Resisting the Moon (Royal Shifters #2)(17)

The line grew silent while I listened to Seraphina mumble to herself. Even she seemed to be puzzled. “Can you send me a picture of it?”

“Sure.” I snapped a picture and sent it over. “You should have it now.”

Seraphina cleared her throat and sighed. “It looks just like a normal moonstone. Granted, any kind of stone can hold magical capabilities, but it would take someone a lot more powerful than me to do a linking spell on it. My question is, why would anyone want to link Amelie’s memories to it in the first place?”

“That’s what I’m wondering. I don’t get a bad vibe from the stone, but someone obviously wants this connection to Amelie. We just have to figure out who it is.”

“And I have no doubt you’ll figure it out. The only suggestion I have is to let Tyla get as much from the stone as she can. You might get the answers you’re looking for.”

I let out a humorless laugh. “I would if it didn’t zap her energy. She’s comatose right now and I have no clue how long it’ll last.”

“It’s because she’s not strong enough. If you were mated, like you should be, she’d have the energy of a royal.”

“That’s not likely to happen any time soon. She fights me every chance she gets.”

She burst out laughing. “That comes from her mother. Just give her time.”

I could feel the rage brewing just underneath my skin. “Unfortunately, time isn’t on my side.” We said our goodbyes and I took a deep breath before answering the call that came through next. It was Tyla’s parents. Her phone had been buzzing nonstop for the past two hours.

“Sophia,” I greeted.

“Oh, thank God. What’s going on? Where’s Tyla?” she asked breathlessly.

“She’s fine, just passed out at the moment. It’s been a long day.”

“Did you find Amelie? What about my sister? Is she okay?” Her desperation was evident.

I felt sick knowing the bomb I was about to drop on her. “Is Erle around?”

She sniffled. “Yes.”

“Can you put me on speakerphone? I’d like to talk to you both.” She did as I said and I could hear Erle in the background. “We didn’t find Amelie, but we found signs that she was taken. Whoever did it used some very powerful magic. Thankfully, we might have some clues to help us.”

“And my sister?” Sophia asked.

I held my breath and blew it out slow. “I’m so sorry, Sophia, but she didn’t make it. Nor did Benjamin.”

“What happened to them?” she demanded.

Erle huffed. “Soph, that’s not something you need to know. Sebastian don’t answer that.”

Sophia burst out crying. “Why would anyone want to hurt them?”

“I think they were trying to help Amelie and got in the way. She was obviously the one the wolves wanted. I promise we’ll find her. Tyla’s not going to want to leave until we do.”

“They were best friends,” Erle said. “Attached at the hip, they were.”

“And it’ll be that way again when we find her. We’ll bring her home.”

Sophia sniffled again, but her voice was strong. “Sebastian?”

“Yes,” I replied.

“Whatever happens, you bring my Tyla home safe. I don’t care what you have to do, or who you have to leave behind, just make sure she gets back. I’m not going to let her kill herself over this mission. You both have so much to live for. I want to see her happy. I want grandbabies to hold.”

I sighed. “Then talk some sense into her. She won’t listen to me.”

“She’ll come around,” she murmured. “Tyla’s been through a lot of heartache. I know she’d kill me if I told you this, but she’s just afraid. You need to show her she has nothing to worry about.”

Leaning my head against the couch, I blew out a frustrated breath. Getting Tyla to listen was like trying to move a brick wall. I guess I was just going to have to break it down.





Tyla

I could feel the warmth beside me and turned into it. Fingers caressed my arm and I smiled. Breathing deeply, Sebastian’s scent filled my lungs and reality reared its ugly head. Gasping, I opened my eyes and sat up, head pounding. Sebastian stared back at me, the top half of his body bare. I really wanted to look under the covers to see if he was completely naked, but then I remembered why I was there in the first place. The memories from the stone flashed before my eyes.

“Where are we?” I asked.

Sebastian looked at me with his mesmerizing crystal blue eyes. “In a cabin just down the road from Amelie’s. After you passed out last night, we needed a place to stay. I figured we could go back there today.”

I looked at the clock and realized I’d been out for over twelve hours. “Holy shit, my parents. I need to call them.”

Sebastian reached for my phone on the bedside table and tossed it to me. “It’s already been done. I know you wanted to talk to them, but they kept calling. I had to tell them something.”

My throat tightened and I nodded. It was probably best he’d done it anyway. “I understand. How did they take it?”

He shrugged. “Like I thought they would. They just want you home safe.”