Eighth-Born Luna (Emily and Nathan) novel Chapter 19

Chapter 19

Emily’s POV

“Nathan, did you suddenly decide to go swimming?” Marcus crossed his arms, teasing the most dangerous Alpha here.

Nathan’s face turned cold and angry. He held me tighter.

“Another word, Marcus, and you’ll be feeding the fish at the bottom of this lake.”

Marcus, however, looked completely delighted by the threat.

“Good. Nice to see you’re in a better mood.”

Jessie jumped out of the next SUV.

“Emily!”

Tessa followed close behind.

“Emily, are you okay?”

I blinked at them from Nathan’s arms, my mind still foggy with exhaustion.

“I… think so.”

Relief showed on both their faces.

Nathan stepped out of the freezing water, his movements radiating pure, predatory danger. I held onto his wet shirt. As soon as his boots reached the shore, he set me down gently.

Then he turned to Liam and Marcus.

“What the hell were you thinking?” Nathan growled.

The air seemed tense with his Alpha presence.

“You took three defenseless girls into the human city.”

He took another step and was almost face-to-face with Liam.

“You disappeared for hours.”

He turned quickly to Marcus.

“You, Marcus! I expected this stupidity from Liam, not from you. You’re the one who said the rogues had become more dangerous.”

Marcus’s expression darkened.

“Nathan, I—”

“Enough.”

Nathan’s eyes swept across the lake, taking in the wide-open shoreline, the parked vehicles, and the girls.

“We’re exposed out here. If rogues attack now, we’re sitting ducks.”

He pointed toward the vehicles.

“Everyone back in the SUVs. Move.”

That got everyone moving. Doors slammed, and engines fired back up.

I headed for the second SUV to ride with the girls.

“Emily, you’re coming with me,” he commanded, holding the front passenger door open.

The girls stared at me.

“Get in, right now. We have a lot to talk about,” he said, his voice full of Alpha authority.

My feet moved without thinking. I climbed in, the leather seats cold against my damp skin.

Before Nathan could close the door, Liam showed up at the window.

“I’ll ride with you guys,” Liam said, clearly realizing that leaving me alone with an angry Nathan wasn’t a good idea.

Nathan glared at him.

“No.”

Liam blinked.

“No?”

“No.”

Nathan snapped, his expression completely serious.

“You’re riding with the girls. Watch their backs.”

Nathan shut my door hard. A moment later, he got behind the wheel. The engine started, and the SUV shot forward so fast it pressed me into the seat.

I glanced nervously into the side mirror. The rest of our massive convoy was already moving. Blake’s SUV and Marcus’s cars immediately fell into line behind us, while the heavy security escorts framed our perimeter.

Inside the car, the air felt heavy. Only the engine’s hum and my uneven breathing filled the silence.

At least, until Nathan lost his patience.

“What were you thinking?” Nathan finally asked.

His voice wasn’t loud this time. Somehow, that was worse.

I looked away.

“I wasn’t alone.”

“You left pack territory.”

His grip tightened on the steering wheel.

“Emily, rogues aren’t random drifters anymore. They’re organized. They hunt.”

“We had guards.”

“Not enough.”

The words came out sharp.

For a moment, neither of us spoke.

Then Nathan grabbed his leather jacket from the center console and dropped it onto my lap.

“Cover yourself. You’re freezing.”

“No, thanks. I’m fine,” I muttered.

“I wasn’t asking.”

He gave me a warning look, his eyes glowing with dangerous Alpha gold.

“Your wet clothes are driving my wolf crazy.”

Unwillingly, I pulled the jacket over my legs.

And then I saw it.

The dark hole in the mountain.

The tunnel.

Black.

Deep.

Terrifying.

My breath stopped.

“No…” I whispered.

“What?” Nathan asked.

But the car was already inside.

Darkness swallowed us.

And then, the memories swallowed me.

I wasn’t in the SUV anymore.

I was a little girl again, squeezed in the back seat between my mother and father.

FLASHBACK

It was a dark night.

The smell of my mother’s perfume was in the air.

We were laughing.

Then—the tunnel.

Everything happened in flashes.

A light, too bright.

The sound of screaming tires.

The horrible, metallic screech of metal bending and breaking.

The world spun.

Upside down.

Right side up.

Then a bone-breaking crunch.

And…

silence.

The smell of smoke and burning oil.

I tried to reach for my mom’s hand, but she didn’t move.

Her fingers were cold.

“Mom?”

My voice was young and broken.

No answer.

“Dad?”

I called for him, but there was no answer.

Just the sound of something dripping and the cold wind blowing through the broken glass.

I saw shadows moving outside.

Something with glowing red eyes watching us die.

PRESENT DAY

“EMILY!”

I jerked awake, grabbing the seat.

I couldn’t breathe.

Met sooner.

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