Resisting the Moon: A Royal Shifters Novel (23 page)

I turned to Amelie. “Are you okay?”

She nodded. “I’ll be fine. You?”

“No. I can’t hear Sebastian. Where is he?”

Amelie’s face fell and she turned her head, her gaze meeting something across the room. She sucked in a breath. It was Sebastian, I could smell him. I quickly turned to find him and wished I hadn’t. He was slung over Stefan’s shoulder. Walking up to us, he threw him on the floor in front of me, and I screamed.

“Sebastian!”

The others laughed as I stood there, screaming for him to wake up. He wasn’t dead, but by the looks of him he could very well be soon. No wonder why I couldn’t hear him. His face was burnt, like he’d been soaked in liquid wolfsbane.

I turned to Amelie, my voice unrecognizable to my own ears. “What did they do to him?”

“It wasn’t them, it was her,” she said, nodding toward Laila. “I heard some of the others talking. They knew that if Sebastian could see you up here, it’d ruin everything. Jaret doesn’t want him dead yet.” I could only imagine what his plans were for Sebastian.

Jaret turned our way and he grinned, his strides slow and confident. “You’re right, I don’t want him dead,” he said as he walked up to her. “I want him alive long enough to watch me fuck his mate on the next full moon. That way, when we kill him, it’ll be the exact moment she becomes mine. There’s no sweeter revenge.”

The thought made me sick.

“What happens to me?” Amelie asked.

Stefan walked up behind him and whispered something in his ear. His eyes went wide and he smiled. “Excellent. I guess it’s time to get the party started.” Ignoring Amelie, he turned around and lifted his hands in the air, grabbing everyone’s attention. “Looks like we’re about to have some company. Want to make his welcome worthwhile?”

The energy in the room spiked. Were they talking about Finn? Was he coming for us? I glanced down at Sebastian, my whole body warring with itself. On one hand, I was devastated and scared, but on the other, I was pissed and ready to go out with a bang. I didn’t want to lose him.

“Sebastian, please wake up. I need your strength.”

Jaret circled us and then stood behind me, burying his nose in my neck. He snaked his arms around my waist and chuckled in my ear. “How does it feel to know you’re the one who brought him to his death?”

“Sebastian’s a lot stronger than you think.”

“I’m not talking about him.”

Right then, I knew. Finn was walking into a trap and he probably already knew. It was a suicide mission. “What did you do?”

“It was simple really. We took your clothes and left them with a note at Amelie’s house. We told him if he didn’t come alone, we’d rip you apart. My guys said he’s almost here.” He was telling the truth. I could smell Finn slowly approaching, with no one by his side. It was going to be him against eight wolves.

Jaret moaned in my ear and cupped my breast, squeezing it through my shirt. “Looks like he needs a little encouragement.” He snapped his fingers at his men and two of them stalked over to Amelie.

“Don’t you fucking touch her,” I shouted.

Jaret jerked my head to the side and growled. “They’re going to do more than that, sweetheart. But it’s nowhere close to what I’m going to do to you.” He grabbed the back of my shirt and ripped it off.

I screamed as his teeth bit into my neck, his fangs tearing through my skin. The pain was excruciating, the blood flowing like crimson rivers down my chest. All throughout the room, eyes glowed and the energy spiked. However, there was one person I could feel more than the rest.
Finn.
He was there.

“Let them go,” he yelled, appearing at the door.

Jaret ripped his teeth out of my flesh and laughed. “It’s about time you showed up.”

Finn met my gaze, his jaw clenched tight. He knew he was going to fight to the death. Tears slid down my cheeks as I glanced from him to Sebastian, lying motionless on the floor. They weren’t going to let us go, it was never in the cards.

Finn held out his arms, marching right into the middle of the barn. “I’m here and I’m alone. It’s what you wanted, right? Now take your revenge and let them go.”

Jaret’s men surrounded him. “The bitches are mine, Olcan. They’re not going anywhere.” He took off his shirt and tossed it on the ground, meeting Finn in the center. “You and I, however, are going to finish this once and for all.”

Finn’s eyes flashed. “Have it your way.” Turning on his heel, he pushed through the others to march outside, ripping off his shirt.

Once they’d left the barn, the sound of howls filled the night air. I looked over at Amelie, who had blood dripping down both sides of her neck. She hissed in pain, but I could see the strength in her eyes. She was ready.

“We have to get out of here and help them,” I said. “I can’t let Finn fight my battle, not again. If I can just get down to Sebastian, he’ll be okay.” Amelie nodded, but then her gaze landed on something to the other side of me. A small smile spread across her cheeks and I froze.

“Not unless I get to you first,” Sebastian murmured in my ear. Gasping, I turned my head, but he placed a finger on my lips. “Don’t say anything. We don’t want anyone to hear us.” His eyes flashed and he growled when he saw my neck. He freed me from the ropes and pulled me into his arms.

“I don’t understand,” I cried, running my hands all over his face and chest. I missed the way it felt to be in his arms. But something had happened. His face was free of burns, and his energy was stronger than before. I could feel him in my mind; the link was open.

“Let’s end this,” a voice whispered from behind.

I turned around, ready to fight, only to find Laila cutting Amelie out of the ropes. Amelie even smiled at her. What the hell was going on?

Sebastian turned my face to his. “She’s helping us, love. You can trust her.”

“What happened? Just a few minutes ago it looked like you were close to death.”

“It was a façade, a glamour of sorts. Laila put a spell on me to make me look like that. I was awake the whole time.” His jaw clenched. “Even when that fucker bit you. Hearing your screams about killed me.”

“There was no choice,” Laila interrupted, pocketing the knife in her pants.

Sebastian tore off his shirt and dropped his pants. I started to do the same, but he grabbed my wrist. “Not this time.”

“Have you lost your mind? You need me out there,” I hissed low.

“No, he doesn’t,” Laila said. “The others are here.”

I jerked my attention to her. “Who? There’s no one else here, except Finn, who’s going to get ripped apart if we don’t get out there and help him.”

She huffed impatiently. “Finn’s pack is here. I found him earlier and explained everything. I then used the same spell I put on Jaret’s wolves on his. That way, they could come in undetected. They’re here, ready to fight.”

Growls erupted outside and I heard a yelp. It was Finn. “Come on,” I cried, jerking out of Sebastian’s grasp.

He grabbed my wrists again, his glowing gaze full of heat. “You can’t, Tyla.”

“Why? I fight all the time.”

His gaze shifted to my stomach. “Not while you’re carrying my child, you don’t. I can’t lose you both. I’m not willing to take that risk.”

“This is insane. You’re not making any sense. Don’t you think I’d know before you?”

“I felt your baby’s energy last night when I gave you that tonic,” Laila confessed. “I thought Sebastian should know what was at stake.”

The more I looked at her, the more everything fell into place. I knew where I recognized her from. “I saw you in Sebastian’s mind. It was a vision many years ago, but you were there.”

She froze and quickly glanced at Sebastian before turning back to me. “It was my mother, not me. We’re running out of time, let’s go.”

Now it was my turn to freeze. She had the same eyes as Sebastian. And as selfish as it may seem, I didn’t want to think of him fathering another child other than our own.

Sebastian clutched my face in his hands. “You need to get out of here.
Go
,” he commanded. “Keep our little one safe.”

“I’ll help protect her,” Amelie promised.

I shook my head. “You can’t.”

She smiled. “I’m not pregnant, Tyla. Laila only told Jaret that to keep me safe. Now let me do this for you.”

Sebastian kissed me and placed his forehead to mine. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

He raced off and shifted mid-air, lunging at a wolf right outside the barn. Amelie shifted and nudged me with her nose. I turned to see Laila rushing to the back door of the barn. She held her hand up to stop us when we approached.

Listening intently, I couldn’t hear anything other than the wolves out front, battling it out. “Where are we going?” I whispered. My wolf itched to break out and fight, and if I had to, I would in a heartbeat.

“My car. It’s in the driveway. If I can get us away from here, we’ll be safe.”

“Why can’t you just shift?”

She lowered her gaze and huffed. “I don’t have that ability. I’m only half wolf.”

“What else are you?”

Her blue eyes turned my way. “Fae. I guess I take more after my mother.” Amelie whined, rubbing her head against her legs and Laila smiled down at her. “Thanks, Am. I’ve wanted to tell you for so long.” Opening the door slightly, she looked around. “I think we’re good. Let’s go.”

We followed her out and bolted toward Jaret’s house. The driveway was around the front and we were almost there. Then a snap in the woods caught my attention. I turned to the noise just in time to see glowing hazel eyes lunging straight for Amelie.

Tyla

“A
melie!” I shouted.

She yelped as Jaret took her down to the ground. Then all was still.

I started to run to her, but Laila jerked me back and jumped over me, her knife poised in the air. She took off at a sprint, heading straight for Jaret, but he turned to face her at the last minute and smacked her with his claws. Flying through the air, Laila landed hard against a tree, the breath leaving her lungs. She gasped and tried to stand, but then fell back to the ground.

Jaret faced off with me, while Stefan shifted and jerked Laila to her feet. He grabbed her knife and held it to her throat, the blade biting into her skin. Jaret shifted and glared at her. “What the fuck are you doing?”

“Saving my friends,” she spat. “They’re my
real
family.”

He scoffed. “How dare you turn your back on me. I’m the one who raised you.”

“No, you used me. And it’s time you paid the price. I’m not going to let you and your father get away with what you’ve done. If he was still alive, I would kill him myself.”

His anger blasted through us. “Traitor! He was
your
father too.”

Tears fell down her face and she shook her head, the knife slicing her throat. Blood ran down her neck and she cried. “He was yours. My father would’ve never done what he did.”

“Move out of the way, Tyla,”
Sebastian said in my mind.

While Jaret focused on Laila, I rushed over to Amelie. Her fur was covered in blood from a deep gash to her stomach. Her eyes were closed but her chest moved up and down, heart racing rapidly. “You’re going to be okay,” I whispered.