The Wolfless Luna's Revenge: Returning With His Secret Twins-Chapter 280

~Samantha~

Killian ended up bringing the bronze ring back home and this time, it caught more of my attention.

"Remember this?" He didn’t touch it again after setting it down, which told me everything I needed to know. "I need you to check the inside."

The second I saw the swirls, my stomach dropped.

I knew this ring. Not this exact one, but close enough.

"I’ve seen this design before." I convinced myself.

Dominic looked up from whatever maps he’d been marking. "Where?"

I was already bolting to the cabinet where I’d dumped all Mom’s stuff after she died. Boxes I hadn’t touched in years because opening them felt like ripping myself open all over again.

Now I tore through everything like a maniac.

Jewelry everywhere. Papers flying. Some random stuff I didn’t even remember packing.

My fingers hit velvet and I yanked out a tiny box.

Please be wrong. Please be different. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

I opened it.

Another ring stared back at me. Smaller. Prettier. But the exact same design.

They were a freaking matching set.

"No way." I held both rings up, one in each hand. "No way my mom had the partner ring to Black Moon’s."

Dominic was beside me instantly, taking them to compare. His face went dark. "Why does your mother have this?"

"You think I know?" My laugh came out borderline hysterical. "Maybe she stole it after she found out about the betrayal? Maybe it’s evidence she kept?"

"Maybe she knew Black Moon way better than anyone realized." Killian’s voice was gentle but the words still stung.

"My mom wouldn’t." I started, but honestly what did I actually know about her life? She’d died when I was young. She could’ve had entire relationships I knew nothing about.

The thought made me sick.

"I’m calling Reynold." I grabbed my phone. "Right now."

Dominic opened his mouth like he wanted to object but I was already dialing.

Reynold answered on the third ring.

"Sam? Everything okay?"

"Is Black Moon still alive?" I didn’t waste time on pleasantries. "Like currently. Operating. Active."

Dead silence on the other end.

Way too long.

"Reynold, I swear if you don’t answer me."

"Where did you hear that name?" His voice had gone weird. Careful.

"We found a diary. Evidence. This ring with their mark. And my mom had the matching one." Words tumbled out faster than I could stop them. "I need to know what’s happening."

He let out this long breath that sounded like his soul was leaving his body.

"Black Moon isn’t one person, Sam."

"What?"

"It’s a title. Passed down through generations. Always someone in the royal inner circle. Always close to Primordial families." Pause. "And yeah. The current Black Moon is alive. Active. Dangerous as hell."

My vision swam for a second. "Do you know who it is?"

"That’s the whole problem. Nobody knows. Black Moon works in total secrecy. Could be anyone. Anyone close to you and you’d never suspect."

Anyone close to me.

My pack members. My friends. People I’d trust with my life.

"So we’re hunting a ghost who could be standing right next to me."

"A ghost with resources and a decade worth of planning behind them." His voice dropped. "Sam, whatever you’re thinking about doing, don’t. If Black Moon finds out you’re digging into this..."

"I’m not running." My jaw locked. "I’m finding who murdered my mom and ending this."

"Sam, you’ve to listen to me."

"We have coordinates to Black Moon’s old residence. I’m going there tomorrow to investigate."

"Absolutely not."

Except that voice wasn’t Reynold’s.

Dominic had snatched my phone right out of my hand.

"What the..."

"Reynold, it’s Dominic. I’ll handle this. She’s not going anywhere near that place." He hung up before Reynold could respond.

I stared at my husband. "Did you seriously just steal my phone and decide for me?"

"Yes." He crossed his arms, glaring at me. "If Black Moon is that dangerous, you’re staying here. I’ll go. With a team. You stay with the twins."

I actually laughed. No humor in it at all.

"Stay here? They want me dead, Dominic. They know exactly where I live. Hiding in my room just makes their job easier."

"Better than walking straight into their trap."

"Or it’s our only shot at finding out who they are before the blood moon hits." I stepped closer, getting in his space. "This is my mother’s murder. My past. I’m going and you can’t stop me."

"Watch me."

"Actually, she’s right."

We both spun around.

Killian was leaning in the doorway looking way too relaxed for someone about to start World War Three between us.

"Of course you’d side with her," Dominic snapped.

"I’m siding with common sense." Killian pushed off the frame. "Running won’t help. Black Moon’s been planning this for ten years. They’re not giving up because Sam hides. Better to face them on our terms than wait for them to strike on theirs."

"Our terms means proper backup and exit strategies," Dominic shot back. "Not suicide missions disguised as investigations."

"Who said suicide? We scout the location first. Daylight only. Backup on standby." Killian looked at me. "Sam gets answers. You play bodyguard like you’re dying to anyway. I make sure nobody dies. Win-win-win."

"Except if we all get murdered."

"We won’t." I grabbed Dominic’s hand. Hard. "We’ll be smart. Careful. Strategic. But I am doing this. With you or without you."

He stared at me and I could see the war happening behind his eyes.

Finally he exhaled like he’d been holding his breath for hours.

"Fine. But we do it my way. No reckless moves."

"Deal."

"And if anything feels even slightly wrong, we bail immediately."

"Done."

Killian nodded once. "I’ll prep ahead. We leave at sunrise."

After he left, Dominic pulled me close.

"I hate this," he muttered. "I hate that you’re in danger and I can’t just lock you somewhere secure until it’s over."

"Caging me won’t keep me safe. It’ll just make me an easier target."

Before he could argue, footsteps pounded down the hallway.

Devon burst through the door, tablet clutched to his chest. Diana was right on his heels.

"Mom! Mom! We did something!" Devon was practically vibrating with excitement.

My stomach sank. "Did what exactly?"

"We unlocked the whole map!" Diana grabbed my hand, yanking me toward their room. "The complete one! Everything!"

"Please tell me you didn’t touch the token again after I specifically told you not to."

Devon cut me off, walking backward so fast he almost tripped. "We used our purification power really slow and it totally worked!"

We reached their room and yep, there it was. The token sitting on the floor, glowing softly.

Both twins dropped to their knees, placing hands on the metal.

Light exploded outward like someone had set off a bomb made of sunshine.

A massive 3D map projected up into the air. Detailed. Perfect. Every tree, every path, every structure crystal clear.

Wolf claw symbols dotted the entire thing.

All the Silver Claw outposts. Every single one.

"Holy.."

"Language," both kids said without looking at me.

My eyes locked on the center of the map.

A huge estate. Big red circle around it. Glowing text underneath: Black Moon.

"We took like a billion pictures!" Diana shoved her tablet at me. "Already sent them to your phone!"

My phone started buzzing like crazy. Screenshot after screenshot flooding in.

I pulled them both into a hug, squeezing maybe too tight. "You’re amazing. And grounded for another month for touching dangerous magical objects without permission."

"Totally worth it," Devon mumbled into my shoulder.

Dominic knelt beside the projection, eyes scanning every detail. "This is perfect. Every location. Every defensive position. Complete layout of their main compound."

"Now you can catch the bad guy for sure!" Diana beamed up at me. "We helped!"

"You really did." My throat felt tight. "But seriously, no more touching magical stuff without asking first. I mean it this time."

"Okay," they both said together.

Which was definitely a lie but I’d deal with that later.

The map flickered once, twice, then died as the twins’ power ran out.

But we had what we needed.

Everything required to walk straight into enemy territory and maybe come back alive.

Dominic was already studying the screenshots on his phone. "This just got a lot easier. We’re not going in blind anymore."

"Mommy’s definitely gonna win now, right?" Diana hugged my waist.

"Right," I managed, trying to sound confident.

But my mind was stuck on those matching rings sitting on my desk downstairs.

Mom’s ring. Black Moon’s ring.

What if finding Black Moon meant discovering something about my mother I really didn’t want to know?

What if the person who killed her wasn’t just some traitor but someone she’d actually cared about?

Someone she’d loved?