “Stay here, sweetheart. Let’s give Mommy some space.”

Lucas nodded, his excitement barely contained as he bounced on his heels. “You can do it, Mommy! I know you can!”

I swallowed hard and stepped further into the courtyard, closing my eyes as I tried to focus on the presence within me. My wolf was there, her energy humming just beneath the surface, waiting.

“Breathe,” Wendy instructed from somewhere behind me. “Let go of your fear. Trust her.”

Let go of my fear. Right. Easy enough to say.

I took a deep breath, then another, my hands clenching at my sides. I reached inward, searching for her, and when I found her, it was like opening a floodgate. Her power surged through me, fierce and unyielding, and I gasped as heat flooded through my veins.

The transformation was… strange. My bones shifted, my skin prickling as white fur sprouted across it. But it didn’t hurt. If anything, it felt like a relief, like finally scratching an itch you can’t reach or flipping the pillow to the cool side on a sleepless night.

And it was over in an instant. One moment, I was much the same as before, and the next moment the air seemed sharper, clearer.

When I finally opened my eyes, I wasn’t standing on two legs anymore.

I was on four.

The courtyard was silent except for the soft rustle of the wind. The pack members stared at me, their expressions ranging from awe to outright disbelief. But it was Lucas’s voice that broke through the silence.

“You did it, Mommy!” he shouted, jumping up and down. “You did it!”

I turned my head toward Wendy, who was holding Lucas close, her eyes shining with unshed tears.

“Go to him, Luna,” she said softly. “Go to our Alpha.”