Page 15 of Bound by the Moon (The Ancients #4)

I didn’t bother with the public hug.

Instead, I followed my mom into her bedroom after handing Willow to Mikael.

It took me a moment to realize that Jack was following me as well.

“What are you doing?”

He had the presence of mind to look a tiny bit startled by his own actions, and a little bit more embarrassed by them.

“I don’t know.

Honestly, Jessie, this is really weird for me.

You move, I feel compelled to follow.”

“Well, go protect your other charges right now, and give me a few minutes alone with my mom, please.”

“I really don’t think…”

“Jack, we’re going to work this out, but right now, I need to grieve with my mom, and Willow and baby Jack are out there with a Fiul Sange, a couple witches, and a bunch of werewolves.

I think maybe there’s more danger out there than there could possibly be for me, in here, with my mom.”

“I know.

I know. Ugh.”

He turned, and appeared to be almost pained as he walked back into the other room.

“That’s going to take some getting used to, I think.”

My mom was watching as Jack shut the door behind him, but she didn’t turn to me immediately.

Instead, she picked up one of my father’s shirts that was laying on top of the dresser.

She put it to her face and inhaled deeply.

“I can’t believe he’s gone.”

With that one sentence, she crumpled into a heap on the bed with that shirt clutched to her chest, and she let loose with great big, racking sobs.

“Mom, I’m so sorry.

If I had known…”

I cut myself off, because even knowing that I might be putting my father’s life at risk, there was no way I could leave a helpless baby to die in his place.

My mom threw her warm hand around my own, and just held it there, in mid-air between us. “Don’t.”

That was all she said.

So, I climbed in the her bed behind her, and spooned up to my her backside.

I wrapped my arms around her, and just held on while she sobbed for a while.

I’m not even sure how long we stayed that way, but before long, my mom was asleep, and I remembered that there were more answers needed.

I dislodged myself from my mother as gently as I could, and tucked her plush blanket in around her, before I went back out into the living room.

“Hey, we figured you would be in there with your mom a while.

I was just about to send everyone home.”

Mikael called softly when he saw me.

“It’s okay, please stay, just a little bit longer.”

It was a directive to everyone still present.

“With everything else that happened, I didn’t hear about why you and Asi were back here to begin with.

I mean, the last time we spoke you were still tracking the prisoners down.”

Mikael took hold of my hand, and led me over to the couch so we could sit while we talked.

“Actually, I was so angry when you hung up on me that I threw my phone…”

I heard Asi chuckling from where he was seated in his chair, with Ashley asleep in his lap.

Mikael ignored him, and continued.

“Anyway, me getting frustrated turned out to be a good thing.

Apparently, the stupid hunters have a cloaking ability we weren’t aware of before.”

I saw Gabriel shift uneasily then.

“He had himself and Clarissa cloaked somehow.

We were almost on top of them and wouldn’t have known it if I hadn’t just chucked my cell phone at the guy’s head.”

“We would have thought it was odd that the damn phone bounced off of nothing and broke, but the hunter was so pissed about his head accidentally taking a beating that he lost his focus for a minute, and that’s all we needed.”

Asriel finished for him.

“So, you guys found them by accident?”

I looked back and forth between Asi and Mikael.

Asi offered up a funny little shoulder shrug and a sheepish grin.

Mikael stayed stoic.

“An accident that occurred because you lost your temper with me?”

“Yeah, that’s about the gist of it.”

“Huh,”

I was lost in thought for a second before I was interrupted again.

“What’s ‘huh’ mean?”

Mikael asked.

“Well, apparently, I’m so bad-ass I can solve crimes while solving crimes! I went off to get a baby back, and helped find your escaped prisoners while I was at it.”

I was making fun of this situation, because if I didn’t laugh, I was going to start crying, and I honestly wasn’t sure if I would stop.

I think everyone else was probably feeling a bit of that too, because Mikael didn’t even yell at me for inappropriate laughter this time.

He just shook his head, and joined in.

After I got myself under control again I remembered an important piece to this puzzle.

“Wait, where the hell are they now if you captured them?”

“We dropped them in the hole, under heavy guard, for now.

Once we got close enough to the pack land, it was obvious that it would be difficult to continue on without either losing track of them or just having to kill them altogether.

One of the pack who went with us on the hunt explained that you had a temporary holding facility just on the far border.”

“We hid them well, but it didn’t take long for the dark ones to find us.”

Asi added.

“We had to fight a few stragglers before we got back to your parents’ house.”

Mikael started again.

“I’ll be honest, once we were here, I had a lot more on my mind than the those two down in that hole.

We only got back here a few minutes before Louis did.”

“I have already called those who were left hidden and on guard.

They are alive, well, and continue to do their jobs.”

Asi explained to me.

“So, what are we going to do with them now.

Obviously, the locks won’t hold them, and what we have them in now isn’t good for a long term scenario.

At least, not until we get it fixed up.”

Gabriel shifted on his feet, and then came forward to join the discussion.

“The hunters have a place where they will not be able to escape from.

I think, since the one you have captured knows our system, we will need a witch to help us secure the prison further.”

He turned to Layla then, “would you be willing to come with me to help?”

“Do I have much of a choice? You did, after all, save me from all those big, bad dark ones.”

Layla was mocking him a little bit, but she was also sincere.

She would go and help.

A plan was formed, and the two of them left to go secure the prisoners that we had been incapable of keeping under lock and key ourselves.

“Were there any others? Escapees, I mean.”

“There were only two others who made it topside.

They’ve both been dealt with.”

Mikael told me.

“One was killed, the other was put down the hole with Clarissa and her new buddy.”

“Okay, well, I don’t know about the rest of you, but I am exhausted.”

My mom wandered out into the living room then, and looked over at me then.

“You guys should all go home now.

It’s been a long few days, and everyone can use the rest.

We’ll discuss…”

her voice trailed off for a moment.

“… everything else tomorrow.”

“Mom, why don’t you come to the house with us? I don’t want to leave you here alone.”

“I’ll be fine, Jessica.

I just need some alone time to process everything.”

She jangled a glass in front of her.

“Actually, I was just going to get some water when I realized you all were still here.

I’m getting a drink, and heading back to bed.”

She turned towards the kitchen then, and we all slowly filed out of her house, giving her the space she needed.

“I don’t like leaving her on her own.”

I told Mikael.

“I know, baby, but she needs time.

I get that.”

“You two were there for one another before.

I saw you through the window before we came in earlier tonight.”

“Yeah, well, I was holding onto her, because she was ready to charge off into the mountains to look for you.

She said she needed to know for sure, and she was worried.”

He pulled me close to him then, while trying to avoid smashing Willow, who was in my arms as we walked.

“She didn’t believe you were dead.

She grieved for your father, but she still said she knew you were okay.”

The rest of the short walk to our house was done in silence.

Jack, Sierra, and their baby fell in step behind us along the way while Ashley and Asi veered off to go to their own place.

When we got to our house, Mikael, Willow, and I started inside.

Sierra, holding her own baby, continued walking toward the cottage that she and baby Jack had been living in for the past few months.

Jack, on the other hand, started to follow us up the stairs.

“Whoa there, Jack.”

Mikael called out.

“This is just getting weird.

Sierra is going that way, to her new house.”

“I can’t.

I mean, I don’t think…”

The pained look on Jack’s face made my heart sink a little.

Apparently, this Guardian Wraith business was going to have a mess of its own to be sorted out too.

“Sierra,”

I called out, “why don’t you guys stay here in the guest room for the night?”

The smile on her face was one of thanks in that moment.

I think it would have torn her heart out to have the love of her life, her mate, choose to stay with another woman over her.

“You can use the spare bassinet from the den.”

“Thanks, Jess, I really wasn’t up for being alone tonight with the baby.

I think I’m still worried he’s not coming home, even though he’s in my arms right now.”

“I know.”

I hugged her, and then we all piled into my house together, only going separate ways when Mikael and I continued past the guest bedroom, heading for our own.

“Willow stays in here with us tonight.”

“Of course she does.”

“I don’t think everything has sunk all the way in yet.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, when I wake up tomorrow, everything is going to be different.

My dad won’t be here anymore.

My mom… I don’t know what to do about my mom.

Then there’s Jack.

I wonder if Willow will continue to glow when she’s in danger.

Everything is different.”

“I know, Jess.

We’ll get through it though.

Wait, what did you say about Willow?”

I explained to Mikael what happened with Willow when baby Jack was abducted, and he appeared as concerned as I felt when I first found out about it.

“That is strange.”

He said to me.

“We’ll definitely keep a look out to see if it happens again.

I think it would be kind of nice to have a safety beacon for our daughter.

If anyone ever tries to hurt her, we’ll know when she starts glowing like a light bulb.

It’s awesome.

I won’t even have to threaten the boys, just remind them that she shines brightly when she’s feeling threatened.”

“You’re unbelievable.

We should definitely talk to Serena about that happening though.

Maybe she can put us in touch with Gwyn, and she can explain what’s going on with that.”

I was thinking out loud as I took my shower.

“That’s tomorrow’s worry though.

Tonight, I just hope my mom makes it through to see tomorrow.

I really dislike leaving her all alone.”

“We’ll get your mom through it baby.

She has Willow to think about now too.

So, if you’re worried that she will fade…”

“No, I don’t think she would fade.

Everything will just be changed, and it’s kind of hard to grasp that.

You know?”

“Not everything has to change, Jess.”

Mikael whispered into my ear as I came to bed, after I got out of the shower, and snuggled deeper under the covers for more warmth.

It seemed like I couldn’t get warm enough since I left the world of the dead.

I supposed that was one of the side effects Aislynn talked about.

Maybe my body temperature had changed.

I was going to wait and see how things played out before I worried anyone with that little bit of news though.

“I’m still here. We still have Willow.”

He pointed to where she was sound asleep in her bassinet.

“We have each other, babe.”

He nuzzled into my neck then, kissing gently here and there, until those kisses dropped to my shoulder.

A warmth I didn’t think I’d ever feel again spread through my body, lighting me on fire from the inside out.

Just his touch, his lips trailing down my body were enough to send me over the edge the first time.

I was hyper aware of every little kiss, caress, and then…

The bedroom door burst open, and a very naked Jack was standing there, looking around for something to attack.

“What’s wrong?”

He yelled out.

“Besides the fact that you just interrupted my mate and I in an intimate moment?”

Mikael growled out.

“Not to mention you’re still standing there completely naked!”

“Oh shit.”

Jack looked down at us on the bed, and then at himself, as he turned away quickly.

“I’m sorry.

I don’t know why…”

He was mumbling to himself now.

“Her heart rate was erratic, and I thought she was in trouble.”

He must have been trying to explain to Mikael, which was cute. “Shit!”

Jack moved back out of our room, and shut the door.

I could still hear him cussing all the way back to the guest room.

“Yeah, we are definitely going to have to get that under control sooner, rather than later.”

“I kind of like it,”

I whispered in his ear.

“Oh? You like Jack running in here naked while I’m trying to make love to you?”

“No, it just means you’re going to have to up your game, and practice a lot so Jack knows what to expect, and not to barge in.

I like the practice aspect on our parts.”

Mikael burst out laughing then.

“I suddenly feel sorry for the guy.

Poor Jack is going to be in for a stroke trying not to come to your rescue every time I get that heart of yours fluttering.”

“Mmm, less talk, more flutter.”

I pulled the blanket back a little and pushed Mikael to head back to what he was doing before we were so rudely interrupted.