Moonlight In Chains (Trinity and Asher) novel Chapter 174

By the next morning, the packhouse was back to its usual rhythm. Or at least, that’s what we made it look like.

Asher and I agreed that nothing would appear different on the surface. No sudden changes in routine, no whispers, no visible suspicion. The twins already hovered too closely around Emily. The last thing we needed was for them to feel like we were targeting her. So, outwardly,

it was business as usual.

Inside, every nerve in my body was wound tight.

The day started with meetings. Construction crews checked in on the ongoing repairs from the relocation, warriors ran patrol reports, and our Beta updated us on border activity. I nodded, took notes, and gave orders-but half my attention was elsewhere.

Each time my phone buzzed with a message from Asher, my pulse jumped.

“Still nothing from the records office.”

“Running her name through Crescent Vale’s registry now.”

“Trinny, her ID number doesn’t exist.”

By midday, the façade of calm felt like a full-time performance. The pack trusted us implicitly, which only made keeping secrets from them harder. Still, until we knew the truth, silence was

safer.

When the final meeting ended, Asher and I walked back toward the packhouse in the soft afternoon light. The wind carried the scent of cut grass and sawdust from the new training grounds. He handed me his tablet, jaw tight.

“Look at this.” He said quietly. “I traced every version of her story. Parents, foster care, old pack affiliations. None of it exists. The Crescent Vale registry shows a family by that surname, but they died fifteen years ago. No siblings. No surviving relatives.”

I frowned, scrolling. “And her age doesn’t match the timeline she gave us. She said twenty-one. Records put her closer to twenty-seven.”

He nodded. “Or older. Hard to tell with falsified data.”

I stopped walking, staring at the trees ahead. “So whoever Emily Stone is… she’s not the woman she pretended to be.”

“Exactly. And whatever she’s hiding, she’s good at it. Too good.”

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We both fell silent. In the distance, I could see the twins sparring in the lower field while Emily sat on the fence, laughing at something one of them said. The sight made my stomach

twist.

“She’s woven herself in deep.” I murmured.

Asher followed my gaze. “Which makes pulling her out dangerous. The twins would never believe it.”

“They’d think we’re paranoid.”

He gave a small, humorless smile. “Maybe we are. But we’re not wrong.”

That evening, we moved quietly through the Alpha office. The building was mostly empty; only the night guards lingered outside. I locked the door while Asher powered on the older computer we kept off-network. Safer for discreet digging.

We divided the search. I combed through archived pack transfers and border crossings. He hacked into hospital databases, police logs, adoption records. Anything that might explain where Emily came from before she appeared on our doorstep.

The screen light flickered over his face as he leaned forward. “Got something. An old report. An unsolved disappearance from a northern pack near Redwater Falls. Female, early thirties, reported missing eight years ago. Description’s close.”

“Name?”

He hesitated. “Not Emily Stone. Lydia Keene.”

I froze. “Lydia Keene…” The name tugged at something faintly familiar, though I couldn’t place

1. it.

He kept scrolling. “She was a healer-in-training. Talented, apparently. Went missing after a fire destroyed her mentor’s home. No body recovered. Case dropped.”

“And no follow-up?”

“None. Redwater was small. Barely a pack by then. Most records vanished when the territory dissolved.”

I leaned over his shoulder, reading the blurry scan. A grainy photograph showed a woman with similar features: same sharp jawline, same pale eyes. But the expression was colder… detached.

“She could’ve changed her name after that.” I said quietly.

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Asher nodded. “Which means the question isn’t who she is. It’s what she’s running from.”

We both jumped slightly when the office door rattled with a knock.

“Asher?” It was Gage’s voice. “You in there?”

I minimized the window instantly. Asher opened the door, schooling his face into calm authority before he got up to unlock the door.

“Yeah. What’s up?”

Gage leaned in, looking sheepish. “Emily said you wanted extra guards near the wolf pen tonight. I told her we already had a schedule, but she insisted I double-check.”

I exchanged a quick glance with Asher. “That’s fine.” I said lightly. “Double them anyway. Just keep the darts and weapons out of sight.”

He nodded. “You got it.”

When the door closed again, Asher muttered, “She’s testing us.”

“Or she knows we’re digging.”

“Which means she’s watching the schedule closely. We need to move faster.”

By the time we shut down the computer, it was after midnight. The room was dim except for the lamp’s warm glow. I rubbed my eyes, exhaustion creeping in.

Asher slid the last file into the locked drawer and sat beside me on the edge of the desk. “We can’t confront her yet.” He said. “Not without proof she’s dangerous. The twins will protect

her on instinct.”

I nodded slowly. “So we keep collecting. Quietly. No sudden changes in how we treat her.”

“And the wolf?” He asked.

“He’s our best lead. Whatever he knows, it’s tied to her.”

underestimate her.”

I gave a small nod, forcing my expression calm. “I won’t.”

When we reached the training field, the night air was cool and heavy with mist. The guards were already stationed along the perimeter, weapons concealed. The wolf was pacing inside the pen again, muscles tight under its massive frame.

Emily stood near the twins, her hands clasped loosely, face unreadable. “He’s restless tonight.” She said softly when we approached.

I met her gaze, steady. “Maybe he senses something.”

She tilted her head slightly, almost smiling. “Maybe he senses fear.”

For a second, her eyes caught the moonlight, and something flickered there. Something too sharp, too knowing. Then it was gone.

Asher stepped closer to the fence, studying the wolf. “We’ll keep him under observation until

he settles.”

The twins nodded and began adjusting the gate locks. Emily stayed behind them, watching the wolf with unsettling focus.

I felt the faintest ripple of pressure in my mind, like a whisper brushing my consciousness.

Be careful.

I stiffened, eyes darting to the wolf. It was staring straight at Emily.

“Asher.” I murmured, “we need to talk inside.”

He caught the look on my face and nodded. “Gage, Arlo. You two finish up. We’ll check in after dawn.”

Emily smiled politely as we turned away. “Sleep well.” She said, her tone light.

But when I looked back one last time, her expression had changed. The smile had slipped. The look she gave the wolf was pure, cold hatred.

Inside, with the door shut behind us, Asher finally exhaled. “She knows.” He said quietly.

“I know.” I whispered. “And whatever she is, that wolf is terrified of her for a reason.”

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He turned toward me, eyes dark. “Then tomorrow, we stop pretending. We dig until we find the truth.”

Outside, the wind carried another low growl from the pen. Longer this time, almost like a warning.

And deep down, I knew the wolf wasn’t just warning us about her.

He was warning us that time was running out.

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