Bound by the Moon (The Ancients Series Book 4) (9 page)

I focused on the cave where I always saw the wolves, the dais they stood upon, and even the willow tree that had grown since I first conceived my daughter. I wondered if the tree actually stood in the cave, or if it was just a shadow in the realm of the dead. I drifted deeper into sleep as I continued my musings about the wolves and the cave itself, eventually I did find myself there, but it was oddly dark, and the normal scent of lavender was missing. The flickering candle light that usually imbued the place with a certain amount of ambiance was no longer present. “What’s going on here?”

“Child, you should not be here.” The white wolves answered.

“But I need answers from you in order to protect...”

“No!” The white wolves hissed, but followed that up with a whisper, “He’s here, and he is of the living and the dead, he can hear our conversations.”

The white wolves, who usually flickered through all the spirits of the past white wolves stilled themselves today before blurring around the edges. “There has to be a way.”

“The only way is to be far from here, now go!” They pushed mentally, but before they managed to knock me out of the dreamscape, I caught an unfamiliar scent on the air. It was almost one of fresh turned earth, pine needles, and underneath it was an almost decay and copper smell. Then I heard the laughter that was definitely all male and nothing to do with finding something humorous. I shut everything else out as I listened trying to hear more. I was trying to hear something that would give me a location, or at least point me in the right direction. When that seemed futile, and only the laughter pervaded my thoughts, I allowed the push the wolves had given me to do its work and wake me up. I came back from the dream world covered in sweat and shaking with fear. I had felt Louis’ essence, and what was worse, he definitely knew exactly who he was looking for now.

WHICH WILLOW

“Jess, is everything ok in here?” My mom poked her head in my bedroom door, and smiled as she watched me push my sweaty hair out of my face.

“Hey, mom. When did you get here?”

“I’ve been having coffee with the girls and the babies downstairs for about twenty minutes or so.”

“You do know coffee isn’t good for babies, right?”

“Always the smartass, Jessica. Of course, I know that. The babies were with us while we had coffee.” She smiled in spite of herself. I came over after Serena filled me in on what you were attempting. I didn’t want to disturb you until I knew you were awake again.” She came over and sat beside me on my bed then. “I heard you gasp all the way from downstairs, what happened?”

I explained to her what happened in my dream vision, and that I needed to try again, because I wasn’t sure if the white wolf guardians were in danger.

“How can they be in danger? They’re already dead.”

“I know, but something was off. I can’t put my finger on it, but they were panicked.”

“Maybe because they knew that Louis would be able to see you and focus his search better?”

“Well, he definitely knows where the portal is. I suppose all he needs now is my blood to open it. Either way, I need to make sure they are okay, and that the portal hasn’t somehow magically come open on its own yet.”

“Are you certain you want to attempt this again? What if he has some magical way of latching on in the dreamscape?”

“What else can I do, mom? We don’t know where he is, and last I heard, Serena was still trying to get Layla here, because her sister won’t talk about the location or anything else unless it’s done in person.”

“Okay, but let me get a hold of your dad first. I want to make sure we have plenty of security before we start.”

“Fine, just keep them outside.”

“Hey guys, sorry to interrupt, but Sierra needs some more diapers and stuff, so I am going to run to town for those and some other things. Is there anything you want to add to my list?”

“Ashley, make sure you take security with you. Louis knows who I am now. It wouldn’t take a leap for them to figure out that they could get to me through you, or someone else I love. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if anything happened to you, because of me.”

“I will, and when I get back you’re going to tell me exactly what the hell went on in that dream of yours.” Concern was written all over her face, and she hesitated before leaving. “You’re not going to try again are you?” I didn’t answer her, which was answer enough. “Please, be careful. You don’t look like it went too well the last time.” She continued to stand there until my mom nodded her assurance.

“I’ve got her covered Ashley. Go get whatever is needed for the house. See Emory Davis at the Old Country Market, and tell her to put it on my tab, and I’ll be in to see her at the end of the week. Ask Sierra to please keep an eye on Willow until I get Jess knocked out, and back in dreamland again too, please.”

“Yes, Ma’am.” Ashley was gone before the words were even out of her mouth.

“Now, do what you need to in order to focus, honey. Let me know when you’re ready.” My mom never hesitated. She knew what was at stake and she wasn’t about to stand in my way of finding out how to make us all safer. I always admired my mom’s ability to be practical, even in the face of danger.

“Thanks mom, I love you!”

“I love you too, now be careful. Try to get the information quickly, and then get out. Do not, under any circumstances, interact with Louis if you see him again.”

“I will do my best to get in and out as quickly as possible.” I went through the same process that I did earlier in the day. I got settled and focused on the white wolves. I pictured every aspect of the cave I could remember, and specifically the dais they always sat upon. I couldn’t fall asleep on my own again though. I was too worried about my previous encounter with Louis. That’s where my mom came in though. Her influence blanketed me with a calming effect that helped me relax and navigate into the dream realm easily. Everything became lighter, my concerns were still there, but only as a reminder, not a crippling worry. My mother’s trick work to get me back into that other-worldly place, but I had to fight my way back through the foggy dreamscape to try to get to the wolves.

A presence hovered just beyond my reach, and pushed back at me through the fog. I could almost taste the panic on my tongue, it was so tangible in the air with each push. It wasn’t Louis. That much I knew, because what I attributed to his essence had actually been attempting to tug me forward to where I wanted to be. He was well aware that I was trying to communicate with my ancestors again.

With each surge forward, I met a wall, and then received push back. It had clearly become a battle of wills and strength that I wasn’t going to win. I was one white wolf going up against ages of ancestors on their turf. With one final push, I was knocked back hard enough that I woke up with a severe headache, and not much else for my troubles.

My room was dark when I awoke, which was troubling in itself. It had barely been midday when my mom put me under. The amount of voices I heard in my house was cause for even more alarm though. Especially since the vast majority of them were male. I had gone to sleep in a house full of women, aside from little baby Jack. It took me a minute to focus my energy, and move beyond my own mushed brain that was currently throbbing in tune with my heartbeat. A voice I didn’t recognized called out as I tried to sit up. “She’s awake.”

“What the fu…” I started, but my mom ran in at that point rambling a bunch of nonsense. The only words I caught were kidnapped and baby. A sense of cold dread washed over me as I looked around to get my bearings. “Wait, what did you just say?”

“We think they were looking for Willow, but they took Jack instead.”

“Who took Jack? Mom, I don’t understand what you’re saying. Where’s Willow?”

“Willow is fine. Your father is with her right now, but I need you to come talk to Sierra, she is beside herself right now.”

“Come talk to Sierra?” I knew I was still a bit foggy from whatever happened to me while I was in the forced dream state, but I still wasn’t fully comprehending. “I don’t understand, Mom, stop.” She was pulling at my arm now, franticly trying to move me somewhere else. I literally had to pull on my white wolf abilities. I let calm wash over and through me, into my mother, so that she would lose the panicked edge, and I could get to the bottom of what was happening. I was basically pulling on her own abilities as she touched me, but reversing them back into her. As soon as I felt her still a bit, I tried to get to the bottom of what was going on.

“Where is Willow?”

“She’s downstairs, in your father’s arms, where I left her.”

“Why didn’t anyone try to wake me?”

“We tried. I tried. Nothing worked.”

“Ashley?” I thought about the fact that she had gone into town earlier, and worried that maybe there was actually more than one victim in all of this.

“She’s fine. They realized Jack was missing when Ashley came back with the diapers for him.”

“How in the hell did someone get inside my house to take a baby?” I let a bit of the angry confusion in me slip out as I spoke this time.

“Calm down.” My mother was pleading with me, and I could feel her influence trying to persuade me to do as she said. I brushed off the attempt easily since I was still connected her ability. Actually, her attempt to control my mood irritated me, considering what had happened.

“Don’t try that again, mom!” I roared as I shot to my feet and surged toward the bedroom door. My mom beat me there, and blocked the way so I couldn’t get by.

“Please, Jess, you need to listen to me first. Your dad stopped by, and when he found out I had you under a deep sleep he took advantage of the fact, and cleared a security team to sweep the house.” My mom continued talking, but I heard none of it as I pushed past her and into the hallway. I ran to Willow’s nursery, and saw Ashley there holding her, and my dad pacing in the corner now. I wondered why he wasn’t downstairs with the baby, as my mom had insisted he was, but then I heard how he shouted at someone on the other end of a phone call. He must have brought the baby to Ashley when he got the call.

“Get out!” Ashley stood, pale-faced, and shocked. She moved like she was going to leave, so I clarified. “Jameson St. Marks, get the hell out of my house, right now!”

Everything stopped. Everyone in the room froze, then collectively turned to stare at me. I’m not quite sure what they saw there, but what I noticed was that fear reflected back from the eyes of everyone standing near me. “Oh. My. God. Jess?” Ashley all but whispered.

“You brought in a security team, against my wishes, while I was asleep? Now, a baby is missing! A baby that I happen to consider family. You are responsible for this.” I knew I needed to get a hold of myself, but that kind of self-control seemed beyond me at that point. “IT COULD HAVE BEEN WILLOW!” I shouted, feeling the flames of heat licking up my face. “GET OUT!” My finger shot out, pointing the way to the nursery door that crashed open with the motion of my hand. My dad flinched in place, and stood there another moment before he hung up the phone, and attempted to walk towards me instead of the door.

“Jess, you need to listen…”

“I don’t need to do anything. You didn’t listen to me, and look what happened!”

“Jess, your eyes!” Ashley hissed. I had no clue what she, or anyone else, was seeing. What I did know was that my sanity was hanging on by a thread. The rage that was stewing inside was crippling beyond measure, and everything I could see from my own vantage point, through my own eyes, was tinged in a green fire. I really needed to get myself in check.

“Give her the note when she calms down.” My father spoke to Ashley this time, not to me. Ashley nodded in agreement, as he left.

“Jess,” Ashley called out to me tentatively after a few minutes. I turned and noticed that she was still hanging back, and seemed to be guarding Willow from me. Yeah, it was definitely time to try to find my inner peace. I knew from stories that the White Wolf of legends had sometimes been known to fly into rages. There were stories about the White Wolf who had taken over by force when it was her time. Those tales were not very friendly. They were also the reason why the next successor didn’t make herself known purposely. I had just gotten a small taste of that feeling, and it scared even me. I was, however, starting to understand why the wolves had said I needed a balancing force in order to be the white wolf successfully. When Mikael was around, he truly was a voice of reason for me. Thinking of him now, and knowing that I never wanted him to see this monstrous side of myself, was one of the things that calmed me down in the moment.

The other thing that calmed me was that I noticed a faint light glow around Willow. “She’s glowing,” I mentioned to Ashley, who looked down in her arms at Willow. “Believe it or not, her glow is the only reason we found her. She was hidden by the blankets that the kidnapper stirred up when they grabbed little Jack. I don’t know how they didn’t see her, but we definitely did. It’s a good thing too, she couldn’t have been getting much air under there.

Things began to click into place as Ashley spoke. “Oh, wow, Natalia…” I whispered as I reached closer to the point where I centered my whole being. “Natalia gave her a way to help herself, if she were in trouble. She didn’t even know what she was doing, but their blessing, the Romanian words, they were about light, and blessings… she built that into my daughter.”

“Jess, you’re not making much sense.”

“It’s okay, Natalia saved my baby. Remind me to tell her all about it. She deserves to know after I freaked out about the blessing the other day.” Ashley was still looking at me like I truly fried my last brain cell, and maybe I had. I would definitely confirm my suspicions with Serena, but I felt it in my bones. The blessing had not only helped hide Willow from the dark ones, but it had helped my family find her before she suffocated under a bunch of blankets too. I walked toward Ashley and took hold of Willow then, needing her close to me.

“What happened, Ash? I went to sleep to try to find this maniac who has been killing our women, and I wake up to find that a baby was taken from my own house. How in the hell did that happen?”