His Miracle Mate: Rise of the Moon Children

Chapter 49

There was no air. Every breath I took turned into needles in my lungs.

I lost some time after Vlad's announcement that my parents and Zane were gone. All I remembered was a blur of movements, magic surrounding me, and a painful, endless void inside my heart. I had the absurd notion that if I peeked inside my rib cage, there would be nothing but a throbbing hole where the organ used to be.

Someone was calling my name. It sounded far away, coming from a place where there was no pain. An ocean of it roiled around me. The voice pulled me out of the water, only for the waves to pull me under and rob me of air once more.

My magic was everywhere, surrounding me in an attempt to keep me safe from the throbbing pain. Except it could do nothing to shield me. So it tried to find more power elsewhere, thinking that more would help cease the suffering, that it would bring Ezra back.

"Orla!"

My eyes shot open with a gasp. Zyron, Wren and Hale hovered over me. We were moving. The thrum of the engine was a physical anchor, giving me something to focus on so I wouldn't surrender to the lure of unconsciousness again, where It hurt less to even breathe.

I could no longer feel Ezra. My magic pulled again. Wren, Zyron and Hale all gritted their teeth. And I realized I was pulling magic from everywhere around me, including them.

As the thought registered, I shoved the foreign energy out despite my magic's urge to cling to it. Giving it away was easier this time compared to earlier. I was learning.

"Sorry," I breathed out, my voice scratchy. I sat up and rubbed the ache in my breastbone.

Now that I was used to the terrible pain of an empty bond, I realized that the bond was still there, but instead of Ezra's powerful, reassuring presence on the other end, there was nothing but a black hole.

He was still alive. I just had to believe he had to be, otherwise I wouldn't be able to function.

We were in the back of one of the pack vans. Someone had laid a blanket on the van floor, and I was laying on it. Zyron's hand squeezed my shoulder, his and Wren's eyes full of terrified hope.

"Ezra?" Zyron asked.

"He's still alive," I said with more reassurance than I felt.

Wren closed her eyes and slumped against the side of the van.

"I got a link from Sam," Zyron said. "They kidnapped Ezra. They must've dosed him with something for the bond to go dormant."

"Probably that damn blood powder," Hale grumbled. He held a bloodied rag against one ear. He removed it and threw it aside, revealing a ravaged mess where his ear used to be. There was nothing left of it, only torn tissue and red, angry welts.

He saw me looking and gave me a smile. "It'll grow back. Not silver, just a bastard's claws."

I gave a shuddering breath. "Okay," I mumbled, feeling almost numb now. Lost.

Ezra isn't there.

Stop thinking about it.

"Sam?" I reminded Zyron.

"Right. He managed to get one of the witches alive. It was a bloodbath. The guards we sent with them managed to hold back the Coalition backup. We didn't lose anyone, but most are seriously hurt. They're back in the pack right now, with three young children. The Blood children."

"Three? I thought there was only one."

"They kept three blood children apparently," Wren rumbled. "We're congregating in the pack. This whole thing just turned into a shitshow."