Second Chance for the Barren Luna (Talia and Jason) novel Chapter 452

Talia’s POV

I woke up on the ground with Nolan holding me.

"She's awake." He held my face in his hands, openly crying. "Camilla, she's awake. Talia, say something."

"I'm here," I said hoarsely. "Stop yelling."

He laughed shakily and hugged me tight.

I couldn't even lift my head. This wasn't like the full moon, when the change left me shaky and worn out. This was quieter, but it hurt more. There was a hole in my mind where someone used to be.

"How bad is it?" Nolan asked.

"I can't feel my wolf at all."

"Camilla?"

"That's normal," she said. "Let me check on her."

She knelt next to me and reached for the green stone on my chest.

"Where did she get this stone?"

"Landon from Lonefur sent it," Nolan said. "Before we left Silverfang. He said it calms the mind and helps unborn pups stay safe."

"He was right about what it does, but wrong about when she needs it," Camilla said as she took the chain from my neck and handed the stone to him. "Right now, her wolf has been separated from Talia to keep her and the babies safe during birth. After the babies are born, we'll return her wolf so she can heal."

"Then I will return the stone," Nolan said.

"No, keep the stone. It is far more powerful than that Alpha believes," Camilla said. "Put it back on her when she has been reunited with her wolf. It will help with the healing."

"Understood," Nolan said as he placed the stone in his pocket.

"Now, lift her head."

Nolan did, and she put a second chain around my neck, letting the pendant fall where the first had been.

The new stone was purple, about the size of a walnut, and warm against my skin.

As soon as it touched me, the pain eased, like someone lifting their hand off a bruise.

"Oh," I whispered.

"Better?" she asked.

"Much better. What is it?"

"Your wolf," Camilla said, sitting back. "The part we took out of you is in that stone. She's not gone, not hurt, and not far away, no matter how it feels. She's just asleep."

For a moment, I couldn't breathe. The hollowness within me grew with every word, draining what little strength I had left. Cold fear pressed on my ribs and made my eyes burn. I have always felt her there, steady and wild, comforting me. Now there existed only silence, and it hurt. I wanted to beg Camilla to undo it and give her back, no matter the risk.

Nolan stared at the pendant. "And you can bring her back?"

"When the babies are born, we open the stone and give her back. That's the second ritual, and the whole point of the first,” Camilla explained. "That's why the necklace never comes off, not to wash, not to sleep, not for a second. If it breaks, we lose her."

"It won't come off," I promised.

"Make sure it doesn't. I've had this conversation before, and it went badly."

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