Tears of the Moon

  Tears of the Moon

  A Grey Wolves Series Novel

  Quinn Loftis

  Published by Quinn Loftis

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  Copyright© 2018 Quinn Loftis Books LLC

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher

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  This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return it, and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Contents

  Introduction

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  About the Author

  Quinn’s Bookshelf

  Introduction

  The story so far…

  “Hello, all you furball loving people! It is I, Jennifer Anghelesco, here to refresh your overworked, tired, mush-filled brains. I bet you just can’t wait to dive right back into the world of the Canis lupus and see just where this next book will take you. Neither can I. But first, I think it’s important I catch you up to speed, just in case you’ve forgotten anything. After all, a lot has happened since the young, fresh-faced high-schooler, Jacque Lupei, came face to face with a Romanian prince who also happened to be a werewolf and turned all of our worlds upside down. And it’s been a while since we last spoke. You’ve probably forgotten a few important details along the way.

  “So, Jacque met Fane Lupei in Coldspring, Texas. Wait … what? You don’t need me to go back that far? Okay, fine. Fast forward a bit, to the events that took place the last time y’all sat down and indulged in a little Romanian wolf-on-wolf action. Yes, that was meant to sound dirty.

  “The most important thing to know is this: The Order of the Burning Claw has made itself known to the supernatural world. Then they went and did something really, really stupid; they kidnapped Sally. The entire pack spent months searching for her and, during that time, the king of the elves, Ludcarab, came back from the dead. Costin flipped his lid and killed a human, although to be fair, he was a bad human who was about to rape a woman in the woods. Wadim and Zara bumped into each other, literally, and discovered they were true mates. Way to go, history boy. She’s a catch. Drake and Bethany spent time getting to know one another, and Drake finally pulled his head out of his behind parts and quit treating Bethany like a helpless child. And the grand finale, we found Sally, which made Costin flip his lid again and massacre, like, five people, including a werewolf who cast the bad-mojo spell on Sally, causing her to lose her memories so he could diddle her against her will. It. Was. Awesome. Once we got Sally home, it became very apparent that our little healer was a complete and total mess. Costin was at a loss. Thanks to the counsel of their very wise friends who love them, the couple decided Sally should go to Texas to see her parents. Titus, their adorable son, stayed with us in Romania so we could corrupt him. Okay, we didn’t corrupt him … much. Gah, just suck all the fun out of my story why don’t you.

  “The following details can all be found in Forgotten Silence, the third Grey Wolves Novella. But if you don’t have time to read that, then here’s the summary. Sally went to Texas with her dimplelicious mate so she could get back to her roots and deal with the trauma that asshat, Jericho, put her through. While there, she learned some startling new things. First, her mom and dad were not oblivious to the supernatural world, as we had previously assumed. Say what?! I know, we were shocked too. Turns out Sally’s mom is a sprite. Yeah, I didn’t know they existed either. Dec is going to be hearing from me about that little secret. Not only is Sally’s mom a sprite but, as it turns out, so is Lilly, Jacque’s mom, who is currently the reigning queen of the warlocks. Does that make her a Spritelock? I don’t know, but I do know my mind is blown. Turns out the reason Lilly can do her weird seer stuff is because of her sprite blood. That kind of sounds like a weird drink Costin would mix up.

  “Moving on… After Sally finds out about the sprites, Sally’s mom and Lilly take Sally to the sprite realm to see if the lovely sprite people can help her deal with whatever dark stuff she’s got going on in her mind because of Alston’s memory … mind alteration … mind, memory alteration … whatever the hell it was. He jacked her brain up when he wiped her memories. That’s the bottom line. And because the sprites are apparently awesome, they were able to help our little healer. Once that was all sorted, Sally and Costin were able to come home. So alas, we begin our story on the day Sally and Costin appear in the foyer of the Romania pack mansion just in time to see Zara barrel through a plate glass window in her wolf form. Good times people. Good times.

  Buckle up. You’re in for the wildest Grey Wolves ride yet.

  Prologue

  “What’s worse than being kidnapped, tortured, abused, ignored, dissected, and thrown away like trash? Remembering it, over and over again.” ~ Zara

  * * *

  September 2005

  They were all dead in less time than it took for the commercial break. One minute, Zara and her family were watching a back-to-school special, and the next, the girl was the only one left alive. The monsters didn’t break down the door with a loud crash or a bang. They were as silent as shadows, and they struck so fast that no sound of warning came from their victims.

  The shock of the murders was so profound Zara didn’t even fight back as she was taken from her home. A hand clamped down over her mouth as she stared wide-eyed at the massacre of her family. It was the last time she would ever see them. The last time she would ever step foot in her childhood home. And from that moment on, she would never feel safe again.

  She was loaded into a waiting van and then unceremoniously knocked unconscious by a blow she never saw coming. The next time she opened her eyes, she was in a locked room, surrounded by four brick walls with no windows and a steel door. The only thing in the room was a small cot pushed up against one of the bare walls. Zara stood and winced as her body groaned in protest at the movement. She ached everywhere, as though she’d been beaten with a baseball bat. She imagined her captors were none too gentle with her while she’d been unconscious.

  She moved slowly to the cot and eased her battered body onto its surface. The room wasn’t cold, but she shivered nonetheless. Her mind was trying to comprehend what she’d witnessed. She knew she must be having a nightmare. But it didn’t feel like a dream. It felt very, very real.

  She closed her eyes as images of the monsters who’d broken into her house filled her head. Zara hadn’t been able to process it at the time, but now she was beginning to work out what she’d seen. They’d moved with inhuman speed. Their mouths were large, gaping black holes filled with sharp teeth. But prominent among them were huge, pointed incisors, like twin sets of knives, top and bottom, slicing and rending her parents’ flesh
. They’d ripped into her mom and dad’s necks as easily as she might bite into a soft piece of bread. But they hadn’t stopped there. The monsters had drunk her parents’ blood like it was a fresh glass of iced tea.

  “Not possible,” Zara muttered under her breath. What her imagination was trying to conceive … vampires … just wasn’t possible in the real world. Vampires were just monsters in books and movies. They weren’t real. They couldn’t be real. And yet Zara couldn’t deny what she’d witnessed with her own eyes.

  Maybe she was just going into shock. Maybe what she’d really seen was simply too much for her mind, so it was making up some scenario that would keep the hellish scene from being real to her. After all, if vampires didn’t exist then there was no way her parents had been killed by them, and therefore, this really was just a horrific nightmare.

  Zara’s eyes began to fill with tears, and her sight became blurry as she pinched her arm so hard she nearly cried out. It was no nightmare. It was real. The sobs wracked her body as she pulled her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. She buried her face between them and wept for her parents and the life she’d lost.

  Chapter One

  “We thought there was only one way a dormant could phase into a wolf. Apparently, we were wrong. If we were wrong about that, what else were we wrong about? The next thing you know, we are going to find out that Jacque’s mother has actually been a supernatural being this whole time…” ~Jen

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  Present day

  Romania pack mansion. Nissa, one of the high fae, has just returned Sally and Costin from their trip to Texas.

  Nissa bowed and then flashed without saying anything else.

  “She was a talker,” Costin said dryly.

  Sally smacked his chest. “Be nice.”

  Before they could even take a step, Jacque and Jen came hurtling toward them. They both reached Sally at the same time and nearly knocked her over.

  “How are you?”

  “Are your parents okay?”

  “Was it good to see them?”

  “Do you still want to die?”

  The questions fired out of their mouths so fast Sally felt breathless for them. The last question was from Jen, who was nearly dancing from foot to foot.

  “I don’t want to die,” Sally said, hoping to quickly put their minds at ease.

  Jen let out a sigh of relief. “That’s fantastic because I really did not want to have to pick a new BFF for our dynamic trio to remain intact.”

  “So glad I didn’t put you out,” Sally said with an exaggerated eye roll.

  Jacque pushed Jen aside and smiled at Sally warmly. “We missed you.”

  “I missed me, too,” she said. “And you guys as well. How has everything—” A loud howl ripped through the mansion, cutting Sally off.

  Costin stepped in front of all three of them, his eyes beginning to glow as he stared down the entryway.

  “What or who on earth was that?” Sally asked.

  Jen sighed. “Well, because there can never be a dull moment in this fur-infested home, we have found ourselves in a bit of a situation.”

  “W-hat kind of situation?” Sally asked, drawing out the words.

  “Oh, you know, just one where a dormant has flipped her switch, phased, and doesn’t seem to be able to phase back to her human form. I’m sure it’s no biggie. Vasile can probably order her to phase and, poof, she’ll be her little, sassy self again.”

  “Zara?” Sally asked, her eyes widening. “Is she okay?”

  “If your definition of okay is ‘stuck in her wolf form,’ then she’s hell-a okay.”

  “What does hell-a even mean?” Costin asked, his eyes still glued to the hall.

  “It means she’s a helluva lot of okay. Duh.”

  Costin glanced over his shoulder at Sally. “We’re back for less than a minute and the brain cells are already screaming ‘noooo, don’t kill us.’”

  Sally bit back laughter and turned to Jen and Jacque. “How is Wadim?”

  “I think he needs a new T-shirt,” Jen said.

  Jacque nodded. “It needs to say ‘My mate’s a feral wolf. Stick that in your history books and smoke it.’”

  “He must be freaking out,” Sally said quietly.

  “Little bit,” Jen said, holding up her hand and pinching her forefinger and thumb together.

  There was another loud snarl and then a door slamming, followed by panicked shouts.

  “SHE’S OUT!” Wadim’s voice boomed throughout the house.

  “Out?” Costin asked.

  “She was in the cage. Apparently, the cage didn’t hold,” Jen said as she ran for the stairs.

  “Where are you going?” Sally asked, her voice a bit frantic.

  “Don’t feel like being wolf chow,” Jen called as her feet took the stairs two at a time. “So, I’m not hanging around for an up-close-and-personal look at our newest she-wolf.”

  Costin grabbed Sally and Jacque by the hand and began to follow Jen, pulling them so quickly Sally nearly stumbled. The growling got louder, as did the yelling. Before they even made it to the first landing, they saw a rust-colored wolf race past, heading straight for the front door. It moved slightly to the right and lunged. The wolf’s body broke through the glass window without slowing down.

  Jen cursed. “Bloody hell, that’s the fifth window in two days.”

  Wadim was right behind her, in his human form, leaping through the ruined window and out into the night.

  “Well,” Sally said, as her heart pounded painfully in her chest, “at least she’s here with us and not stuck in a vampire dungeon. We can get her through this. Just like we’ve gotten each other through so many things.”

  Jacque and Jen both nodded. “We totally got this.”

  Jen held out her hand. Jacque and Sally stared at it like it might bite them. “Come on.” Jen huffed. “You know we’re having a moment. We’re like the three musketeers. We need to do that one-for-all-and-all-for-one crap.”

  Costin placed his hand on top of Jen’s and winked at his mate.

  Sally shook her head but placed her hand over his. “You do realize your IQ just dropped twenty points, right?”

  Jacque placed her hand on top of Sally’s. “Do I want to know why you said that?”

  Sally smiled wickedly. “Inside joke.”

  Jacque grinned. “Glad to see you two being all lovey dovey with the inside couple jokes. It’s cute.”

  “Yes, it’s adorable, blah, blah, blah,” Jen said. “Now, on three.” She motioned to their stacked hands.

  As Jen counted off, Sally looked at her mate and then at Jacque. “Do you think she’d really kick us out of her group?” Sally asked hopefully.

  Jacque shook her head. “She’s dumbed us down so much, we’re the only ones foolish enough to be her friend. She wouldn’t be able to find anyone else.”

  They yelled the battle cry with Jen and laughed because she looked so pleased with herself. Then the blonde started back down the stairs.

  “Now where are you going?” Costin asked.

  “We,” she said, emphasizing the word, “are going on a hunt. We’ve got a she-wolf to save.”

  “You were just running away from said she-wolf,” Jacque pointed out.

  “Yes, but now we’ve said the chant and declared ourselves all bad asses. If we tuck tail and run now, we look like dweebs.”

  They started after her, and Sally whispered. “I’m pretty sure we look like dweebs anyway.”

  Jacque held up her hand and high fived Sally. “Truth, sista. You speak nothing but truth.”

  Jen threw open the front door and stepped out into the night. They might just be about to get themselves mauled by a crazed she-wolf, but at least they would be mauled together in an attempt to help someone they loved, someone in need, and someone who was having trouble seeing the light in the darkness.

  Sally stepped up next to her two best friends with her mate on her other side and took a deep breath.
“We’ve never left a chick behind, and we aren’t going to start now. It’s go time, ladies. Let’s do this.” She breathed out.

  Jen laughed. “I knew, deep down, you loved my military lingo.”

  “Operation Drag-a-she-wolf-home has commenced,” Jacque added.

  “Hold on to your butts,” Costin said with a dimpled grin.

  Two other bodies stepped up beside the group, and Sally’s smile grew.

  “Let’s bring the rain,” Decebel said, quoting one of his favorite robot movies.

  “Lock and load,” Fane said as he clapped his hands and rubbed them together.

  They moved as one as they started down the steps, running full speed into the night after one of their own.

  Zara's breath came in shallow pants as her paws pounded against the ground. Summer had come to Romania, and the unforgiving sun beat down on her shiny fur coat, making Zara feel as though she was running through a furnace. Her mind was a jumbled mess, and the heat wasn’t helping. During the past week, she'd phased in and out of her wolf form almost a dozen times. She had no idea what caused the transformation or how to prevent it.

  The most recent phase came two days ago, and she'd been a wolf ever since. In wolf form, Zara was a wild beast, uncontrollable by anyone, even herself. Eventually, for her own safety and the for the safety of the other pack members, Vasile and Alina had been forced to confine her to a cage. Somewhere, deep inside the trapped beast, the human part of Zara understood the act as prudent and loving. The wolf didn't agree.