Moonlight In Chains (Trinity and Asher) novel Chapter 109

CHAPTER 109

The days that followed were quiet, but not the good kind of quiet. It was the kind that made your skin crawl, like something bad was waiting right around the corner.

Arlo still hadn’t been himself. He spoke less, slept even less, and when he did, he tossed and

turned like he was fighting something in his dreams. I tried to sit with him a few times, but half the

time he didn’t even seem to know I was there. The shadow’s pull on him was getting stronger, and

we were running out of time to stop it.

Meanwhile, Asher and I kept a close eye on Lilly. She hadn’t done anything obviously wrong yet–no strange words, no late–night walks into the woods–but something about her felt off. Her smile never reached her eyes, and she always seemed to be listening when no one was talking.

Gage didn’t see it. Or maybe he didn’t want to.

Every time I tried to bring it up, he got defensive.

“She’s not doing anything, Trinity.” He’d said the night before. “You’re just suspicious because of the past.”

“Maybe.” I told him, “but she’s acting too perfect. And that’s what worries me.”

Now, as the sun rose over the training field, Asher and I stood together, watching Gage and Lilly arrive. Gage was laughing, his arm around her shoulder, and she was looking up at him with the

sweetest smile.

“She’s definitely hiding something.” Asher muttered.

I crossed my arms. “Maybe. Or maybe she’s playing the long game.”

He gave me a sideways glance. “You think she’s working with the ones who took Arlo?”

I didn’t answer right away. “I think she knows more than she’s saying. She came back just as the shadows started appearing again. That’s too much of a coincidence.”

We started training. Most of the pack had gathered to work on defense drills, though everyone was distracted. Arlo stood at the edge of the field, helping Dennis check supplies. His movements were slow, mechanical, and he kept rubbing at his wrists like something hurt beneath the skin.

When training ended, Asher pulled me aside. “He’s worse.” He said quietly.

I looked over to where Arlo stood. He was staring off into the forest, eyes distant, like he could see something the rest of us couldn’t.

“I know.” I said. “I can feel it. His energy is fading. The shadow’s taking over.”

Then we need to act before it’s too late” Asher said. “Before he’s gone for good”

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CHAPTER 109

I wanted to agree, but my chest felt heavy. “We don’t even know how to reach him without crossing into the realm again. And we barely survived it last time.”

He stepped closer, lowering his voice. “Then we figure it out.”

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Later that night, we gathered in the library. Gage, Lilly (because Gage insisted), Asher, and I sat around the big table covered in Arlo’s old notes. The candlelight made the shadows dance across

the walls, and the air felt thick with unease.

Arlo wasn’t there. Dennis had ordered him to rest.

Lilly leaned over one of the open pages. “These symbols.” She said softly, tracing them with her finger. “They’re old… older than this world, maybe.”

I frowned. “How do you know that?”

She looked up, blinking. “I don’t. It’s just a guess.”

But I didn’t believe her.

Asher must’ve seen it on my face because he reached under the table and squeezed my hand once, a silent warning to stay calm.

“We’re trying to find a way in without being pulled apart.” He said, changing the subject. Something stable we can open from this side.”

Gage sighed. “Arlo was close to figuring it out before everything went to hell. There’s a pattern in the energy lines–some kind of rhythm.”

Lilly leaned closer to him. “You should rest too, Gage. You’re running yourself down for people who won’t appreciate it.”

I tensed. “We all appreciate it.” I said sharply.

Her lips curved slightly. “Of course.”

The tension hung in the air for a long time before Dennis walked in. His face was grim. “Arlo’s condition is worsening.” He said. “His pulse is unstable, and his body temperature keeps dropping. If the connection isn’t severed soon, he’ll belong to the realm completely.”

Asher stood. “Then we’re out of time.”

Dennis nodded slowly. “I’ve seen something like this before, long ago. If we can locate the anchor -the physical object tying him to the realm–we can destroy it.”

“The anchor could be anywhere.” I said.

He looked straight at me. “Not anywhere. Here. Inside this pack.”

The room went allent Even Lilly stopped pretending to be uninterested.

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Dennis continued, “The shadows need a tether, something close to their target. If Arlo’s being pulled back, the tether is here among us.”

I felt my stomach twist. “Someone here is helping them.”

Asher’s jaw tightened. “Then we find out who.”

Lilly looked up at him with wide eyes. “You think one of us is doing this?”

I didn’t look away from her. “If the anchor’s here, then someone put it here.”

We searched the packhouse late into the night. Every room, every hallway, every storage closet. Nothing. It wasn’t until I went upstairs to Arlo’s room that I found it.

It was sitting on his bedside table–a small black stone, no bigger than my thumb, shaped like a

teardrop. The moment I touched it, a cold shock ran through my body. The air around it

shimmered faintly, like the surface of a dark lake.

“Asher!” I called.

He came running. The second he stepped into the room, he froze. “That’s it.”

The stone pulsed once, faintly, like it could hear us.

I grabbed a cloth and wrapped it before it could react again. “We take it to Dennis.”

We met in the main hall. Dennis looked grim when he saw the stone. “That’s not a simple anchor.” He said. “That’s a blood tie. Someone willingly linked Arlo’s energy to the shadow realm.”

“Someone inside this pack.” I said.

He nodded. “Yes. And whoever it is knew exactly what they were doing.”

Lilly stepped closer to look at it, her expression strangely calm. “Can’t you just destroy it?”

Dennis frowned. “It’s not that simple. If we destroy it the wrong way, we could destroy Arlo too.”

Asher’s eyes narrowed. “You seem very interested, Lilly.”

She gave him a small smile. “I’m just trying to understand.”

Gage looked between them. “Hey, back off her, alright? She’s done nothing wrong.”

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