I wondered who Bryan had lost in that rebellion to cause such emptiness in his dark eyes.
— Tell me what happened after the rebellion, about the curse, how it happened.
Bryan rubbed his forehead, a deep mourning took over the male’s face as he began to say:
The attack caught our pack completely unprepared, we were not prepared to fight. I remember the blood, suffering and death that filled our lands, the dead bodies on the ground, groans of pain and agony echoed through the air. The rebellion broke the Crescent wolves.
I blinked to keep tears from my eyes.
— When the rebels announced that the Alphas of the pack had been killed it was as if our last remnant of hope had been lost amid the bloodbath. I remember the satisfaction of the rebellious wolves as they witnessed the carnage, taking pride in the massacre they made. After the death of Mikael and Ellen Labonair, everything calmed down, as if their murder was the main objective of the attack, ending their bloodline.
I felt Madison’s warm hand holding mine, trying to give me some comfort.
Are you all right, ma'am?
— Go on, please— I asked with a broken voice.
Bryan scratched his throat before proceeding:
— The witch met us a few hours later, we were weak, in a few numbers, we did not even have time to bury our dead and perform the ritual of burial, there were so many wounded, male and female in pieces and injured children.
The witch then cast the curse on the entire lineage that trampled the lands of the Crescents at that time, trapping us in the form of a wolf, except on the days of Full Moon when we turned into humans for a few hours.
On the Moon! How did Aiden still refuse to help our people? I would kill to protect them and prevent further misfortunes from falling on those in my pack.
— What do you know about this witch?
— I heard that her name is Celeste, one of the few survivors of one of the original clans, the Deveraux, owner of immense power and a great feeling of hatred for the Crescents.
I faced Madison next to me.
Is there any way to break that curse?
The look of sadness on the witch’s face almost shattered me.
— Jack has been searching for a solution for years, but I would need the curse the witch cast on the wolves to find a way to reverse it. The only one capable of breaking the curse is the witch Celeste herself.
It was difficult to keep hope at a time like that, when the chances of helping my people were small, almost nil. I had to find a witch who hated the Crescents and disappeared ten years ago, no one had found anything of her in the last decade. My chest tightened in longing for a certain grumpy and stubborn wolf, but that would probably help me think of some solution to that problem.
— There are rumors, nothing concrete, that there are some clans of witches visiting New Orleans for the next Blood Moon.
I frown at it.
— Why?
— The night of the Blood Moon is a magical night, you as a Labonair certainly know it. They say witches use the magic of the red moon to perform rituals and sacrifices to the ancestors. New Orleans is an ancient land that exudes power, perhaps there is a possibility of finding some sign about Celeste.
I took my hands to my tired face.
— I can try some locating spell using the magic of the Blood Moon night, but I need time.
Shit. The Blood Moon would be in a few days, and apparently I’d be stuck in New Orleans trying to find the missing witch.
— Are you sure you want to get involved in this? — I asked with uncertainty.
Madison smiled lightly at me.
— You’re part of the family now, Hayley, I’ll do my best to help my new sister.
My eyes filled with water, I fought not to cry, it was not the right time. I pulled a deep breath into my lungs and stared at Bryan.
— I’m not leaving New Orleans until I find a way to help the pack, I swear on the Crescent blood in my veins, I’m not leaving them.
Bryan carried his fist closed to his heart, his dark irises glowing with emotion.
— You are a ember of light and hope reborn to brighten our dark days, Arabella Labonair.
HAYLEY BLAKE
A week after our arrival in New Orleans, I finally gathered the courage to face what I had been running for years, to step into my old home, in the lands where I lived throughout my childhood, the place where I last saw my parents alive before they were killed in cold blood before my eyes.
At Isaac’s insistence, we settled in the residence of the Supreme located in the French Quarter, Clary did not complain of the hot water of the shower or the comfort of the beds of the rooms. However, every day, I spent a few hours at the Bayou, talking to the wolves, even though I knew they could not respond aloud, but it was nice to be among the family again.
The grip on my chest intensified as my eyes drifted unfocused into the empty and lonely territory that was once home to a powerful and strong family, a united people that was torn apart. I could almost hear the laughter of the children running through the wind among the trees, the natural smell of wildlife there, everything reminded me of my past that was lost in the dark.
I stepped on the damp earth, walking on the ground covered with leaves and dry branches. The cold morning shivered my skin, the sunlight did not reach that part of the forest, no sound or life was detected by my senses. I took the trail to the left that I knew would take me to the center of the territory, the old home of the Alphas of the pack, my old home.
A trembling sigh left my lips when I stopped before the old two— story building aged due to time, to pieces, the memory of a family that lived happily there until we were separated by cruelty and revenge. I bent down in front of the house and caught an old doll thrown on the floor, my eyes burned in tears that I did not fight to prevent from dripping down my face.
I pressed my lips, suffocating a cry, but it was in vain, tears descended with intensity, washing the wounds I carried in my soul, every wound caused by the pain of the loss of my parents, persecution, betrayals and rebellion.
As if it were a gift from heaven, the sunlight directly hit my face, warming me like a tender kiss that my mother used to give me every night as she put me to bed. As I closed my eyes, I could swear to see her running down the halls of the house behind me, Dad’s proud smile at us, Aiden’s joyful laugh.
A familiar smell caught my eye. I opened my eyes as I passed the back of my hand over my wet cheek and looked back, the sun now lit up a part of the clearing, in the exact place where my brother watched me with bright eyes.
— Aiden?
— Hey, hey, Bella, huh?
My throat closed when I heard Aiden call me by the affectionate nickname he gave me as a child. Since the rebellion, I had never heard him mention that name again. I stood up and practically ran up to him, throwing myself into my brother’s arms, sobbing on his shoulder. Aiden squeezed me tightly, letting out a deep sigh as she caressed my hair. When I managed to calm down, I swallowed a breath of air, seeking to maintain control.
— What are you doing here? — he asked me, drying my face tenderly.
— I needed to do what I didn’t have the opportunity to do twelve years ago, say goodbye to our parents.
Aiden’s throat moved, he held my hand, tying our fingers in a firm grip.
Let’s do it together.
Aiden stood beside me when we looked one last time at our home, that was no longer our home, one day was, but no more. In order to finally move forward and let go of the past, we needed that goodbye that took more than a decade to finally happen.