~Samantha~

The moment the blood moon hit the sky, a chill spiked through me.

I pushed away from the window and went straight to check on my children, because fear or no fear, I still had a job to do.

Devon was pacing the room like he was on a bad caffeine trip. Diana was propped up with a blanket, looking totally washed out. She had more color than yesterday, but it was still giving ’ghost.’ My mood went from bad to worse instantly.

Devon practically teleported toward me the second I stepped in. “When are we leaving?”

I stopped in the middle of the room. “Who said anything about you leaving?”

He just stood there gaping at me. He looked genuinely pressed, like I’d just said the most out-of-pocket thing imaginable. “Mum, please tell me you’re joking.”

Diana pulled the blanket tighter around herself and gave him a look. “I told you she wouldn’t let us.”

“I’m being for real,” I said, heading straight to the bed. I did a quick pulse check, forehead, cheek, wrist. She was still way too warm. “You’re staying put. Bed rest isn’t optional. You need to actually heal more than you need to throw a tantrum.”

Devon threw both hands up. “What about me? I’m not sick.”

“What about you?” I shot back. “Your job tonight is staying with your sister and Gamma.”

His face screwed up fast. “That sounds like a boring job.”

“Devon!” Diana glared at him.

“I’m sorry but it’s true. You can’t play with me and I have to sit here all day and watch you.”

“This is way better than being out there with that psycho.”

“Let the adults handle him just fine.”

“With what happened last time, I don’t think so.”

He let out a harsh breath and turned around, clearly needing a timeout before he said something he’d regret.

“I’m tired of always being caged,” he muttered.

Diana answered before I could. “You have to listen to mummy for once. Very soon, Black Moon will be gone and we can sneak around as many times as we want.”

He turned back to her. “That’s too long for me to wait.”

“Can you be patient?” she asked, staring at him like he had lost every last bit of sense. “You think I want to see Black Moon again? I was terrified. I still am.”

The silence lasted maybe half a heartbeat before he found his voice again.

She kept going, even though her voice was all thin. “I never want to see that man again. Ever. So please, Devon, don’t go anywhere near the Wolf Tomb.”

His expression totally glitched out. He could never handle it when her voice got like that; it always hit him where it hurts.

He moved closer to the bed and messed with the back of his neck, his eyes sweeping around the room just so he wouldn’t have to see her looking like that.

“Somebody has to kick his ass eventually,” he grumbled.

I folded my arms. “Definitely, not you.”

He frowned at the floor. “When I grow up, I’ll deal with the bad guys without any of you.”

“You’ve my full permission to do that.”

Diana gave a tiny ghost of a laugh, then immediately flinched. It was painful to watch. My heart basically did a backflip into a trash can.

I sat on the edge of the bed and brushed her hair back. “Listen to me, baby. You’re still weak. You pushed your body too far. Your only assignment tonight is resting.”

She nodded fast. “Gladly.”

Devon looked like he’d been slapped. He was giving me pure "how could you" energy, and it was almost uncomfortable to look at. “So Diana, you’re no longer on my team now?”

“She obviously cares more about staying alive,” I replied.

Dominic cut Devon’s tantrum short. He stepped in already geared up and looking lethal. He did a quick lap of the room with his eyes, taking in the whole scene.

“What’s happening?” he asked.

“Your son believes common sense is too much to have at his age,” I said.

Dominic’s brow rose. “That so?”

Devon straightened. “I should come with you.”

Dominic did not even entertain it. “And do what? I’m not in the mood to babysit so you should stay here.”

Devon groaned. “Dad, you too?”

Dominic walked over, planted himself in front of him. “Yes and I’m going to give you a nice reward once we get back for protecting your sister.”

Devon’s jaw tightened. “What if Black Moon comes here?”

“Then you can prove how strong you are,” Dominic returned.

Dominic glanced at Diana next. His whole face softened. “How are you feeling?”

“Tired,” she admitted. “And scared for all of us.”

His eyes darkened at that. He bent and kissed the top of her head. “You stay here with Gamma. Lock the door. Ignore every sound outside unless Gamma says otherwise.”

Then he looked back at Devon. “You disobey, you get to see another side of daddy that has been locked away.”

Devon muttered under his breath, “Everybody in this house is threatening me.”

“Because you’re very stubborn,” I told him.

I stood up. “Both of you swear right now.”

Devon blinked. “What?”

“You heard me. Swear you’ll stay inside the manor with Gamma no matter what you hear, what you feel, or what dramatic nonsense your imagination comes up with.”

Diana answered first because fear had made her very cooperative. “I swear.”

I stared Devon down. He hesitated, and that one second of hesitation was like a physical itch I couldn’t scratch. But then Diana touched his hand, and the tension in his shoulders just broke. He didn’t have anything left to say.

He squeezed her fingers. “I swear.”

I looked at him for a long moment. “Break it and you’ll be grounded for two years.”

“Mum.”

Dominic checked the time, then looked at me. “We need to move.”

“Give me a second.”

I waited until the men stepped back out before I bent toward the bed and pulled both twins into me. Devon came grudgingly at first because he was in his feelings, but the second my arms closed around them, he held on hard.

Diana’s voice came out small against my shoulder. “Please come back alive.”

My throat tightened so badly I almost could not answer.

“Hey,” I said softly, kissing her temple. “Look at me.”

She did, eyes glossy and terrified.

“I’m not dying.”

Devon tried to snort like the whole thing was too emotional for him, but his face gave him away. “Yeah, because if you do, we will join you as ghost children.”

I kissed them both and bailed before I could lose it and lock every single door in the house myself.

The drive to the Wolf Tomb felt like a literal eternity. Nobody wasted breath on small talk. Dominic was crushing my hand so hard it actually hurt, but I didn’t say a word because I was gripping him back just as hard. I needed the anchor.

Across from us, Killian was doing that "blank wall" thing with his face that always makes me want to manually shake the truth out of him.

Lila was right next to him, obsessing over a map on her lap.

She broke the silence first. “We go in fast. We keep formation. Dominic takes the east flank with the elites. Killian takes west. The cursed wolves get dragged away from the core. Samantha goes with me straight to the center.”

Dominic’s thumb brushed over my knuckles once. “I hate how we never get to be on the same team.”

I turned my head. “I’d rather be stuck with Lila, honestly.”

The cars pulled up a distance away, and the second my boots hit the dirt, the air turned into a literal freezer.

Lila shoved her map away like it was garbage now. Dominic was giving the elites the kind of "make it home or else" speech that makes your skin crawl. Killian just rolled his shoulders and let his blade slide out, looking way too chill about the fact that we were basically walking into a blender.

“Whatever happens today, just know that I love you.”

“Please, don’t give me the dead man speech.” I tried not to roll my eyes.

“Why not? I don’t want one of us to die still mad at each other.”

“So you don’t believe you are going to make it alive?”

“Oh, I will for sure. There’s no way I’m going to let Killian replace me after my death.”

I snorted despite myself. “You’re sick in the head.”

Dominic looked pleased. “And yet you love me.”

“Not when you constantly annoy me.”

Killian glanced between us and looked disgusted. “Can we kill the enemy first before you start a second honeymoon?”

Dominic’s hand brushed mine before he pulled away. “Watch my back, Sam.”

“Go do your job and stop talking like you’re in your final days.”

His grin came easy and arrogant. “See? You’d miss me.”

Before I could cuss him out properly, Black Moon stepped out from the center of the clearing, and that same chill from the start came back again.