Page 209 of His Fated Luna

At once I got a feeling of foreboding from just looking at it. The gold pendulum wasn’t moving, but the clock kept ticking, keeping time. Aria opened the back of the clock, showing them the various gears embedded in the back.

“What is that?” I queried.

“I found it in my travels,” Aria revealed. “It was found in an ancient witch's coven excavation site before I came here. Judging from the pictures drawn in the witch's tomb this was extracted from, it has something to do with the ability to change things that happened in the past.”

The raven-haired witch looked at me expectantly.

“You want me to figure it out by talking with the ancestors,” I deduced.

Aria nodded eagerly. “It’s an amazing discovery for us. It would be wonderful to know how to use it. I could present it at our next convention.”

I took the clock and decided to do some sleuthing of my own. My interest had definitely been piqued. Aiden took the clock from me, looking at it carefully. I didn't miss the tiny gleam in his eye as he ran a finger across the edges of the time piece.

Rose's POV

It was the first time I’d be conversing with the elders since becoming mated to Aiden again. He had only just mated and marked me a few days ago. So, when Ifelt the burst of warmth at my fingertips, it was comforting. Like I was meeting old friends again. And they all wanted to know the reason for such a long absence. I went into detail, explaining everything about Alistair’s plot and the events following it.

“The EIA report is in a false bottom in the safe in Aiden’s room,” Alpha Austin supplied the information. “The original must have been lost in my accident, but I left a copy there. It was the only place no one else except Josie had access too. Tell Aiden to get it submitted so our lands will be safe.”

I started a little bit, recalling that I'd opened the safe multiple times to get out the expensive jewelry Josie had insisted on handing down to me as heirlooms.I'd never thought to look there in a million years.

“Now our lands have joined with the Silver Creek Pack, yes?” Diane’s abrupt voice entered the fray.

“We should merge the pack names, for unification purposes,” another voice spoke up.

“No! We should make them change their pack name to ours!” A third older and gruffer voice spoke up.

I hesitated before telling them Aiden’s decision.

“Aiden decided to let Dylan rule the Silver Creek Pack. He doesn’t want to alienate them further or make them feel like they’re being punished for Alistair’s mistakes. They will maintain their pack autonomy, but Aiden has final veto on major decisions. He’s merged the training sessions so that the two packs will train together from now on. Once Dylan is older, he can take over the Silver Creek Pack formally.”

A few ancestors grumbled. But Alpha Austin voiced pride in his son’s decision.

“I think for now, that’s the best decision,” Alpha Austin spoke.

“I have an ancient witch relic in my possession,” Ifinally informed the elders. “It’s a grandfather clock as big as my forearm. There are round gears in the back each labeled, year, month, and day.”

There was a collective gasp from some of the ancestors. Others were blank.

“You must make sure it does not get into the wrong hands. Hide it away!” Diane screamed so loudly I thought my eardrums might start to bleed.

“It’s a time traveling artifact,” I said to Aiden and Tony, setting it down on the table in front of them. “You turn the gears clockwise to go forward, counterclockwise to go back in time.” I looked at Aiden gravely, and I moved the gear for years in ten full rotations to demonstrate. “Imagine what one could do with an ability like that. But it only takes you forward or backward for twenty-four hours. Then when it brings you back to the present time, one day has already passed. If you’re alive in the future you choose to visit, for the sake of paradox avoidance and there being two yous in one specific time, your consciousness travelsinto your future or past self. Your consciousness or…soul ends up switching places with your present and past selves.”

"And if you're dead in the time you wish to travel back to...or forward too?" Aiden asked.

"Then your entire body either makes the trip or the device glitches and doesn't take you all the way," Iconfirmed. I bit my lip. "It's a really risky venture, using this. I suspect it’s why it was buried away with the witch in her tomb.”

“Oh, hell.” Tony shook his head. “Think of it, you could travel to the future, at any point in time really, and find out about stocks hitting all-time highs.” He whistled. “A person could amass a fortune from investments doing this.”

“Or…” Aiden began resolutely. “Someone could go back in time and fix their mistakes.”

His eyes were hard as he stared at the clock.

I bit my lip. No wonder the elders wanted it hidden away. They warned that this was all risky business and highly addictive. People would start trying to control their own destinies if this device became public knowledge. Aiden seemed to be living proof of that.

“No one’s doing anything with this,” I spoke up firmly. “It’s too risky... to mess with time. The past is supposed to remain the past, and the future is meant to be unknown. And if it got into the wrong hands, think what havoc they could wreak.” I looked at Aiden. “What if someone like Alistair or Evercore got a hold of it?”

“Alistair had a massive stroke according to his daughter. He’s in no position to do anything,” Aiden argued.