Marked by the Moon

The Moon Mark

Eliana stirred in the bed, the sheets knotted at her legs as if they were plants. All what she has been doing to calm her nerves and to ease her mind was not working. She was still worried.

She kept on thinking about him and about what happened in the office.

Ryder Blackthorn

The name had been uncomfortable for her, a recollection she hardly recollected. His voice was in her mind from the previous night, suave and resonant, with things he had not said. She disliked the way it was getting her. Tense. Nervous. As though she was a target.

Her eyes remained wide open as she was not afraid.

It was curiosity.

What kind of billionaire CEO inquired about wolves in the interview?

Eliana sat up and went through the welcome package he had dropped into her inbox. It was tidy, well-structured, and somehow unremarkable. She was listed in clear tasks for herself, but there was nothing outlandish in it. Just scheduling meeting times, responding to emails, making scheduling appointments. All looked normal to her even though Ryder Blackthorn definitely wasn't normal at all.

"I think I'm about to lose my mind." She said, massaging her head.

Maybe she was finally getting stressed out.

Then the hot shower and the tea had the effect of making her get back into bed despite the fact that her eyes felt heavy. She slept lightly just before 3 a.m.

This was when the dream began.

She ran. Shoeless. Across a black forest smelling of earth, precipitation, and outdoors. A large moon in the black sky was shining silver-white and casting shadows in motion close by. She heard her heart pounding in her head but did not feel fear.

She was attracted.

The trees separated, and there he was. Ryder. He was standing in front of her unclothed and barefoot. His eyes sparkled with the radiant silver hue. Then she saw it. A symbol on his shoulder. A crescent moon with lines through it. Three lines.

She drew near.

He said nothing. He did nothing.

Yet she felt it.

The space between them was electrified. She felt something old gripping her close. She felt her heart beat too rapidly. She felt hot all through.

Then he spoke to her and she immediately woke up.

Sweat clung to her skin. Her tank top was damp. The fan had stopped. Power outage.

Eliana sat up and probed her neck where she still felt the heat in her skin. She kept still.

There was the smallest scar beneath the collarbone.

Three thin lines resembling a scratch, but on purpose.

Then she hastened rapidly towards the glass in fright. She cleared the misty glass and peered through it once more.

The scar was genuine.

She could not breathe. "What is happening?"

It was not there last night. She would have definitely seen it.

A cold feeling ran down her back even though the room was hot. The symbol resembled the one she had seen in the vision, the one on Ryder’s back, his marking. But now it was on her.

Her phone was buzzing on the nightstand. A calendar reminder.

"First Day – 8:00 a.m. sharp. Please arrive on time."

Eliana gazed at the monitor.

Late? She was late already.

The Blackthorn Tower seemed more frightful in the daytime. She dressed better this time. Skin-tight black pants, a spotless white shirt, and did her best at making her curls straight. She owned only one old handbag which did not go with anything else but was the only handbag she had.

She went up by the elevators to the highest level and was quite anxious. Ryder was not at the desk anymore.

A tall redhead waved at her. “You should be Eliana. I’m Mara, principal assistant of Mr. Blackthorn.”

Eliana extended her hand. "Nice meeting you."

Mara did not ignore it. She simply turned and started walking. “Come. He’s waiting.”

They went into a small room. It was smooth-faced, windowless, and had one long table and two chairs. It was more of a room for questioning than an office.

Eliana’s spine stiffened.

Then the door opened.

He strode in as if he owned the building. Wearing a black business suit with the top two buttons open, his face was grim as a threatening cloud.

His eyes gazed into hers and for a moment they grew darker. As though he saw something. Knew something.

"Miss Cole," he stated nonchalantly. "You look different today."

She blinked. "Am I?"

He approached her, eyeing her curiously. “Did you sleep well?”

She halted. "I had a strange dream."

He glanced aside. "Did you?"

Was it her imagination, or did the room feel warmer? Her skin tingled beneath her blouse where the mark sat. Covered but burning.

She gazed at him. "About wolves...and...the moon."

The breeze felt like a stretched rubber band.

Something flickered in Ryder’s expression. Barely there. But enough.

"I get it," he said softly. "Did you wake up different?"

Her eyes widened.

He knew.

He whispered in her ear. She did not reply. She could not. He reached out quickly and stroked the scar hidden beneath her collarbone.

The sensation was wrong. The sensation was s****l.

He was speaking.

"I told you," he said to himself. "The mark selected you."

Eliana took a step back. “What is this? What’s happening to me?”

He said nothing. “You shouldn’t have been marked. Not now. Not this soon.”

“Marked? Like… branded?”

"Mine," he reiterated, his eyes sparkling. "You are connected to me now."

Eliana sneered in a cruel manner. “This is insane. I don’t even know you...”

"You will."

The door was thrown open suddenly in the midst of the moment. Mara stepped in, anxious. “Sir, the board meeting...”

“Cancel it,” he repeated again, still staring at Eliana.

"Cancel? But"

"Cancel it," he told her. He was certain.

Mara gazed at Eliana briefly, lips compressed, but she went out without speaking anymore.

Ryder stood before her again. "You're looking for some answers. But not now. Not today."

Eliana spoke in low tones. “Then when?"

He passed by the girl and went into another room behind the meeting room. The room was a small private library and was dark with the smell of old books and smoke.

"When the moon is full," he added nonchalantly without turning back. "Then you will see."

"And what then?"

He glanced back over his shoulder. “Don’t run. That will just make the chase more enjoyable.”

Eliana rode the elevator into the basement in silence.

Nothing in this seemed real anymore.

Not the work. Not the daydream. Not the sensation within her. And certainly not the man who spoke about wolves, scars, and the moon as though they figured in some anci

ent prophecy.

But when she stepped out into the street the light fell on her and the spot beneath her blouse appeared vibrant.

She wasn’t dreaming. Not now.