The Luna’s Choice

Chapter 259: Ayla

“When did Alpha Kingston say he was bringing the other stone?” Sister Mona asked as we waited in one of the rooms in the cellar for Theo.

“He’ll be here two days before the solstice,” I informed her. “He didn’t want to return sooner in case it drew too much attention to him moving it. Besides, he has things to take care of in his own pack. He was here too long.”

“And you’re sure he still has it?” she asked.

She had been worried about Kingston’s half of the Moonstone ever since he left. I don’t know what had changed but she seemed suspicious of something.

“You keep asking about Kingston and the stone,” I pointed out. “Why are you so concerned he won’t be here with it? He’s one of our biggest supporters.”

“Is he?” she asked.

“Why are you asking?” I snipped, getting a little annoyed.

Seeing my change in attitude, Sister Mona sighed. “My apologies. I know you and Alpha Kingston were close.”

“Yes, and he’s a good man,” I insisted. “He understands full well how important this is. I know he will be here. What I don’t know is why you seem to think he won’t be.”

“It’s not that I don’t believe he will bring it,” Sister Mora said. Her

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brow furrowed as she searched for the words to explain. “Before he left, I felt a dark cloud around him. Something changed. Something shifted with him and he seemed conflicted.”

“He was upset that he was at a dead end with finding Grogan,” I said. “He’s one of the main perpetrators of the Onyxcrown massacre. There’s a lifelong vendetta there. So it’s no surprise he seemed upset.”

“I suppose you’re right,” she said. “But I suppose this Grogan character is another concern we should be worried about.”

“Yes, we are aware,” I said. “that’s why Kingston is taking every precaution when bringing the stone over. He will keep us and we will keep you informed throughout the entire process. But it won’t matter much if we don’t learn what it is Theo and I are even supposed to do to get the stones back together.”

I was indicating the reason we were there. We were meant to be going over the ritual so we would be prepared. We were just waiting on Theo to come back with our half of the Moonstone. Which he walked in right at that minute carrying the metal box that held the stone. He paused for a moment, feeling the slight tension in the room.

“Everything okay?” he asked, eyeing me curiously.

“Everything is fine,” I said. “Just voicing some concerns about the ceremony and upcoming move.”

“Ah, yes,” he replied. “We’ll get all the logistics sorted out with the Moon Haven move right after the ceremony. How do the rest of the sister’s feel about rejoining wolf society?”

His tone was cheerful as he sat next to me, giving me a kiss on the

–

temple. He had been in such a wonderful mood lately. It was hard not to adopt the same excitement.

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“They are quite pleased with the suggestion, actually,” she said with a bright smile. “Most of them at least. They are all packing and preparing for the move as we speak.”

“That’s good to hear,” Theo replied. “Now, what are we supposed to be doing with this thing on the solstice?”

Theo turned the key to the box and opened it up. Resting on a black velvet cu shion inside was a red stone. It wasn’t faceted like a gemstone but still translucent. Almost like glass. However, it was more than evident that this stone was far more than just simple glass. There was a feeling a sense of power that radiated from it that was impossible to miss when standing close to it.

–

–

“We’ve designated the spot where you two will stand,” Sister Mina explained. “It is important that you are outside in the open so that you are completely under the eclipse. The ritual has to happen during the totality period. Luckily, that should give us about and hour, so we have some wiggle room. The most important part is that you perform the blood offering within that time.”

“Blood offering?” Theo repeated.

“The Moonstone was created using the blood of your ancestors,” Sister Mina stated. “That is why your families have such a strong connection to it. It will take both of your bloods to reconstitute it.”

“That’s no big deal,” I replied. It wasn’t any different than what I had done for the blood oath to the other pack leaders.

“That’s it?” Theo asked. “That seems pretty easy considering how difficult it seemed to pull it apart in the first place.”

“Well, the stone was meant to be one,” Sister Mona pointed out. “However, I fear it does sound more simple than it may be in reality.

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You both will have to hold the stone entirely uninterrupted until it becomes one again. No one can touch you. You can’t move from your spot. And your blood must flow for however long it takes.”

Theo and I looked at each other.

“But we heal too fast,” I said.

Sister Mona nodded. “Yes, a small dose of wolfsbane will be necessary to counteract that.”

I fidgeted a little. “One problem with that,” I replied. “I’m immune to wolfsbane. It won’t have the same effect.”

“Oh,” Sister Mona breathed. “Oh dear. I guess we will need to find another option. I would hate for you to have to continuously cut yourself to get through this. I’m not sure how long it will actually take.”

Theo muttered something under his breath.

“What was that?”

“Mina said Lloyd killed himself using some kind of poison that Harry had developed,” he explained. “It was some kind of wolfsbane hybrid. She said he died of massive internal bleeding.”

“We don’t want that much of her blood, Alpha,” Sister Mona interjected.

“Of course not,” Theo said. “He took a huge, unadulterated dosage. But all of his research on it was with his stuff. We can have Mina and the pack doctor take and look and see if it could be a safe alternative. It would make sense that that was Harry’s reason for creating it in the first place. He was looking for the stone’as is was.”

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“Yeah, he wouldn’t have known there were two pieces that had to be united,” I pointed out.

“Couldn’t he?” Theo replied. “There was already so much he knew that

we had no idea about.”

He was right. It did make sense.

“Okay,” I agreed. “Let’s check it out.”