Chapter 32 Luna
Luna
Notebook: Um... what?
Iopen my eyes and blink at the strange sight before me: the guys hover around the sofa with the goofiest expressions I’ve ever seen.
No Damien.
Predictably.
He’s probably off brooding in a corner somewhere, plotting new ways to make his hatred for me known.
“She’s awake,” Hudson announces, hovering close to me, his voice gentler than I’ve ever heard it. He has a black eye, like someone punched the hell out of him.
“Why are you all staring at me like I grew a second head? And what happened to your face?”
Axel’s lips twitch into a full smile, all teeth. “You shifted.”
The words hit me like a bucket of ice water, instantly clearing the fog from my brain. “Holy crap!” I bolt upright, nearly smacking my forehead against Hudson’s chin.
“I shifted!” The reality sinks in, and I can’t help the giddy laugh that bubbles up from my chest. After years of thinking I was broken, defective, unable to connect with my inner wolf.
I feel different. Like my senses have been cranked up.
The light streaming through the windows is brighter, more vivid.
I can hear the heartbeats of everyone in the room…
and the smells. Oh god, the smells. Axel’s woodsy scent with hints of metal and gunpowder.
Ethan’s clean, herbal aroma. Oli’s sweet, earthy smell. And Hudson’s refreshing pine.
“Wait—How big? I felt pretty small besides Hudson’s wolf. Was I awesome? I bet I was awesome.”
The guys exchange glances, and something passes between them that makes my excitement falter.
“You’re not a wolf, Luna,” Hudson says gently.
I blink. “What? Then what am I?”
“A cat.”
“A what?”
“You’re a cat shifter.”
“A cat?” My mind racesas I try to put the puzzle pieces together. “Like a lioness? A jaguar?”
That would be cool. Different, but cool.
Hudson shakes his head, his expression maddeningly gentle. “More like a domestic cat.”
“A domestic cat?” I repeat dumbly. “Like… meow, meow, litter box, yarn ball?”
“A very pretty one,” Ethan adds, as if that helps. “Silver, like your hair.”
“And extra soft,” Oli pitches in, adds. “Just like me… Not that I petted you or anything.” His cheeks turn red.
I look down at my hands, half expecting them to have transformed into paws.
A cat. Not a wolf. After all this time thinking…
“But that’s not possible,” I argue. “My parents were wolves. My name is Luna, for God’s sake. Who names a cat shifter after the moon?”
Another loaded glance bounces between the men.
“Why are you all looking at me like that?” I demand. “And why are you sniffing me? Cut it out!”
Axel moves closer, inhaling deeply. “You smell different, Wildcat.” His voice drops to a husky rumble that vibrates through my newly sensitive hearing.
“Different, how?”
“Like…” He seems to struggle for words, which is unusual for blunt, say-it-like-it-is Axel. “Like sugar and fire.”
I choke on air. “Excuse me?”
Hudson clears his throat. “Luna, there’s something I need to tell you—”
The door of the room crashes open. Damien stands there, chest heaving, eyes wild. For once, he’s not looking at me with contempt.
“Conrad’s here,” he pants. “The guards we stationed around the perimeter are dead.”
The atmosphere in the room changes instantly. Gone are the love-struck expressions, replaced by hard focus.
“How the fuck did he find us?” Ethan curses.
“How many?” Hudson demands.
“At least fifteen. Armed.”
“Shit.” Hudson turns to Axel. “Get her to safety. Now.”
Before I can move, Axel pulls his T-shirt over his head and tosses it to me. “Put this on. We need to go to the—”
“What’s happening? Why is Conrad here?” I ask, trying to keep up as Hudson grabs my arm and pulls me away.
No one answers.
Hudson leads us down a hallway I’ve never been in before, toward what I assume is a back exit of the lake house. Axel brings up the rear while Damien scouts ahead. The distant sound of glass shattering makes me flinch.
A deafening crack splits the air—gunshots.
What the actual fuck is happening?
The smell hits me next: acrid smoke burning the back of my throat. Not just smoke—I can detect the chemicals in it, the accelerant. My nose wrinkles at the assault.
“They’re setting fire to the place,” Damien hisses.
Hudson’s jaw clenches. “Fuck. We won’t make it. They’re already between us and—”
An explosion rocks the house. The floor beneath my feet vibrates, and I grab the wall to steady myself. My ears ring from the blast.
“Plan B,” he snaps, yanking open what looks like a storage room. Hudson pushes me inside.
“Stay here. Don’t make a sound. We’ll come back.”
“You can’t just leave me—”
Before I can say more, they’re gone, the door shuts firmly behind them. I stand frozen in the darkness, my heart hammering so loudly I’m sure it can be heard throughout the house.
The sounds of fighting grow louder: crashes, gunshots, shouts, growls.
I back away, bumping into shelves. My hand closes around something solid, a flashlight. It’s not much of a weapon, but it’s better than nothing.
The minutes drag by like hours.
And then, silence.
The doorknob turns.
I raise the flashlight, ready to swing.
The door opens, and a man I’ve never seen stands there.
Not Hudson. Not Axel nor Ethan, Oli nor Damien. He’s wearing tactical gear, a gun holstered at his side, his eyes are cold and assessing, finding me instantly in the dark.
“Found her!” he shouts over his shoulder, then turns back to me with a smile that makes my blood freeze. “You’re coming with us.”
I swing the flashlight as hard as I can. It connects with his shoulder—not his head, where I was aiming—and he grunts, more annoyed than hurt.
“Cute,” he says, grabbing my wrist and twisting until I drop my makeshift weapon. “Boss said you might be feisty.”
I kick out, aiming for his groin, but he sidesteps. My scream is cut short when he clamps a hand over my mouth.
“We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” he growls in my ear.
I choose the hard way, sinking my teeth into the flesh of his palm. He curses, loosening his grip just enough for me to wrench free and bolt for the door.
I make it three steps into the hallway before strong arms wrap around my waist, lifting me off my feet.
“Hudson!” I scream, fighting like a wild animal. “Axel!”
No answer. Just the crackle of flames and the rough hands dragging me backward.
“Your wolves aren’t coming to save you,” the man holding me laughs, his breath hot against my neck. “They’re a little busy trying not to die.”
“No!” I twist and claw, my nails catching skin and drawing blood.
A second man appears, grabbing my thrashing legs. Between them, they carry me down the hall, through the smoke-filled living room where furniture lies overturned, glass shattered.
“Let me go!” I scream, my voice raw, eyes searching desperately for any sign of the guys. “Put me down!”
“The boss wants you,” one of them says.
They drag me toward the front door. The last thing I see before they pull me outside is a flash of white fur through the smoke—Hudson, in wolf form, fighting off two other wolves.
“Hudson!” I scream one last time.
He turns, eyes meeting mine for a split second before one of my captors slams the door shut, cutting off my view.
And then I’m outside, still fighting, still screaming, as they drag me away from the only people who have ever made me feel like I belong.
The one holding my legs falters as I kick, and my legs hit the gravel.
It tears at my bare feet as the first man continues to drag me across it, but the pain is nothing compared to the razor-sharp panic slicing through my chest. Ten feet ahead, a black SUV idles.
I catch flashes of movement through the lake house windows.
My guys are in there. My guys are dying in there.
“Stop fighting,” the taller of my two captors grunts as my elbow connects with his ribs. “You’re just making this harder on yourself.”
“Go to hell,” I spit, twisting my body like a snake. Axel’s oversized shirt rides up my thighs, but dignity is the least of my concerns right now.
“She’s got claws.” He says as he bends to grab my legs again.
“I’ll show you claws,” I hiss, raking my nails down the side of the face nearest to me.
He yelps, loosening his grip on my arm just enough for me to wrench it free. I use the momentum to slam my bare heel down on the first guy’s instep. He curses, his grip slackens for a fraction of a second.
It’s enough. I twist free, stumbling forward before regaining my balance.
“Grab her!” someone shouts.
I dart between two parked SUVs, my mind racing as fast as my heart. The lake house is maybe fifty yards away, smoke now pouring from multiple windows.
I make a break for it, zigzagging between vehicles. Footsteps pound behind me. A hand grazes my shoulder, but I duck, changing direction. The smoke from the house stings my eyes and clogs my throat, but I push forward.
“Luna!” a voice calls. Female, familiar.
I risk a glance back. A woman in tactical gear stands by the SUV, her face half-hidden by a mask. She’s holding something small and black in her hand, pointing at the house.
“Get down!” she shouts.
I don’t listen. I can’t. All I can think about is getting back inside, finding Hudson, Axel, Ethan, Oli… hell, even Damien. They’re the closest thing to family I’ve had since—
Hands grab me from behind, spinning me around. It’s the man whose face I scratched, blood trailing from four parallel lines down his cheek.
“Got you, bitch,” he snarls.
I drive my knee up, aiming for his groin. He blocks it, but the movement throws him off balance. We both stagger, and for a critical moment, his grip loosens.
I tear away, breaking into a full sprint toward the house.
“Luna, stop!” the woman calls again.
Twenty yards. Fifteen. I can feel the heat from the fire now, and I see flames licking up the sides of the building. The smoke is thicker here, making me cough.
Ten yards. Five.
A figure appears in one of the ground-floor windows—tall, muscular. My heart leaps. It’s Axel. He sees me, his eyes widening. His mouth forms my name, though I can’t hear it through the glass. He turns, shouting something to someone behind him.
I’m almost at the side door. My hand reaches for the knob.
The world explodes.
One second, I’m reaching for the door; the next, I’m airborne, heat and force slamming into me. The sound is beyond description—a roar that seems to come from everywhere and nowhere, so loud it’s almost silent, a pressure crushing my eardrums.
I fly backward, my body weightless for a terrifying moment before gravity reclaims me. The impact of hitting the ground knocks the air from my lungs. My head cracks against something hard, and stars burst across my vision.
For several seconds—or maybe minutes, I can’t tell—I just lie there, unable to move, unable to process. My ears ring, a high-pitched whine that drowns out all other sound. Warmth trickles down the side of my face. When I touch it, my fingers come away red.
I roll onto my side, trying to push myself up. The world tilts and spins. Through blurred vision, I look toward where the lake house stood.
It’s gone.