Losing The Light Of The Moon

Reflections of Love...

Chapter 56: Reflection of Love...

MATTIAS

It was late, but I couldn’t sleep—my box was wide open, my wolf was still raging, and I was racked with guilt over Jillie—sitting at the end of my cot, my back strategically turned to block any vision of me as I stared at the tiny note in my hand. I couldn’t bring myself to read it yet, not feeling like I deserved the loving words within it after what Jillie had gone through—what she was continuing to go through, trapped in the clutches of Arturo—the pain and torture that was inflicted on her by him—and by Amelia because of me...

“I know you’re a mess right now—I would be going insane too, Mattias,” Guntur compassionately breathed out, laid out, staring at the ceiling, his tone dispirited as he exhaled out heavily, “I’m here if you need to talk about it some more. I would appreciate being distracted for a bit. I don’t like the silence—it’s giving me too much time to think.”

“You’ve listened to me about Jillie since Amelia left,” I murmured, needing my own distraction from harrowing thoughts for a moment, “It’s your turn now. If I were to guess about these thoughts of yours—you’re worried about your mom.”

“Yep, my Mom-Distress-Signal is going off—growing louder and louder every second we’re in here,” Guntur distraughtly sighed out, “She’s not holding up well, Mattias and she’s getting worse—I can feel it...and I’m not there to assure her and ease her mind. I’m sure dad and Caelus are doing their best—but...”

His words trailed off—and I knew why. Celestia held special bonds with both of her sons—each of them overprotective of her and her heart—and Guntur was struggling, knowing he was the cause of her distress and couldn’t do what he always did when Celestia upset—his special way of reflecting unconditional love and support. Something I would help him do from time to time...

“You aren’t there to find your mom a new worry stone,” I knowingly breathed out, chuckling afterwards, “I still can’t believe your dad and brother have never figured that out.”

Guntur humorously retorted, “I know—but I kind of like they haven’t. It’s our special thing—the one thing that is just between us.” 

Sighing out heavily, he added, “Unfortunately, most of her collection lately has been because of me instead of dad. That’s another thing I’ve been thinking about during all this—things are going to be different when I get home. It’s time—past time—for me to make some changes, Mattias.”

I emphatically agreed, “It’s time I stepped up to my responsibilities too—help us both find our balance as leaders for our pack.”

“Spoken like a true future Alpha,” Guntur chided, “It’s about time—for both of us. You were great today, by the way. I was even impressed with how you reacted to it all—until the end, anyway—but I get it and probably would have done the same thing myself.”  

Guntur fell silent for a moment before thoughtfully saying, “I think Jillian is exactly what you needed, Mattias. Someone to stand by you and inspire you to be the leader I’ve always known you could be. I can’t wait to find someone like that—to find my mate. But right now, I just wish I could let mom know we’re okay somehow, so she won’t worry so much.”

“I wish that too—for all our loved ones,” I sighed out in despair, “And you’re right—my Jillie is what I need—what I want more than anything. She gives me purpose, Guntur. Something I have no doubt you will find in your mate—hopefully soon, if we can ever get out of here. The only downside to that is what you are feeling about your mom right now—the constant worry and concern. I don’t like feeling so helpless.”

Unfolding her note, I finally read the words from my mate—and just as Guntur said a moment ago, it was just what I needed to inspire me to stay strong in my fight...

My love for you continues to grow, Mattias,

especially after the sweet kiss we shared.

I felt everything in that kiss—

Every dream I never thought was possible.

Continue to be strong and resilient, my love.

Just as I will—I will do anything for you, Mattias!

Know that I will always believe in YOU!

We will find a way, together, and I will

do everything I can to find the key to freedom!

All my love,

Jillie

Another note I hated to see disappear, wishing so badly I could keep it forever. As I continued to worry about Jillie, replaying every moment—every devastating emotion reflected in her fearful expression—I desperately hoped any injuries caused by what she had to endure were not continuing to cause her great pain while I continued to read her love note over and over until it disappeared in my hand...

Like Jillie’s other endearing words of love, I tucked them all in my box to hold onto them—a place they would reside forever to be remembered often, especially now—allowing her words to continue to drive and motivate me to keep pushing forward. 

But that feat was made more difficult by my next thought—my hope that Jillie was currently resting comfortably and safe—because I knew where she was more than likely resting—in Arturo’s arms and his bed—and that thought continued to drive me insane—an endless torture for me that I had to somehow set aside instead of allowing it to consume me—to save us all.

Hopefully, the key will be found soon to enable our freedom—Guntur’s bracelet that contained the powerful magic of Tatiana, a bracelet that we could hopefully use to bring us all home...

*************

TATIANA

Soon after drinking my tea, Celestia allowed Umar to take her back to their room to lie down for a while.  Caelus came in soon after, asking if he could look at my canvases, to which I graciously agreed. It seemed Caelus had an appreciation for art as well as we animatedly discussed the different aspects of my paintings. He continued to impress me with his insight and intelligence to be so young—and as always, his endearing heart always shined, further imprinting my sweet Caelus forever upon my heart...

“Hey, Auntie?” Caelus shyly asked, his cheeks reddening slightly, “Could I maybe have one of your paintings? I can wait to see if someone else wants it first if you want.”

“You, my dear Caelus, may have as many canvases from this room as you wish and will not allow anyone to steal your favorite from you!” I lightly admonished, “I’m quite touched that one of my works has captured your eye. Show your Auntie which one of these speaks to your heart.”

Caelus excitedly grinned, hurriedly walking over to pick up his chosen painting, fondly gazing at it before slowly turning it around to reveal another of my wildflower canvases—this one a vast full field of them with many shades of bright colored flowers among the tall green grass.

“I love getting lost in wildflower fields. I’ve always enjoyed the natural beauty held in them,” Caelus enthusiastically replied, “Wish we had one closer to home at Howling Wind. This painting reminds me of the one at Spirit Walker that Guntur and I used to play in with Unc. The grass was so tall, we could lay on the ground, hiding from him—he could never find us. We would watch him, laughing as he started panicking. Of course, when he started getting mad and stuff, we would pop up. But it was pretty fun before it got to that point.”

“It was not fun,” Horacio’s mocking, irritated voice chimed in as he and Umar came back into the room, “I was responsible for you two troublemakers. No way in hell I was going to allow you to make me look bad by losing you on that damn field! I can’t even stand to think about it now—I came close to killing both of you several times!”

“I find that rather interesting,” I giggled, “I believe you picked a similar painting yourself earlier. In fact, you told me that you go there often. Maybe subconsciously, you still go there because you rather enjoyed their little game.”

“Awwww, Unc!” Caelus playfully sang out, “Who knew you could be sentimental!”

“Don’t push it, kid,” Horacio harshly muttered, as Umar chuckled from behind.

I delightedly continued our banter as Horacio’s eyes reflected a slight warning in them, “I believe you are right, Caelus. I keep telling everyone the King of Fury has a soft side!”

“I can vouch for that, Mother has told me several times about this soft side of Horacio’s. Did I miss another opportunity to see it?” Jace humorously laughed out from the doorway, walking in with an elated Constance on his arm, who immediately began looking at the portrait-filled room.

“Nope, nothing to see here,” Horacio harshly returned before flashing a humored grin.

“Oh, Auntie!” she exclaimed, “These are stunning!”

“Thank you, Constance” I pleasantly returned, “Feel free to peruse the room and choose what inspires you, my darling.”  Smiling brightly, I urged, “Caelus and I were about to see if anything else inspired him as well.”

I wrapped my hand around Caelus’ arm, planning to show him another canvas I thought he would like, when my green doors burst open, causing me to take in a loud, sharp breath as everything in the room started spinning and became a blur—though I could sense everyone’s panic—the muffled sounds of their loud, alarmed calls of my name as I felt them close in on me while what I could only assume was Caelus’ bulky, strong arm swiftly come up from behind to catch me—bracing across my back as I fell backwards...

The powerful force of impact from my vision caused a rare occurrence that I would not be aware of until several minutes later—I fainted, blacking out momentarily, although instead of black, I saw a flash of green—followed by images of Mattias and Guntur locked up in tiny cells, then a few conversations held around them playing out, the sound of all the voices so faint I had to concentrate hard to hear what was being said. And there was a beautiful young girl with long blonde hair and stunning blue eyes... 

She was in pain—so much pain—pain caused by—Arturo! That poor girl, what he was doing to her, the abuse he was inflicting upon—her name—it was Jillian—she was being tortured by Amelia as well...but why? And there was a flash image of another woman who looked at Jillian with care and love, but I couldn’t hear her name...who was she and why was she appearing before me now?

The why came soon after—revealing itself to me, sending a wave of shock throughout my mind...I made several portions of the vision replay—paying attention to every single detail of Mattias and Guntur, who thankfully looked well, though the severity and remnants of Guntur’s injury did leave me cause for continued concern for him...but Amelia was caring for him appropriately—for now...

It became more obvious to me that our mission had become a bit more complicated on several levels—and we needed to get to our boys soon—before a possible decision I saw as a possibility on the horizon could be made during our upcoming battle at the Forest of the Vines—but there were several things I needed to have in place first—things that would be needed to ensure our victory...

************

When I regained consciousness, I found myself laid out on the couch in Aruna’s great room, surrounded by several more loved ones who joined us after hearing what had occurred. Sitting up, I described what I had seen, enabling a bit of relief to everyone, but all of us were still concerned about our Howling Wind boys, though I was also concerned about their Alpha—and how he was going to react to my unanticipated revelation...

“Though I wish it had not affected you in such a harmful way, you have no idea the relief your vision has given me, Tati,” Soren gratefully exhaled out, “Allowing us to know Mattias and Guntur are doing alright, though from the sounds of it, Guntur still requires continued care of his head injury—poor boy—I’m just thankful they changed their minds about his fate before it was too late.”

Umar seemed to take a great deal of solace in my vision as well, appreciatively stating, “But they are at least taking care of him—that is tremendous relief to me, and news that will bring Celestia comfort as well. Not to mention, Tati has confirmed what we already suspected and prepared for thanks to her other vision. We will continue to quietly monitor the Forest of The Vines more closely but maintain the appearance of following our same patrol schedule.”

Clearing my throat, I looked over at Soren with a tight grin, reluctantly telling him, “There is something else—a bit of an unexpected surprise—that I should probably inform you of. It seems there is a young woman named Jillian and another woman who is very close to her that, unfortunately, I was unable to identify—but they too need to be a part of our rescue mission. They could both be in very grave danger.”

Nicholas’ protective nature automatically caused his expression and tone to harden slightly, “Are they being held as prisoners as well, Auntie? Who are they?”

“The details are a bit vague, but what I can tell you is that they are both Blood Horizons,” I slowly explained, “and it appears they have been bringing the boys their food trays. I’m not sure about the other woman, but Jillian—she is being abominably abused and tortured—in particular, by Arturo. To the point I worry it may take her some time to recover from all she has endured at his hands.”

“Hopefully not to the point I fear, Tati,” Altalune sympathetically replied, “How old is the girl?”

“She looks to be about seventeen or eighteen, if I were to guess,” I thoughtfully returned, her beautiful face coming back to the forefront of my mind, “and I’m afraid it is as bad as you fear, which makes what I have to say next even more heartbreaking.”

“What you have already told us is heartbreaking and heinous in and of itself, Mother,” Jace exhaled out in disbelief, “What else is being done to her?”

Taking in a calming breath, I reached over to lay my hand on top of Soren’s, comfortingly telling him, “That’s where it is a bit—complicated. It’s not what is being done to her, but what she is secretly doing. You see, as it turns out—Jillian is Mattias’ mate.”

Soren’s aged face appeared to age ten more years as the many fine lines and wrinkles on his face instantly deepened, his brow furrowing, inaudibly whispering, “W-What? This poor girl—she’s my Mattias’—mate?”

I nodded, earnestly continuing, “Yes, and since their arrival, Jillian has been diligently trying to protect Mattias, Soren. She’s quite intelligent—even going as far as to have Amelia place the same mate spell on him that she used on Jace to help prevent their connection from being discovered. In fact, Jillian seems to be continuing to sacrifice herself, brutally utilized by Amelia to torture Mattias for information about your patrol.”

Sighing heavily, I earnestly assured him, “Jillian’s heart is true, Soren, she has told Mattias everything. I see and feel her deep love for him—a love that is very much returned, leaving poor Mattias feeling helpless and distraught because he is unable to help her. I fear for her, Soren—the dangerous risks she’s taking—Jillian may be placing herself in a dire situation, which could lead to a very heartbreaking outcome.”

Instantly infuriated, all the blood ran to Soren’s face, his hands balling into fists as he furiously bellowed, “Those vile Blood Horizon bastards! Assaulting and utilizing an innocent young girl in such a way, much less my grandson’s mate!  And to inflict that kind of torture on my Mattias! Everyone involved in this treachery pays—every single last one, I tell you! Especially Arturo! We need to figure this out quickly before Jillian is placed in even more peril. I will not have that young girl’s life—Mattias’ mate—sacrificed!”

“While I agree, Soren,” I softly urged him, “There are still things that will need to be planned and put in place, but thankfully, for now, I feel Jillian will remain safe until we get to them. And as for Mattias—although he has struggled greatly, he has handled himself quite admirably throughout this whole ordeal—exceptionally in fact. He has proven without a doubt that he is your grandson—the formidable future Alpha of Howling Wind!”

***********

Umar and Caelus were kind enough to fulfill my request of them—linking me immediately after Celestia awoke. I had just finished dressing for dinner, wearing a sheer beige shimmering top with cinched poet sleeves that fell just below my elbow—a matching camisole underneath with black pants with thin lines of satiny black running down the legs.  Quickly putting on the simple diamond earrings as we headed out my door, Horacio and I walked down to find Caelus waiting for us in their doorway, sweetly complimenting me, “You look nice, Auntie. I like how you always sparkle. Unc sure seems to be hanging out with you quite a bit...not that I blame him, mind you!”

“You were doing so well up until that last sentence,” Horacio lightly warned, “Do you really want to lose my top spot as nephew to your brother?”

“You wouldn’t do that,” Caelus laughingly retorted, “I’ve promised to name one of my future boys after you, remember? Carry on your legacy? Can’t do that if I don’t have the top spot, Unc.”

“Point taken,” Horacio muttered, “You’re my only hope, so the spot is yours. Just behave for your Unc, will you please.”

Shaking my head, I kissed Caelus on the cheek, laughing under my breath as I entered the room to find Umar sitting next to Celestia on the window seat, anxiously waiting for me to tell her my news. Reaching into my pocket, I wrapped my hands around the gift I had brought with me—something to ease our Celestia’s mind...

Umar supportively wrapped his arm around her as I told Celestia what I had seen and the state that Guntur appeared to be in—relieved tears instantly fell as a beautiful warm smile crossed her face.

“You really saw him, Tati?” she questioned in awe, “My Guntur is alright?”

Flashing her a bright smile, I heartily assured her, “I not only saw him—I heard him—words that inspired me to bring you this. A sign from your Guntur.”

I pulled my hand out of my pocket, reaching out towards Celestia, who reactively simulated my action, allowing me to place a small white stone in her palm. 

Her eyes widened, causing several more tears to release themselves, streaming down her face as she looked down, stunned for a moment before looking back up at me, breathless as she mouthed out, “A worry stone!”

“A special worry stone,” I grinned, “Close your eyes.”

Following a puzzled look, Celestia did as I asked, immediately gasping out, “I—I see him!”

Umar’s eyes widened, turning to look at me with a gaze full of shock as I affectionately relayed, “Just sharing a tidbit from my vision. I gifted Altalune one as well, so you can see for yourselves they are well.”

“Close your eyes and look, Umar!” Celestia exclaimed, taking his hand in hers, the stone resting between their joined palms as she intertwined her fingers in his, “Guntur is lying on a cot. His head doesn’t look as bad as I feared it would. It’s still healing, but he’s okay! Look! He is even cracking that crooked smile of his!”

I looked at Horacio, who lovingly gazed back at me, both of us beaming at the heartwarming expressions on Umar and Celestia’s faces.

His arms wrapping around my shoulders, Caelus lightly hugged me from behind, leaning down to elatedly whisper in my ear, “Thank you, Auntie! That was a cool thing you just did...I guess you heard Guntur talk about the worry stone thing with mom?”

Turning my head towards him, I looked up at Caelus, “You know?”

His cute boyish grin melted my heart as Caelus silently nodded, bringing his hand up to hold a finger to his lips, letting me know he was well-aware of his older brother’s method of calming their mother—and knew how special it was to them both, never allowing his mother or Guntur to know he knew their truth. Yet another time, this impressive young man endeared himself to me with his own beautiful pure heart...