CHAPTER 6
881 Words
I can move my feet again.
They don't have to do it.
Deep down, it feels like something in my chest has finally heard its echo. The pull isn't physical. My gut tells me to go to him and step out into the moonlight, where Darius is just waiting.
"Selene."
Through the fog, Kael's voice is clear and warns. He holds my wrist even tighter. "Fight it."
I whisper, "I'm trying," but it sounds like I'm not telling the truth.
The moonlight shines and lives through the broken door. It feels like warm breath on my skin. My heart rate changes; it slows down and then stays steady with something old.
The outside of Darius smiles.
From here, I can't see his face very well, but I don't need to. His presence is too much for me to handle; he is calm, in charge, and scary.
"That's it," he says in a voice that sounds like silk. "The bond, can't you feel it?"
A squared-off Kael stands in front of me and stops my view. His wolf is close to the surface. "You can't call it that."
He laughs and says, "Are you still acting like you can keep her safe?" Moonbound wolves don't live in packs, and you should know that better than anyone else. "They own packs."
I get cold when he talks because of something inside me.
Belong.
The walls shake like they're mad, and the house hums again, but this time it's louder.
In front of the door, Draven stands still. "You're on private property, Darius."
"This land?" Darius leans his head to the side. "It was left behind long before you took it." "And now it's awake again." He looks right at me, then past Draven. "Because of her."
It's tight in my chest.
Kael's touch on my wrist and palm makes me feel safer. "Don't pay attention to him. He wants to make something happen.
"Is there a resonance?" I ask. "Why?" My voice shakes.
When Draven speaks, he doesn't take his eyes off of Darius. "The moon will see him as a contender if you answer him and acknowledge his call."
I can't breathe. "For what?"
There is no end to the silence.
Thorne says it in a sad voice: "For you."
It hurts more than a blow to say it.
There is a little more space outside for Darius, and the trees seem to lean toward him. The shadows also move out of the way to make room.
He says, "You don't have to be scared, Selene." "I won't make you." "I want you to come on your own."
You're not telling the truth.
The truth about him is pushing against my mind, trying my defenses, and rubbing against my thoughts like velvet-wrapped claws.
The moon comes up again.
Behind my eyes, pain grows.
I scream and hit the ground.
Kael gets to me right away and crouchs next to me, putting his hands on my face. "Look at me," he says quickly. "Stay here." With me.
The moon doesn't care, though.
I see wolves on their knees, woods bending, and bloodlines bending in the silver light. I think of strength, being alone, and a throne made of moonstone and bone.
And down at the bottom—
David.
"No," I gasp. "Get out of my head!""
He answers in a soft, friendly voice. As soon as you crossed the line, you opened the door.
It's really loud in here.
There are cracks in the floor under me, and bright symbols start to appear all around me, spinning in a big circle. Everyone is pushed back by the force.
Everyone but me.
I lift myself up by accident.
Now there is full moonlight which feels like second skin around my body. I don't feel pain in my veins; they're just waking up.
Stress makes it hard for Kael to handle things. "Selene, stop! This is too much!" ”
Draven yells, "She is setting off the full awakening!"
His eyes are now shining gold as he moves closer to the door. He just loses control enough for the animal below to appear.
"Yes," he answers. "There you are."
I move forward.
Kael screams.
The sound cuts through the night and is wild and raw. The bones snap and fur fly as his big gray wolf crashes into the wall that can't be seen between the house and the moonlight.
When it hits, the ground shakes.
I jump, but I don't stop.
Keel snarls, "Selene!" His amber eyes are bright. "Don't cross that line—"
"I do not know how to stop!"""I cry, and my face is wet.
The moon pulls stronger.
Darius puts out his hand.
"Come," is all he says.
I put my foot up.
When my toes touch the silver line—
It gets dark outside.
Everything stops.
Outside.
The wind.
Sweetheart.
Someone or something else comes down. It's heavy, colder, and bigger than you can imagine.
Draven's voice drops to a whisper as he feels scared and amazed.
"Moon of the Guardian..."
The sky is in shadow.
And I can hear an old voice that is neither male nor female in my bones.
** "THE CHOICE HAS BEEN SEEN." **
It makes Darius nervous.
Kael complains.
The moon looks at me.
- Writer
