Temptation of the Wolf: A Silver Moon Novel (Book 1) (8 page)

Luna stared at her brother. For a moment they just simply looked at each other until Michael asked Chase to go into the kitchen.

“You know I can still hear you both from there?” he said, the amusement evident in his words.

“Just give us the illusion that you’re gone”, Michael said. “Go on, your alpha has spoken”.

Chase rolled his eyes but did as he requested. Luna noticed he took the vodka bottle with him. When Michael faced his sister again the teasing look in his eyes had disappeared. “I’m sorry, sis, but -” The slap to his face cut off whatever else he was going to say. “You slapped me”, he said in disbelief, his hand touching the spot where Luna’s hand had made contact.

Luna’s voice echoed the sting in her hand. “That’s what you get for lying to me for all these years, Michael! If mum knew that you and dad were werewolves why on earth did you not tell me?”

Michael sighed, the red imprint of her hand on his face disappearing completely before her eyes. “I couldn’t tell you. Mom and dad refused to let me. They were adamant that you should never know what we really are. It was for your own safety”.

“My safety”, she repeated, her voice barely a whisper. “Is that why I was sent away to boarding school when I was six? For my safety?”

“Look, Luna, I don’t know all the details. All I know is that there were a few accidents here when we were kids and you were hurt. Or about to get hurt, I’m not entirely sure. Mom and dad just announced that they were sending you to France for school one day and then the next week you were gone. So many times I told you that mom cried herself to sleep most nights when you were first gone, she missed you that much”.

Michael’s words rang in her ears and she couldn’t stop them. For years Luna had tried to figure out why she had been sent away when she was still so young. She had told herself that when she knew the reason she would be satisfied. Well, she knew now.

She wasn’t satisfied at all. Far from it.

“Sally knows that her husband is a werewolf”, she said.

“That’s different,” Michael explained. “They don’t have any kids to worry about. Most werewolves only have one child because the first-born child has the ability to Change”.

Luna nodded. “Chase already told me. I just don’t understand what could be so bad that I was sent away. I hated being separated from the rest of you. For most of my life I thought you didn’t want me. I’m twenty-seven years old and I still get upset thinking about it, knowing that you, mum and dad were here and me in a completely different country”.

“That’s right, you’re twenty-seven, sis. You were sent away so that you would stay safe. It’s not easy growing up in a pack of werewolves, always hiding your true nature, making sure you don’t hurt anyone. Even Chase stays away from human women. Be grateful that you had a damn good education because not many people do. Yeah, you may have not been here but our parents loved you so much that they protected you from this world the best way they knew how. It’s time to stop wallowing in the past and start living in the present while you can”.

Sorrow flew over Luna in waves, crashing against her heart as her brother walked gingerly out of the room. Once his footsteps had faded she headed straight for her father’s study, her knee still aching, hoping to find comfort in the room where he obviously spent much time.

Truth may have coloured her brother’s words, but Luna still hated the picture.

The study door creaked open. Expecting to find her brother standing there, she was preparing herself to turn around and face him when she felt strong hands grip her shoulders. They were Chase’s hands, she realised. With her back turned towards him, she leaned in, resting her head on his shoulder, taking comfort from the warmth of his body.

It was funny how she didn’t really care for him when they first met yesterday, yet now she found his presence comforting.

“You heard everything?” she whispered, her eyes closed.

“Yes, princess”, he replied, his voice soft and feather-light. “One of the benefits of being what I am is excellent hearing. I can hear the birds in the trees a mile away; I can hear the rustle of a mouse scurrying across the driveway.” His breath was warm on her neck. “I can hear the sound of your heart racing with every word that comes out of my mouth. The sound of your blood rushing through your veins is deafening”. He turned her around to face him, bringing his face within touching distance. “I can hear your desire for me, princess. You may not speak a single word but I hear you. I hear you”. Bringing down his face even closer, the only thing Luna could focus on was how full and sensual Chase’s lips were before they swooped and claimed her mouth for his own.

Chase’s eyes caressed her face when they finally broke away from the kiss. Breathing hard and fast, the heat simmered beneath the surface. The temptation was there, underneath her skin, threatening to consume her if only she stepped forward and kissed him once again.

The grip on her shoulders never loosened and the burn from his lips still blazed upon her skin. Reaching up, Luna touched her fingers to her mouth. The temptation he invoked within her was overwhelming. A simple touch, a look, and she was undone.

Chase cocked his head, as though listening for something she couldn’t hear. “Your phone is ring”, he said, voice thick with emotion. When Luna didn’t reply he continued. “Your phone. In your room. It’s ringing”.

Nodding silently, Luna escaped from the heat and rushed upstairs where her phone was indeed ringing. Answering it, a thick French accent came flooding through her ears.

“Luna,
ma douce une
, where have you been? I have tried calling you many times”.

Luna sagged onto the bed and sighed wearily. “I’m sorry, Pierre, it has been chaos here today. You wouldn’t believe the things that I’ve had to deal with”.

Sympathy laced his voice. “I am sorry, my love. Did the meeting not go as well as you had expected?”

An extremely unladylike snort escaped before she could suppress it. Pierre wasn’t keen on such things, he liked women to behave like ladies and not as uncouth yobs as he once told her. At her school, the teachers had taught their female pupils the art of being a lady in all situations. Some girls could master being polite to their teachers’ faces and then revert to being hellhounds when they were on their own. Luna had never been able to do that. The lessons had been too far ingrained in her to start now.

“They think dad was drunk driving and that’s why the crash happened”, she said, exhaustion washing over her. “But we know that’s not true”.

“Oh? Can you really be sure? Luna, sometimes it happens. A few drinks can sometimes make a man foolish. It only takes a moment of madness to cause a devastating accident such as this”.

“No, Pierre. It’s looking as though mum and dad were murdered”.

A hiss met her ears. “For certain? Why do you think that they were murdered when the police believe it was a case of drunk driving?”

“I can’t explain it at the moment but there’s evidence enough to prove it to Michael and I”. A tear travelled down the pale contours of Luna’s face. So much pain, so many tears, in such a short time. But she couldn’t wallow in the pain just yet; there was so much to do. “Are you going to work?”

A small sigh travelled down the line. “No,
ma douce une
, I am taking today off. The office will survive a day without me. I promised Adam and his new wife that I would attend his gallery opening. The theme is mythological creatures”.

Luna had only met Adam a few times and his wife only once, but Luna had taken an instant liking to them both. Adam had been friends with Pierre for many years, although neither would explain just how long they had known each other. Love of art from all historical periods had eventually convinced him to open his own gallery, and despite his teasing and mischievous sense of humour, he was nervous about it. Pierre, Luna, Adam and Lucille, his wife, had visited another gallery together one day, and the knowledge the men had shown was outstanding.

Perhaps Pierre could help, Luna thought. “Pierre”, she said slowly. “Could you help me out with something?”

“Of course. What do you need me to do?”

“Can you or Adam find out some information for me regarding a mythological character?”

“Oui. Which character? Vampire, siren, Pegasus or something completely different?”

“Something different. I’m looking for information on the Fae”. The words came out breathless, as though her breath was trying to steal them for itself. “Do you know anything?”

Luna heard Pierre murmuring down the phone, obviously deep in thought. “The Fae are from Ireland, creatures of nature itself. Most people known them as fairies but they are not the delicate, sweet creatures that art and poetry depicts. They are the Tuatha de Dannan, a race of creatures taller than most humans, a beautiful race, which is why they are commonly referred to as the Fair Folk. Fae are divided into two – Seelie and Unseelie. The Seelie are light, good, beautiful, but the Unseelie are the stuff of nightmares”. Pierre paused. “Why do you want to know about the Fae, Luna? Have you met one recently?”

Forcing herself to laugh, Luna tried to sound light-hearted. “Yes, Pierre, there are fairies running around the Virginian countryside.” The laughter sounded false to her ears but she carried on. “Do you think you could find out some information regarding a particular Fae character for me please? It’s important”.

“Only if you tell me why it is so important, Luna”, Pierre replied.

Lying didn’t come naturally to Luna but it was only when she pictured her father’s study that an idea popped into her head. The painting of the wolves on the wall. “There’s a painting in my father’s study that is beautiful. On it is a beautiful but frightening man surrounded by wolves. His hair is pale silver and he’s wearing long white robes”.

Pierre’s voice seemed flatter, as though he was trying to keep his voice from showing any emotion. “Do you have a name to go with this Fae?” he asked.

“Lyulf”, she replied, her eyes closing in weariness. With the last syllable uttered, the wind outside her bedroom window blew, causing the curtains to ripple in the breeze. Eyes snapping open, Luna’s heart jumped straight into her throat, her blood turning ice cold in her veins. Was the Fae here already to demand the artefact? They hadn’t found it yet. It was too soon. Too soon.

Each step over to the window increased the anxieties threatening to consume Luna, her heart beating so loud that she couldn’t hear Pierre repeat her name down the phone. The white material fluttered in the wind, but by the time Luna reached the window the breeze had died down and the curtains settled down, lying flat against the wall. Peering out over the woods, the trees stood still. Swallowing hard, whatever was there, whoever was there, wasn’t there now.

“Luna”, came Pierre’s demanding voice. “Talk to me”.

Inhaling deep, Luna finally realised that Pierre was still on the phone. “I’m sorry”, she said shaking her head as though trying to shake away the terrible thoughts that invaded her brain. “I thought I heard something outside”.

“Are you OK? I am worried about you”. His words were sweet, honeyed, as though coated with the thick nectar. Once she told him that his voice was so beautiful, so mesmerising, that she could listen to him talk all night. Pierre had smiled, shrugged his shoulders in that elegant, fluid way of his and told her he’d rather listen to her instead.

Even in these dark times she found herself smiling at his gentleness. “I’m fine, Pierre. I promise. Could you see if Adam knows anything about this Fae for me please? It would really mean a lot if you could”.

“Oui,
ma douce une
, I will do this for you. It is time for me to go now”. Luna said her goodbyes to him and then hung up.

With the phone disconnected, Luna let out another sigh. All she seemed to be doing lately was sighing. When she inhaled, the guilt crept back in. Pierre had been on the phone but she hadn’t told him what had happened between her and Chase. She knew she had to tell him, the guilt would crush her heart like a boulder on a delicate flower if she kept it from him. He was a lawyer for heaven’s sake; he would soon discover it for himself if she withheld the information. No, she would tell him and just hope that he would forgive her.

How do you forgive someone who has cheated on you, no matter how small the act was? Could he forgive her,
would
he forgive her?

Did mum forgive dad?
  Luna thought.
Did dad cheat though?
Reading her mother’s journal earlier had sprung to mind.

Knowing that her body was nowhere ready to sleep, even though her mind was exhausted, Luna debated with herself whether to head back down to the study and see if she could located her mother’s other journals.
Chase shouldn’t be there
, she told herself and it was only after repeating it in her head several times that she tucked her phone into her jeans pocket and her legs eventually carried her towards the hall.

Soft light spilled out from under her brother’s bedroom door, telling her that he was in there. For a brief moment Luna stood outside the door, wondering if she should knock but low murmurs told her Michael was already talking to someone else. Instead, she carried on walking down the stairs and then made her way to the study.

Chase wasn’t there as expected. Breathing a sigh of relief, Luna began searching for her mother’s diaries. The one she had read earlier was still where she had left it, on her father’s desk, next to the framed photograph of the family. Remembering where she had initially discovered it, Luna bent down and began the search for any others.

A few minutes later and Luna had discovered another seven notebooks. It appeared as though the one she had discovered was the second in her mother’s collection. Flicking through them, Luna soon had them in chronological order. The blue polka dot notebook held secrets, secrets she was determined to uncover. Yet hesitation stilled her fingers before she could properly read it.

How much did she want to know? That was the question. Telling herself not to be so dramatic, Luna opened the notebook to reveal her mother’s secrets.

I did it. I followed George and by everything that’s holy I wish I had never done so. Once again he snuck out of the house when he I was in bed but this time I was ready. He headed down to the pond and I saw him transform into something incredible … a wolf! At first, I thought I was imagining it, that perhaps it was my hormones which had affected my eyes, but no, it wasn’t. It was something truly magical. George’s body was covered in a silver light, as though he was becoming the moon itself. His legs seemed to shrink and yet grow bigger. His human body disappeared and then there was nothing but a grey wolf standing next to the water’s edge. The wolf turned its head in my direction – it must have heard me make noise – and growled. Fear got the best of me and I admit that I lost all control of my bladder. This creature walked over to where I was standing and sniffed me, trying to determine whether I was friend or food, then jumped up and started licking my face. We stayed by the pond for an hour or so before the wolf walked away and transformed once again. There he was, my husband. Naked. Shivering. The wolf was gone, my husband was back. For another hour I think I cried in his arms. I don’t remember anything he told me, or even how I got back. But somehow I woke up in my bed this morning. George left me breakfast on the table but had already gone to work. A breakfast isn’t going to make up for lying to me for all this time. He has some answering to do.

The words ended on the page but continued on the next. It seemed to be written a few days after the last entry.

George has finally come home. The day after the night I followed him he left to stay with a friend. He said it was to give me some time to process what I had seen. I was so glad to have him back but I did tell him we had to talk about that night. The look in his eyes … it’s hard to describe, as though both man and beast were staring out of a single window. It both frightens and captivates me.

Another entry was added a week after the last.

What a week. George tells me he is a werewolf – a werewolf! Can you believe it? He can transform, or Change as he calls it, into a wolf since he was the first child of a werewolf. My father-in-law, before he died, was one too and passed on the genes to his son. Now George has passed his genes down to our child. I asked him if there was any chance that our baby won’t become a werewolf but he told me that the first child is always a werewolf. There is no escape from the curse. I tried to get him to tell me more about the origins of the curse but he couldn’t tell me, or wouldn’t tell me, I’m not sure. George tells me that we should only have one child. I agree with him. My entire being is full of dread for the life my unborn child is being brought into.

Her mother’s journal was full of little entries, insights into the curse her mother had to deal with but never be a part of. Luna read about how her mother was introduced to the pack, watching them all Change into creatures science had proclaimed as legends. Luna read about the birth of her brother, attacks on their pack by other werewolf groups and even vampires, but it was one entry that caught her attention.

I am both saddened and happy to announce that I am pregnant once again. George and I agreed that we would only have one child when I found out that my husband and my unborn son had inherited the werewolf gene, yet I find I cannot terminate this pregnancy. Children are a gift of life, even if the life is cursed. George informs me that any child born after the first will not have to suffer the curse but I don’t know if I believe it. Just because no one knows of any siblings who have transformed doesn’t mean that it can’t happen. Either way, I will be keeping this baby and no force on this earth could separate them from me
.

Luna didn’t know whether to snort in disbelief or laugh at the irony. Her mother
had
sent her away yet here were her very own words saying that she wouldn’t part from her child.