Moonlight In Chains (Trinity and Asher) novel Chapter 172

CHAPTER 172

The night had settled thick and heavy around the clearing. The moon was bright enough to cast pale silver across the grass, but everything beyond the training field was swallowed in darkness. It was the kind of quiet that made every small sound stand out. The creak of wood, the rustle of leaves, the slow, steady breathing of the wolf in the pen.

We rotated the shifts like I planned. Arlo and Gage had first watch, Emily sitting quietly near the fence with them. Asher and I stayed just inside the packhouse, the doors open so we could still hear. Guards ringed the area, their tranquilizer rifles hidden but ready, wolfsbane darts loaded in case anything went wrong.

It wasn’t the first time we’d stood guard over a creature we didn’t understand, but this was different. This wolf wasn’t just strange. It felt aware. Every breath it took seemed measured, like it was listening to us even when we whispered.

When Asher and I returned outside for our shift, the others were half asleep by the firepit. The wolf was awake, pacing in slow circles, head low. The moment my boots touched the dirt, its ears flicked toward

1. me.

“Still hasn’t shifted?” I asked quietly.

Gage shook his head. “Not even close. It just keeps… watching. Follows every sound, every move. But it doesn’t growl unless Emily moves.”

I glanced toward her. Emily sat cross–legged by the fence, hair loose around her shoulders, her eyes fixed on the wolf. The twins stood a few paces behind her, posture slack but alert, their focus clearly tied to her.

“Anything new?” I asked.

Arlo stretched and stifled a yawn. “Not really. It’s like it’s waiting for something. She talks to it sometimes, really quiet, but I can’t tell what she’s saying.”

Asher’s jaw tightened. “We’ll take over from here. Go get some rest.”

The twins hesitated. For a moment, it looked like Gage might argue, but Emily turned slightly and nodded toward the house. “Go. I’ll stay for a bit.”

Just like that, both of them obeyed. No questions, no protest. They simply followed her direction, brushing past us with brief nods. I exchanged a look with Asher. One of those silent conversations that carried more than words. Her hold on them wasn’t subtle anymore. It was instinctive, like they were tethered to her in some invisible way.

When the others disappeared inside, Asher leaned in close. “We need to keep eyes on her. If this gets out of hand…”

“I know.” I whispered back. “But right now she’s the only one it’s responding to. If we push, it could turn violent.“.

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We stood quietly for a few minutes, the only sounds were the rustling of leaves and the steady rhythm of the wolf’s breathing. Emily didn’t move. The wolf mirrored her, each tiny shift of her shoulders matched by the slightest twitch of its head. Even the air around them felt charged. Like a thread of energy humming between girl and beast, fragile but pulsing with something ancient, something alive.

Finally, I spoke softly. “You don’t have to sit so close, Emily. It won’t hurt you, but we can keep watch from here.”

She shook her head without looking back. “It’s not going to hurt anyone. It’s scared.”

“Scared?” Asher echoed. “That thing’s bigger than a truck.”

Emily’s voice was barely a whisper. “Size doesn’t mean safety.”

I frowned. “You can sense that?”

She hesitated, then nodded. “It’s… lonely. Lost. But it’s not feral.”

I studied her for a long moment. “And how do you know that?”

“I just do.”

There was something unnerving about the certainty in her tone. The wolf took another step forward, slow, deliberate. Its golden eyes locked on her face, unblinking.

Asher stepped closer to the pen. “Easy there.” He murmured.

The wolf’s gaze slid to him for a heartbeat, then back to Emily. It made a soft noise, half growl, half exhale, then sat back on its haunches.

“That’s new.” I muttered.

Emily turned her head slightly, her expression distant. “It’s trying to communicate.”

“How?” I asked.

She shrugged faintly. “Not with me.”

The air shifted, thickening with the faint pulse of energy that always came right before something important happened. My wolf stirred under my skin, not aggressive… just awake. A low hum vibrated in my bones, like the air itself was responding to something ancient and alive. The scent of rain, metal, and fur filled the space around us. Every instinct I had screamed that whatever this was, it wasn’t random. It was i ntentional.

Asher sensed it too. “Trinny?”

“I feel it.” I said quietly. “It’s reaching out. Not moving, but… something’s happening.”

The wolf’s ears twitched. Its eyes, glowing faintly in the moonlight, locked onto mine. Every sound around us fell away. Even Emily went silent. The world seemed to narrow down to the space between us. The creature in the pen and me standing on the other side of the fence. My heart pounded, slow and heavy,

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CCHAPTER 172

syncing with something that wasn’t entirely mine.

I took a slow step closer. The wolf didn’t move. Its eyes followed me, intelligent, calculating. I could feel its energy now. Steady, strong, and oddly familiar. The sensation rippled through me like recognition, a spark of something I couldn’t name but could feel. As if a door I hadn’t known existed had just cracked

open.

Asher tensed beside me. “Trinny, stop. Don’t get closer.”

But I couldn’t stop. Something in that gaze drew me in, like a thread pulling firm.

The wolf’s breathing slowed, deep and controlled. The muscles in its shoulders relaxed. Then, without warning, a sharp jolt of pressure hit the back of my skull. I gasped, stumbling slightly.

“Trinny?” Asher caught my arm, but I barely heard him. The air shimmered faintly, and a sound, not a

sound, but a voice, brushed against the edge of my mind.

“You hear me?”

The words weren’t spoken aloud. They vibrated through me, low and resonant, like a thought that wasn’t

mine.

I froze. My heart pounded in my chest, every nerve alive. “Asher.” I whispered. “It’s… it’s talking to me.”

His eyes went wide. “What do you mean, talking?”

Before I could answer, the pressure intensified. My vision blurred at the edges, colors bending and twisting. The wolf’s gaze burned brighter, locking me in place.

“You finally hear me.”

The voice was deeper this time, clearer, almost… familiar. It carried weight, something ancient yet close, like it had been waiting for this moment. A strange heat rippled through my veins, making the hair on my arms rise. The scent of pine and smoke filled the air, thick and grounding. My wolf stirred beneath my skin,

restless, sensing something it recognized but couldn’t name.

“Asher.” I breathed again, my voice trembling. “It knows me.”

The wolf’s ears flicked forward, its eyes never leaving mine. And in that heartbeat, the forest seemed to fall silent, as though the world itself was holding its breath, waiting for what would happen next.

I tried to speak but couldn’t. My lips parted, breath shaking.

“Asher.” I managed to choke out. “It’s in my head.”

Emily stood frozen near the fence, her eyes darting between me and the wolf. “What’s happening?” She

asked, but her voice sounded far away.

The connection tightened. The wolf’s energy pulsed against mine, not hostile, but urgent.

“They can’t hear me. Only you.”

CHAPTER 172

My pulse thundered. Who are you? I thought, not even sure if it would hear me.

A pause, then the voice came again, softer this time, but filled with emotion. “You already know.”

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I staggered back, clutching Asher’s arm, breath sharp in my throat. The link broke as suddenly as it had begun, leaving behind a hollow ringing in my ears. The wolf blinked once, then lay down slowly, head

resting on its massive paws as though nothing had happened.

Silence pressed down on the clearing.

Asher gripped my shoulders. “Trinny. What did it say?”

I stared at the wolf, my heart still pounding, the ghost of that voice echoing through my mind.

“It said…” I swallowed hard. “It said I already know who it is.”

The words hung between us, heavy and cold. Emily took a step back, her face pale, her eyes flicking toward the wolf in something close to fear.

Asher followed my gaze, his expression hardening. “What does that mean?”

I didn’t have an answer. All I could do was stare at the enormous creature lying in the moonlight, calm again, watching me with those unnervingly intelligent eyes.

And deep down, I knew it wasn’t finished talking.

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