Turn of the Moon (A Royal Shifters novel Book 1) (25 page)

“G
et ready to go,” Seraphina whispered.

I got into place with Sebastian at my side, and Tyla alongside Micah. There was nothing but a wall of trees in front of us, but about a half mile through them was Bailey. I was so close. Cedric stood off to the side and I nodded him over. “As soon as we’re through the wall, make sure Seraphina is out of sight while you wait on the others. If we get caught inside, they’ll be out here searching. The only job I ask of you at that point is to make sure she gets out. Got it?”

He nodded. “I swear it.”

Holding her hands up in the air, the invisible wall shimmered when she touched it. “Maret is a strong one. Lots of dark magic involved here.”

“Can you get us through?” I asked.

She sighed, her gaze troubled. “I can, but I don’t know if I’ll have the strength to get everyone else in. If I can’t, you’ll be on your own.”

I nodded and turned to the others. “I would never ask anything of you. If you want to sit out, I understand.”

Sebastian stepped up to the wall. “Well, I sure as hell aren’t going to let you go in alone. Someone has to save Bailey.”

“And someone has to save you,” Micah teased, slapping him on the shoulder.

Smiling, Tyla shook her head and joined us. “And someone has to save you from each other. Might as well be me. I’m in.”

Sebastian gazed at her in awe. “Woman, you sure do have a set of balls on you.”

She winked. “What can I say? I like to fight.”

Taking a deep breath, Seraphina bowed her head, mumbling words under her breath. The wind began to blow and I could feel the magic swirling around us. Her hands shook and her face contorted in pain. “Go now, before it’s too late.”

An opening appeared beside her and we all rushed in. When we got inside, the opening closed and Seraphina fell to the ground, out of breath. Cedric approached the wall, his eyes wide. “Where did they go?” I stood right in front of him and he didn’t see me.

“They’re just on the other side,” Seraphina replied. She looked in my direction. “Go, my child.” Cedric helped her to her feet and she stood in front of me, even though she couldn’t see me. “I’m all right. Go.”

Now that we were inside the wall, I could feel the wolves. There weren’t any where we were, but there were dozens where we needed to go. “Our best chances are to split up. This isn’t where I lived when I was part of the pack, so I don’t know where exactly to go. Wherever Kade is, I’m sure Bailey will be close by.”

Micah nodded. “Tyla and I will circle around and come up from the south side. We’ll meet you in the middle.”

Sebastian shook his hand and pulled him in for a hug. “Be safe, brother.”

Micah slapped him on the back. “Always am. I can’t let you get rid of me that fast.” He smiled before darting off into the woods.

Tyla waved back at me. “I’ll be safe too, Whitemore. Don’t worry about me.”

They disappeared off into the woods, leaving Sebastian and me alone. “You ready?” I asked.

“Yep, let’s go fuck some bitches up.”

With it being the night of the full moon, the need to shift would run high. Soon, the Yukons would be heading into the woods to hunt. We needed to get Bailey out before this happened, so when they ventured into the woods, my people would be ready to attack.

Approaching their town square, there was a group of wolves congregated right out in the middle. I studied each and every one of them and recognized a few, but there was one who caught my undivided attention. All I could see was red.

“Whitemore,
stop
,” Sebastian hissed, slamming a hand on my shoulder. He pulled me behind the cover of a tree, his eyes blazing. “What the fuck are you doing? I know you want to go after your brother, but you can’t right now. Think of Bailey.”

“He needs to pay for what he’s done,” I growled low.

“He will. But this as an advantage. Bailey isn’t with him, which means she’s somewhere else.” We watched him disappear inside a building with a handful of other wolves. Bailey wasn’t in there. Her trail was faint, but the closer I got, I could finally sense her.

“Come on. She’s not in there.”

We circled around the building to a slew of other houses. Bailey’s scent grew stronger the closer we got to the main house, but so did Kade’s. My wolf bordered along the surface, desperate for blood. The rage inside me only made him hungrier for vengeance. Breathing hard, I closed my eyes and leaned against a tree to calm myself. Nothing was working. Their scents mingling together was enough to drive me in-fucking-sane.

“Just because you smell them together doesn’t mean anything,” Sebastian whispered. The look in his eyes said otherwise.

There were two men guarding the front of the house and two in the rear. “I’ll take the front, you get the back. We’ll meet inside.”

Sebastian nodded and took off around the house. The men at the front didn’t see me coming and before they could call for help, I snapped both of their necks. Judging by the sound coming from the back, Sebastian had done the same.

The door was unlocked and the second I walked inside, Bailey’s scent engulfed me; she was upstairs. Sebastian bolted through the back door and followed me up the stairs. She had to be in the house, but when her scent led me to the back bedroom, I slammed open the door to find nothing but a few drops of her blood on the bed.

Rage overcame my senses. I didn’t want to think of anyone hurting her, especially my brother. She had been in that room, prisoner to my brother’s sick whims. My own fucking brother.

Sebastian pushed me out of the room. “We need to go. She’s not here. Let’s keep looking.” We did a quick search of the rest of the house and it was clear. Once outside, her trail led us in a couple of different directions. We picked one and went with it. I prayed it was the right one.

There was no one out front guarding the door, but there were two inside. We slipped in unnoticed. Sebastian took the first one out, while I did the other, his unseeing eyes staring up at the ceiling when I dropped him to the floor.

A voice called out from the other room, sparking my hatred even more. “Roman, what the hell are you doing out there?” It was Rollin. I couldn’t even scent him out because I was so focused on Bailey. His footsteps drew near, but before he could reach the door, I kicked it open. It took him a minute to register who I was. And when he did, his eyes went wide in disbelief.

“Surprised to see me, uncle?”

He opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off when Sebastian pulled a knife and sent it flying. It hit home, in the center of his chest, and he fell backward onto his desk. Before he could call for help, I jammed the knife further into his chest, his face contorting in pain.

“That is for my family, you worthless coward. I’ve waited a long time for this.”

Sebastian circled around him and pulled something out of his pocket. “So have I.” I couldn’t see what he had in his hands, but I could smell it.

My uncle glared at me with disdain. “I didn’t want your mother dead. It was you and your father I wanted gone.”

Grabbing his neck, I slammed him down on the desk. “Why?” I shouted.

“He loved her,” Sebastian answered. “I can see it on his face.”

My uncle snarled. “If it wasn’t for Soren, she’d have been mine. He took her from me!”

“And
you
took her from me,” I growled. Ripping the knife out of his chest, I lifted it high.

“Stop,” Sebastian commanded.

Heart thumping, I lowered the knife and glared at him. “What are you doing?”

He stood across from me and showed me the vial he had in his hands. “You’re not the only one who’s been out for revenge. This fucker killed my family too. He needs to suffer the same way they did.”

“What the hell are you talking about? You were part of the Northern pack, Darius’ second in command,” my uncle sneered.

Sebastian opened the vial. “Wrong, you worthless son of a bitch. I’m Sebastian Lyall, sworn protector of Bailey Storm, and son of Waylon and Milena Lyall of the Royal pack. Your time is over.” Rollin tried to fight, but I held him down while Sebastian poured the liquid down his throat and covered his mouth. He tried to scream but he couldn’t open his mouth.

“Was that one of the vials Darius had on him?” I asked.

He nodded. “Let’s see how your uncle likes being burned from the inside out. It’s how he killed your father and my parents.” His body began to convulse, blood pouring out of his eyes, ears, and mouth. Pulling his hand away, Sebastian stepped back and we watched my uncle choke on his last breath. “Someone should’ve killed him a long time ago,” Sebastian grumbled.

I looked at my dead uncle one more time before leaving the room. “I agree, but my father loved him. They were brothers.” When we got to the door, I took a deep breath and opened it. “I’m not going to make the same mistake.”

Bailey

W
hen I walked into the temple, there were candles all around with a pool of water in the center. Dressed in a white robe, my mother stood off to the side with a sad smile on her face and a washcloth in her hands. There was an opening in the ceiling allowing the moon to shine through.

“I need you to drop the blanket and get in the water,” Maret commanded, flourishing her hand toward the shimmering pool.

I peered down at the water. “What’s in it?” I could smell various herbs and perfumes wafting off the steam.

Maret put her hands on my shoulders and I jerked away. “It’s all natural ingredients from the earth. It’ll cleanse you before the bonding and prepare your body for mating. It’s also been known to help with bearing a child.”

Scowling, I stepped away from the water. “Why don’t
you
get in it then? You’re the all-powerful witch . . . you should just mate with Kade. That way, you can have witchy wolf breeds running around.”

She burst out laughing. “It doesn’t work that way, sweetheart. Only wolves can mate with other wolves. Besides, Kade doesn’t exactly do it for me. Now get in the water.”

Standing my ground, I glared at her and refused to move. I knew the pain was about to come before she even opened her mouth. Bursts of light exploded in my mind and I screamed, falling to the ground. It felt like a thousand knives jabbing me all over my body.

“Maret, stop! Please,” Annika begged. After a few more seconds, the pain dispersed and I sucked in a ragged breath. She held me protectively in her arms, shielding me.

Maret pulled her hand back and huffed. “Get her in the pool, Annika. We don’t have much time.”

She lifted me up and walked with me over to the steaming water. “Please, Bailey. Do as she says. I can’t stand seeing you in pain.”

“You should’ve thought about that before you took me from my family.” She flinched and then lowered her gaze to my blanket, gently prying the edges out of my hand. Knowing I had no choice, I gave up and let her unwrap me.

“I’m going to give you some time to gather your thoughts. I’ll be back in a few minutes,” Maret announced. Over my shoulder, I watched her disappear out of the temple. Even with her gone, I could feel her magic oozing all around me.

“Why are you so stubborn?”

“Maybe I get it from my
real
parents,” I spat.

Huffing, she finished unwrapping me and threw the blanket on the ground. When she got a good look at my body, her eyes flashed. “What the hell happened?”