Cursed Moon (Star Touched: Wolf Born 3), page 1
Cursed Moon
STAR TOUCHED: WOLF BORN
BOOK THREE
MICHELLE MADOW
Ruby
Lying in bed, I trace my fingers along the cross pendant Tristan gave me this morning. The piece of jewelry is a promise of sorts.
And maybe a sign.
It belonged to Tristan’s brother, Dominic. He was also a vampire. But the shifter Guardians hunted him down and killed him when they learned he’d fallen in love with one of their own and turned her into a vampire so they could be together forever.
Will my fate be something like that? A tragic end just when I’m on the cusp of finding love?
Light streams past the velvet drapes, casting shadows on the hardwood floor in the attic bedroom. My attic bedroom. At least for now. It’s a gift from the three sisters of the Blood Coven, and a huge upgrade from the basement cell they kept me in for the past ten days.
Suddenly, the door creaks open, and there he is—Tristan.
My heart races, and I drop the pendant, running into his arms before the door’s fully closed behind him.
“Ruby,” he murmurs, his breath cool in my ear. “I missed you.”
“I missed you, too,” I say, and then I reach for the necklace and pull it over my head. “Here. This belongs to you.”
He makes no move to take it from me. “I gave it to you,” he says. “It’s yours now.”
“I can’t accept it.” I hold his gaze, refusing to budge. “Dominic would want you to have it. Not me.”
His golden eyes harden, and I worry he’s going to refuse again.
“Take it. Please,” I insist, and his fingers brush against mine as he accepts the necklace, the simple contact sending sparks shooting up my arm.
“Thank you.” His voice softens, and as he secures the chain around his neck, his gaze wanders around the room. “Nice upgrade you got here. I take it the dinner went well?”
“You knew about that?”
“I did,” he says. “I had a feeling you’d click with Morgan. Willow, too, to a lesser extent. Zara, however…” He trails off, leaving the rest unsaid.
“She likes me,” I say. “Kind of.”
“She said that?”
“In those exact words.”
He waits for a punch line, but there is none.
There is, however, something else that needs to be discussed. Something far more important than if Zara’s going to try becoming my new bestie or not.
“She told me more about the Key of Hades.” I swallow to steady myself before continuing. “And about my parents.”
“What about them?” he asks cautiously.
“Hazel wiped their memories of my existence. And it’s not just them. No one in the human world remembers me. She erased me entirely.”
The world around us seems to pause, and I brace myself for his questions, his shock.
“Ruby,” he says instead, his voice strained. “I’m so sorry.”
“You knew?”
The betrayal is a knife to my heart.
“Hazel told me today,” he says. “But she’ll reverse it. Zara will create a blood oath between the two of you to make sure she keeps her promise.”
His gaze is locked on mine—full of hope and vulnerability—and every bone in my body urges me to believe him. Because if I can’t trust Tristan, who can I trust? My mate rejected me, my pack doesn’t want me, and the witches I thought were my allies turned on me.
Without Tristan, I have no one.
“Hazel will reverse it if I help them get the key,” I remind him. “But I’m not making any blood oaths until I have proof that she’s telling the truth.”
“What kind of proof?”
“She’s taking me to see my parents. Zara said you and Benjamin can come with us.”
I wait anxiously for his response, praying he’ll say yes.
“Of course I’ll go with you,” he says, and I relax instantly. “I’m here for you, no matter what.”
“I know,” I say. “I trust you.”
“Good.”
His lips are on mine in less than a heartbeat, and I’m kissing him back as if he’s fresh air and I’m finally able to breathe.
We’ve kissed before—at the bar when we first met—but this is different. This is the kiss of two people who have shared their hopes and dreams with each other, who have seen the good and bad parts of each other’s souls and still want each other anyway.
Before I know it, he guides me to the bed and eases me onto the mattress.
“Stay here with me tonight,” I say, and even though we spent over a week together locked in that cell, this is different.
More intimate.
Because now, spending the night together will be a choice.
His fingers trace gentle patterns on my skin, each touch lighting up my nerves like fireworks. Eventually, he pulls away again to study me, his golden eyes darkened with raw emotion.
“Are you sure?” he asks.
“Yes,” I say, and he crushes his lips against mine again, electricity crackling across my skin like a lightning storm.
This is perfect.
This is wrong, a voice I haven’t heard in days intrudes upon the moment.
My wolf.
She's clawing her way to the surface, and her anger ripples through me, demanding to be heard.
In retaliation, I kiss Tristan deeper and try to suppress her, to shut her up and push her back down.
He shouldn’t be touching us. He’s not our mate, she growls, refusing to go away.
At the sound of that word—mate—the sting of Connor’s rejection hits me again, like a needle injecting ice into my heart.
Connor’s our mate. Pine Valley is our home. My wolf’s aggression gathers so much strength that it’s burning through me, consuming me. The pack is our family. Tristan needs to GET OFF US.
At her thunderous roar, I scream those final words and push Tristan off me, sending him sprawling onto the floor.
The silence that follows is deafening.
I meet his eyes and suck in a sharp, pained breath. Because he’s looking at me like he doesn’t know me.
Like I’m a monster.
“Are you okay?” he asks, and he gets up slowly, his gaze locked on mine as if he thinks I might snap at him again.
I blink a few times, trying to make sense of this.
Because he should hate me.
And yet, here he is… concerned about me.
“I just yelled at you and threw you off the bed,” I say. “And you’re asking me if I’m okay?”
“Yes.” His voice is full of resolve as he stands at his full height before me. “Because you didn’t tell me to get off you. You told me to get off us. And while I have a pretty good idea what you meant by that, I’d appreciate it if you told me yourself.”
He puts his shirt back on and sits down on the bed, and I can’t help noticing the space he puts between us. It’s like he’s protecting himself… from me.
“It’s my wolf,” I admit, and he nods, since I’m sure it’s the answer he expected. “She doesn’t like that we’re together.”
“Because she wants Connor.”
He says it as a statement—not a question.
“She does,” I say.
He says nothing for a few seconds, as if choosing his next words carefully.
“I imagine it must be difficult,” he finally says. “To have someone in there with you, fighting you.”
“When you say it like that, it makes me concerned for my mental health.” I chuckle to lighten the tension, even though it’s far from funny.
His solemn look makes me realize that he is concerned for my mental health.
Given what just happened, I suppose I can’t really blame him.
“I’m sorry,” I say. “I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
“If you want to hurt me, you’re going to have to do far worse than a tumble off the bed,” he says, and despite the lightness in his tone, I feel the weight of what just happened creating a wall between us.
I need to figure out how to control my wolf.
And I have the perfect idea for trying to do just that.
“Do you think my mate bond with Connor will keep weakening if you feed from me more often?” I ask.
If he’s surprised by the proposal, he doesn’t show it.
“We can try,” he says cautiously. “But I want you to promise me that if you ever change your mind, for any reason, you’ll tell me the second you do.”
“I promise.”
Somehow, while we’ve been talking, we’ve been moving closer to each other, so we’re now inches apart. I don’t know if he’s going to kiss me or bite me, but I’d welcome either one.
Suddenly, my wolf bristles inside me, like tiny spikes trying to poke through my skin.
I won’t let you do this, she says, and she sends a blast of rage through me so intense that her consciousness drowns out mine.
I lunge at Tristan.
We tumble to the floor, and he reacts quickly, flipping me over and pinning me down.
Pain shoots through my back, and I use the moment to push past my wolf and break through to the surface.
“Do it.” I barely manage to speak through my wolf, who’s trying to wrangle herself into control again. “Please.”
Wind sweeps around us—Tristan’s magic.
And then, with a swift, almost gentle movement, he sinks his teeth into my neck.
It’s like he’s sucking my wolf—and the power she has over me—out of my system. Calmness settles deep in my bones, replacing her fury with a soft, insistent pleasure.
Eventually, his grip around my wrists loosens, and he pulls away.
“I’m sorry,” he says. “It was like one second you were here, and the next—”
“Don’t apologize,” I cut him off, and I reach up to touch my neck, where the twin puncture marks are already starting to heal. “You did what I asked you to do. And it worked.”
“I didn’t want it to happen like that.”
“And I didn’t want my wolf to try killing you.” I release a small laugh and sit up. “But sometimes we have to roll with the punches. Literally.”
I finally get a smile from him.
His hand moves to cradle my face, his thumb gently stroking my cheek. “You’re beautiful,” he says. “Even when you’re trying to kill me.”
My heart leaps, his touch taking my breath away.
“Will you still stay here with me tonight?” I ask, continuing before he can reply. “It’s okay if you don’t want to. I know it’ll be hard to sleep if you’re worried about being attacked at any moment.”
“I’m not worried,” he says, so confidently that I don't question him. “But if you feel your wolf again, I want you to tell me. Even if it means waking me up. Okay?”
“Okay,” I say, and apparently satisfied with my response, he gives me a quick kiss before I head to the bathroom to get ready for bed.
I can barely look at myself in the mirror as I do. All I can think about is that I might see my wolf staring back at me.
She’s not going to give up easily.
But until we come up with a better solution, Tristan drinking from me more often to keep her subdued will have to be enough.
When I come back out, Tristan’s already propped up against the pillows with a book in his hand, presumably from the small bookshelf wedged in the corner of the room.
“Anything good?” I ask as I crawl into bed with him.
“It’s okay-ish.” He places it down on the nightstand without bothering to mark the page. “How are you feeling?”
“Tired,” I say, and then I yawn, my body agreeing with my words. “Can we go to sleep?”
“I suppose I can put the book down for the night,” he says. “For you.”
“Your sacrifice is noted.”
We share a smile, and I feel so safe with him that despite everything that’s happened today, I quickly start drifting off to sleep.
Then, just when sleep is claiming me, he murmurs, "I love you, Ruby."
And that’s the last thing I hear—or think I hear—before the world fades away.
Autumn
Now that Connor’s told the pack about our engagement, there’s only one thing for us to do.
Celebrate.
The new moon, unseen yet powerful, is ideal for an engagement party. Because new moons mean new beginnings. It’s when we plant seeds for our future.
My future is Connor.
Now, and forever.
The party is perfect. Lanterns are suspended from the surrounding trees, twinkling like a thousand miniature suns. A bonfire dominates the center of the clearing, its flames dancing toward the night sky, melting the snow to reveal the muddied ground beneath it.
Others might dislike the mud, but as wolves with earth magic, we relish in it.
Connor sits next to me, his fingers entwined with mine. His gaze is fixed on the dancing flames, their light reflecting in his dark eyes, which are as serious as always.
Ever since Ruby left to stay with the witches, he’s been slowly coming back to me. Now, I finally have my Connor back. The man I’ve known since we were kids, who loves me more than anyone else in the world.
I don’t want to lose him again.
As I gaze into the fire, I pray that the Blood Coven follows through on their promise to break his mate bond with Ruby sooner rather than later. After they do, my future with Connor will finally be secure.
He squeezes my hand and pulls me toward him.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" he murmurs in my ear.
"It is," I reply, my gaze not on the bonfire anymore, but on him. The firelight casts flickering shadows across his face, highlighting the sharp lines of his cheekbones and the curve of his lips that I’ve kissed more times than I can possibly count. “But not as beautiful as you.”
“Aren’t I the one who’s supposed to be saying that to you?” he asks with a twinkle of amusement in his eyes.
“Men can be beautiful, too.” I pout, although it quickly shifts into a smile.
“Then we’re both beautiful,” he concludes, and he gives me a quick kiss, which ignites hooting and clapping from the crowd.
I smile against his lips. “You’d think they’ve never seen you kiss me before.”
“They’ve seen me kiss my girlfriend,” he says. “But now’s the first time they’re seeing me kiss my fiancée.”
It’s a sweet comment. But that word—fiancée—still stings. It’s a reminder that I’ll never be Connor’s mate, and that there’s nothing I can do about it.
It’s not too late to take care of Ruby, my wolf says inside me, feeding off my anger at the reminder that Connor has a mate, and it isn’t me.
I’m not killing her, I remind my wolf. I can’t kill her, now that she’s in Spring Creek. But the Blood Coven has it handled. We have nothing to worry about.
Whatever you say. Her irritation is intense, but controllable. Like it’s been ever since I made my deal with Calliope, the leader of the Spring Creek coven.
“You okay?” Connor asks, pulling me out of my darkening thoughts.
“I’m great,” I say, forcing myself to snap out of it. “Why?”
“You looked far off there for a second.”
"I'm here.” I give him a reassuring smile. "Just got lost in thought for a moment."
“About what?”
“About how I can’t wait until two weeks from now, when I finally become your wife.”
The lie comes swiftly, easily.
I’ve been getting much better at lying recently.
Some truths are better left unsaid, especially tonight.
As the night progresses, the laughter grows louder, the stories more animated. Our packmates revel in our joy, their happiness for us evident in their smiles and cheers.
Eventually, the conversation dies down, and a figure rises to stand.
Jax.
Connor’s grandfather… and our current alpha.
Standing tall and muscular, Jax looks like he’s in his upper thirties—forty, at most. His dark hair—the same brown as Connor’s—is full and silky. It’s the type of hair that’s practically begging to be touched.
A hush descends upon the pack as he walks toward us, holding two simple crowns of laurel leaves at his side.
Connor pulls me up to stand.
Jax looks at Connor, then to me, as if he’s drinking in this moment to remember forever.
"Tonight," he begins, his voice deep and resonating in the quiet night. “We celebrate not just the union of two individuals, but the promise of the continued future for our pack.”
A few pack members hold their glasses up in agreement. It’s not an official toast yet, but it’s a party, and they’re looking for any reason to drink.
Jax's gaze turns away from the crowd and back to us.
“Connor, my grandson, who I’ve raised as a son since soon after his birth,” he starts, his voice echoing through the silent crowd as we take a moment to remember the tragic deaths of Connor’s grandmother and parents.
His parents, killed by their best friend Xavier and his wife, when Xavier defended his sister—a shifter-turned-vampire—instead of following the law of the Guardians.
The law demands that any shifter turned into a vampire has their soul freed by the Guardians in the only way possible.
Death.
After a moment of silence, Jax continues.
“Connor—your dedication to learning our traditions has turned you into a man of courage, wisdom, and strength. A man who dutifully follows the laws of our kind over anything else. You’re going to make a remarkable alpha for the pack someday, and a loyal husband to your bride.”
Our packmates cheer, using the pause as an opportunity to enjoy more of their drinks.
