Moonlight In Chains (Trinity and Asher) novel Chapter 179

CHAPTER 179

The air was heavy with silence. The kind that crawled beneath your skin and made every breath sound too loud. The wolf stood between us and the shadows that lingered at the edge of the forest, its massive form still as stone. Its eyes, burning gold under the dim moonlight, flicked between the darkness and me, every muscle colled and ready.

The former alpha of Redwater Falls stood a few feet away, his jaw tight, one hand resting on the hilt of his knife. “They’re watching us.” he muttered voice low and gravelly. “You feel it too, don’t

you?”

I nodded, my gaze never leaving the treeline. “Yeah. They’re close. Too close.”

The shadows moved again. Just enough for my instincts to flare. Whoever was out there knew how to blend into the dark, but their presence wasn’t subtle. It was deliberate. The kind of deliberate that made your wolf pace just under your skin.

The mark under my sleeve started to glow again and I tried to quickly cover it, but unfortunately, the former Alpha Elias, saw it at the last second. And that’s when realization set in. He knew who I

was.

“Luna Trinity.” He whispered.

“Not now.” I demanded.

The massive wolf let out a low growl, rumbling deep in its chest. The sound rolled through the air

like distant thunder, primal and commanding. It wasn’t afraid, it was warning. Protect. That word

flickered again in my mind, a pulse, not a voice.

The former alpha looked at me sharply. “It’s doing it again, isn’t it?”

“Yes.” I swallowed hard. “It wants us to stay back. Whatever’s out there… it’s not friendly.”

He exhaled through his nose, glancing at the wolf. “You sure it’s not part of them?”

I shook my head. “No. If it was, it wouldn’t be warning me. It would’ve already attacked.”

The wind shifted, carrying a faint scent. Earth, sweat and something sharp. Not blood this time.

Something more subtle. A mix of fur and adrenaline. My wolf bristled instantly, recognizing what

that meant. “There are more than two.” I whispered “Maybe three.”

The former alpha frowned. “Scouts?”

“Maybe.” I murmured. “But who sends scouts this close to a former pack’s land?”

He didn’t answer. The question hung between us, heavy and dangerous. The Redwater Falls pack had dissolved years ago, its lands swallowed by time and memory. No one had claimed it since.

That made it neutral territory. And yet here we were standing on ground that felt anything but

174

CHAPTER 170

neutral.

+25 Points

The wolf shifted suddenly, its body moving in one smooth, predatory motion. Its head lifted, nose. twitching as it sniffed the air. Then, without warning, it turned slightly. Just enough that its gaze cut toward me again.

The pulse came harder this time. Urgent. Run.

I tensed, muscles locking. “It wants us to move.”

The former alpha stiffened. “You think it’s setting us up?”

I met the wolf’s gaze, the gold in its eyes burning with strange recognition. “No.” I said quietly. “I think it’s trying to keep us alive.”

A sharp rustle broke the silence. A figure stepped out of the darkness, half–hidden by the trees. The moonlight caught on something metallic in their hand. A blade. Not a ceremonial one. A hunting knife, long and jagged, meant for killing, not warning.

The wolf lowered its head, lips curling back just enough to show a flash of teeth. The air vibrated with tension, thick enough to taste.

The figure paused, watching us. Then another shape moved beside it. Taller and broader. Two of them. My pulse quickened. They weren’t rogues. Their stance was too precise, their movements

too in sync.

“Former pack members?” I asked under my breath,

The alpha frowned. “No. I’d know them.”

The wolf’s growl deepened, tail stiff, body angled slightly between me and the strangers. I could feel the connection again, sharp and clear. Like a tether pulling at my chest. It wanted me to stand

down. To let it handle this.

The first figure stepped forward, slow and measured. The second lingered behind. Their scent hit me then. Faint, mixed with pine and smoke. Not from around here. Not from any nearby territory.

“Stay back!” Elias barked, his voice echoing through the clearing. “You’re trespassing on private

land.”

The taller one laughed. A harsh, humorless sound that didn’t fit the quiet night. “Private? This place

is dead, Same as its wolves.”

My stomach twisted. There was venom in his tone, and something else. Resentment.

The wolf’s fur bristled, hackles high. Its growl turned into a low, resonant snarl that made even the trees seem to shudder. The two figures hesitated.

The shorter one took a step back. “That’s not a normal wolf.” He muttered.

< CHAPTER 179

“No.” I said softly, almost to myself. “It’s not.”

+25 Points

The taller one moved again, and the wolf lunged, not to attack, but to intercept. It slammed into the ground in front of me, dirt flying, eyes burning like embers. The strangers froze, their confidence faltering for the first time.

The wolf’s presence was overwhelming. Massive, primal and ancient. Its gaze locked on the taller figure, and for the first time, I saw something flicker in his expression. Fear.

“What the hell is that thing?” He hissed, taking a step back.

Elias‘ voice was grim. “Something you shouldn’t have come looking for.”

The silence that followed was short–lived. The wolf’s head snapped to the side, eyes narrowing on the forest. More movement. More shadows. Three this time. No, four. Surrounding us.

My pulse spiked. “We’re surrounded.”

“Get inside the hall.” Elias ordered, his voice low and controlled.

I shook my head. “No. If they’re coming for the wolf, I’m not leaving it exposed.”

He gave me a look that said he wanted to argue, but before he could, the wolf growled again, so loud it made my bones vibrate. The sound wasn’t just warning. It was command.

And then, to my shock, the shadows stopped. All of them. The forest went silent again.

I didn’t breathe. Didn’t blink. Every instinct screamed that something wasn’t right.

The figures in the dark… they were listening to it. To the wolf. Like soldiers waiting for orders.

“What the hell…” Elias whispered.

The wolf turned its head slightly, looking back at me. Its eyes met mine, and I felt another wave of awareness crash through me. It wasn’t words this time. It was emotion. Recognition. Sadness.

Memory.

And then, pain.

The wolf let out a deep, shuddering breath. Its body trembled. The shadows moved again, closer now, but not to attack. They were circling it. Watching.

My throat tightened. “What’s happening to it?”

The alpha shook his head. “I don’t know.”

The wolf’s golden eyes flickered briefly to silver. It blinked once, slow and deliberate, before lowering its head. I felt the connection flicker, weaker this time, like a dying flame.

I took a step forward. “No. Stay with me.”

CHAPTER 179

The pulse came faintly. Soft, almost fragile. You must see.

+25 Points

And then, in one smooth motion, the wolf turned toward the treeline again. The shadows parted.

A single figure emerged from the darkness. Taller than the others, moving with a quiet authority that made the air hum. I couldn’t see their face, not clearly, but the wolf reacted instantly, muscles locking, head lowering in submission.

The former alpha cursed under his breath. “That’s not possible.”

My heartbeat thundered in my ears. “Who is that?”

He swallowed hard. “Someone who shouldn’t be here.”

The figure stepped into the faint light, the hood falling back slowly. The air thickened around us.

I froze.

Because the face I saw wasn’t a stranger’s. It was someone I recognized. Someone who shouldn’t have been anywhere near this place.

The wolf made a low sound. A sound that wasn’t anger or warning, but grief.

And in that single heartbeat, I knew the truth before anyone spoke it.

This wasn’t an invasion. It was a reunion.

Comments

LUCK DRAW >

E