LUCIAN’S P.O.V.
Teresa’s scream echoed in my ears long after her words stopped. She was fierce, relentless, her fury like a storm threatening to drown .
"Fix her! Fix her now!" she had demanded, her fists battering against my chest.
I let her hit . I deserved it. Every single blow. Every ounce of pain. And still, I stood there, unmoving, watching as Adrian eventually pulled her away and ended up getting a beating of his own.
"Teresa," I said softly, stepping closer. My voice barely audible over her heavy sobbing. "Please, calm down. There’s a solution."
Her laugh was bitter, almost hysterical. "What are you talking about? A solution? Lucian, you just told our daughter is blind because of witches and demons! What could possibly fix this?"
"The Moon Goddess," I said, my voice steady but heavy.
Teresa’s face contorted with a blend of confusion and disbelief, her eyes narrowing as if she was trying to decipher whether I had finally lost my grip on reality. "The Moon Goddess?" she repeated, her tone dripping with incredulity. "Oh, fantastic. Let’s just toss a goddess into this ss. Why not? Why are there so many mystical creatures orbiting around you, Lucian? It’s like I’ve been dragged into so twisted fantasy novel!" Her voice began to rise, a mixture of frustration and desperation bleeding through. "And who even is this Moon Goddess? And how is she supposed to save my daughter?"
I t her gaze head-on, hoping she could feel the sincerity radiating from . "The Moon Goddess is more than just a deity to us, Teresa. She’s the mother of all werewolves—the one who created us, who guides us, protects us. She’s not so myth or legend. She’s real, and she listens when we call to her. I prayed to her with every ounce of desperation I had—for Mai’s life—and she ca. She appeared to us, Teresa. Adrian and Elizabeth saw her too. She promised to save our daughter."
Teresa’s disbelief deepened, her features hardening as though she was fortifying herself against what she saw as utter nonsense. Her gaze flicked to Adrian, the skeptical tilt of her head daring him to confirm the impossible. "Adrian," she said, her voice sharp and demanding. "Is this true? Did you see this... goddess?"
Adrian, ever composed and unshaken, gave a solemn nod. "Yes, Teresa. I saw her. She was unlike anything I’ve ever witnessed—a presence so profound it was impossible to deny. She radiated a power that transcended anything we could imagine."
Elizabeth stepped forward, her voice gentler but no less firm. "She was there, Miss Teresa. We all saw her. She spoke directly to Lucian. She promised she would help."
But Teresa wasn’t ready to accept it. Her arms crossed tightly over her chest, her stance defensive, her eyes darting between us as if trying to catch a lie. "So what you’re telling ," she said slowly, her voice dripping with sarcasm, "is that this divine being, this sacred moon goddess, just decided to swoop in and help out? Out of the goodness of her celestial heart? How convenient."
"Yes," I replied, taking a step closer, my voice firm and unwavering. "She ca because she heard a father’s desperate plea. She ca because she is real. And, Teresa, she will save Mai. You have to believe that."
Adrian’s voice slid into my mind like a whisper. "Lucian, why aren’t you telling her about the witch spirit in Mai’s eyes? Or that the demon inside you could harm Mai? She deserves to know."
I stiffened but replied silently, "Do you see how she’s looking at , Adrian? Like I’m a monster. If I tell her Mai has a dangerous witch spirit locked in her eyes, she’ll start looking at Mai the sa way, and I can’t let that happen."
Adrian hesitated, then finally relented. "Fine. But you’re walking a dangerous line, Lucian. If she finds out later on, with no guilt whatsoever, I swear, I’ll throw you under the bus."
I refocused on Teresa. "The goddess has asked us all, including Juliette, to et her in two days’ ti at a place called the Forest of Abian, just before 1 a.m. She said she’d heal Mai if we followed her instructions."
Teresa stared at , utterly baffled. "The Forest of Abian? This gets better and better. Fine, Lucian. I’ll go along with your madness. But if, after all this, my baby isn’t cured, I’m taking Mai and Ollie and leaving. I’ll find real help, far away from you and your mystical creatures."
Her words cut deeper than I let show, but I nodded. "It won’t co to that. Trust ."
Adrian, standing beside , spoke with quiet confidence. "It will all be over in two days, Teresa. The goddess will not fail us."
*********
Two days later, the moon hung low in the sky as we gathered at the tree line of my pack’s territory. The cool night air carried an eerie stillness, broken only by the occasional rustle of leaves. Teresa looked nervous, our babies secured to her with wraps, refusing anyone’s help. She adjusted them constantly, her fingers trembling.
Adrian stood a little apart, his normally sharp focus faltering. His eyes darted everywhere, as if sothing unseen was calling to him and he was trying not to focus on it. I frowned and stepped closer. "Adrian, are you okay?"
He gave a faint smile, but his body language betrayed him. "I’m fine," he said coolly, though his tone lacked conviction.
Elizabeth stood beside Adrian, looking sharp and ready for anything.
Juliette, anwhile, was a bundle of nerves, shifting from foot to foot. I turned to her. "What’s wrong?"
She shook her head quickly. "Nothing. Just... anxious, I guess."
I didn’t buy it, but there wasn’t ti to press. I turned to Teresa. "From here on out, we’ll need to travel in our wolf forms. You’ll have to ride on my back."
Her reaction was instant and explosive. "What? Ride on your back? Like a horse?" She looked utterly appalled, her voice rising with every word.
"Yeah," I said, my tone steady and cool. Then, with a faint smirk, I added, "Relax. The demon Raivo’s dormant for now—you’re safe with and Ares." I was about to say sothing else when—
"What on earth made you think I’d ever climb onto the back of a monster?!" she shouted, her voice sharp and unforgiving and my heart plumted like a stone.
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