Moonlight In Chains (Trinity and Asher) novel Chapter 141

**The Day He Forgot He Hated Me by Evangeline Marrow**

**CHAPTER 141**

The first indication that something was amiss came from the sky itself.

It wasn’t merely darker; it felt fundamentally wrong.

The sun hung low, its pale light struggling against a heavy, oppressive grey shroud that stretched ominously across the horizon. An eclipse was not due yet, yet the air was thick with an unsettling stillness, as if the world itself was holding its breath in anticipation.

The pack sensed it too. The wolves shifted uneasily, some refusing to leave the safety of the compound. Even the creatures of the forest had fallen silent, retreating into their hidden nooks before the first shadow dared to creep among the trees.

I found myself standing at the edge of the training field, my gaze fixed on the way the light flickered through the clouds. It pulsed erratically, reminiscent of lightning, yet there was no storm brewing. Instead, I felt an eerie energy crawling beneath my skin, a strange rhythm that thrummed through my veins every few moments, like a distant warning.

Eryx approached from behind, his expression tight with concern. “It’s starting,” he stated, his voice low and serious.

“How soon?” I asked, my heart racing.

He turned his gaze towards the horizon, a frown etched on his features. “A few days at most. Maybe even less.”

His words sent a chill through me, a sinking feeling in my stomach. “And the thing inside me…?”

He nodded solemnly. “You’ll begin to feel it stirring. It will push against you, and you must resist it for as long as you can.”

I swallowed hard, the weight of his words settling heavily on my chest. I could already sense it—a whisper just beneath my skin, a soft hum that felt foreign, unlike my own heartbeat.

Behind us, Asher and Arlo were busy inspecting the training weapons, while Gage barked instructions to the other warriors. Everyone appeared worn out, their faces strained, as if sleep had eluded them for days.

And indeed, it had.

That night, peculiar lights flickered along the treeline.

They began softly, mere glimmers that danced like fireflies in the dark. But these were not fireflies.

As I ventured closer, the lights dimmed, revealing scorch marks on the ground. Claw-like impressions, long and sharp, marred the earth beneath my feet.

Arlo knelt beside the marks, gently tracing the patterns with his fingers. “Energy burns,” he murmured softly. “The kind that originates from the shadow realm.”

Eryx’s expression darkened at Arlo’s words. “They’re breaking through again.”

Asher stepped closer, his instincts on high alert. “Do you think it’s the Guardians?”

“No,” Eryx replied firmly. “It’s something else—something using the impending eclipse as a gateway.”

He didn’t elaborate further, but I could see the worry etched in his eyes. It wasn’t just fear; it was a familiarity, a recognition of a threat he had encountered before.

The following day, the border alarms blared.

A sharp, piercing howl sliced through the air, echoing ominously across the valley. Wolves surged from every direction, racing toward the northern ridge, which overlooked the old riverbank.

Asher, Eryx, and I reached the ridge first. There, standing at the edge of the clearing, was Rafe.

He appeared different—thinner, paler, as if something had drained the very essence from him. His eyes glowed a faint red beneath the shadows cast by the trees, and dark, twisted marks crawled up the side of his neck like veins made of smoke.

The wolves growled, forming a half-circle around him, their instincts on high alert.

“Rafe,” Dennis called sharply from behind us. “You shouldn’t be here.”

Rafe’s smile was cold and hollow. “Shouldn’t I? You really think you can keep me out of my own home?”

“This isn’t your home,” Asher replied, his voice steady yet firm.

Rafe tilted his head slightly, a mocking gesture. “I didn’t turn on you. You turned on me. You took everything that was rightfully mine. The title, the bond, the power.”

His gaze flickered toward me, and I felt a chill run down my spine. “And her.”

I stepped forward, my heart racing. “You tried to take it by force, Rafe. You hurt people. You would have killed them if Donis hadn’t intervened.”

His smile faded, replaced by a chilling intensity. “You don’t grasp what’s coming, Trinny. None of you do. I’ve seen it. I’ve felt it. The Eclipse within you. It doesn’t belong to you. It belongs to those who created it. And they want it back.”

Eryx stiffened beside me, his expression darkening. “Who told you that?”

Rafe’s eyes turned stormy. “They did.”

A sudden gust of cold wind swept through the clearing, rustling leaves and sending a shiver down my spine. The shadows behind Rafe began to shift, elongated forms that did not belong to the trees.

And then, in a flash of dark light that erupted from the ground, he vanished.

When the smoke cleared, the clearing lay empty, save for the scorch marks and an eerie silence that hung in the air.

That night, no one found rest. The packhouse buzzed with low murmurs, the constant movement of guards patrolling the hallways.

Eryx stood at the window in the strategy room, his face pale and drawn. “He’s merged with them,” he said, his voice heavy with dread. “Whatever is trying to awaken inside you has already found a vessel. And it’s using Rafe to reach you.”

Asher clenched his fists, fury igniting in his eyes. “Then we kill him before it reaches her.”

Eryx shook his head, his expression grave. “It’s not that simple. If he’s part of the awakening, killing him could disrupt the balance. It might open the door even faster.”

“So what do we do?” I asked quietly, my heart pounding.

Eryx turned to face me, determination etched in his features. “We stop the awakening before the eclipse strikes. We have to find the last relic—the one the Guardians buried. And seal it. That’s the only way to keep the Eclipse spirit dormant.”

“And if we fail?” I pressed, dread pooling in my stomach.

He looked away, his silence speaking volumes. “Then it awakens. And this world burns.”

Later, when the others had finally dispersed, I lingered in the empty hallway, staring at my reflection in the glass. The faint light from outside flickered across my skin, illuminating the veins beneath my wrist with a ghostly silver glow.

It pulsed in sync with my heartbeat.

They’re coming.

Rafe’s voice echoed in my mind, faint yet distorted.

I reached out to touch the glass, and for a fleeting moment, my reflection smiled back at me, though I did not return the gesture.

Outside, thunder rumbled across the valley, even though the sky remained clear.

The moonlight twisted, warping as if it were liquid, and three faint symbols emerged in the air, glowing ominously above the forest.

The relics had awakened.

And the countdown to the eclipse had begun.