The Blood Moon Twins
Chapter 110

HARPER

I felt anxious waiting for Caulder to return. I was surprised he was gone so long, knowing it was my birthday, but I was doing my best to give him the benefit of the doubt. There was too much going on with the pack, so when he still hadn't returned, I just assumed that he had important pack business to attend to. He had been looking forward to my birthday possibly more than I was, so I knew there had to be a good reason for him not to be here yet.

It didn't make me any less anxious while waiting to see him, though. I was eager to see if my mate bond had emerged yet. I wanted to feel what the hype was about a mate bond. Growing up, I had always assumed that people exaggerated it more than they should have, but now that I knew I had my mate waiting for me, my stomach was filled with excitement.

When the door finally opened, I stopped breathing as Caulder came through the door. When he saw me, his face immediately lit up before changing into one filled with guilt.

"I'm sorry I wasn't here when you woke up. I thought I had a little more time," he quickly said, scratching the back of his head.

I stared at him for a moment longer, trying to figure out if the mate bond was there, but nothing felt different. I was still thrilled to see Caulder, and I wanted to run up to him and hug him, but that was normal for me. "It's okay. You're always worth the wait," I said with a smile.

Caulder looked at me carefully. "You're not mad?"

I rushed forward and wrapped my arms around him. "Of course not. What matters is that you're here now."

He pulled me into him and nuzzled his face into my hair. After a moment, he said, "So do you, uh, feel any differently yet?"

I pulled back and tried to hide my disappointment. I shook my head and said, "I don't think so. Hopefully soon though."

Caulder just smiled at me and kissed the top of my forehead. "That's okay. We can just start celebrating your birthday now."

"Happy birthday, Harper," Blade's voice said from behind Caulder. I hadn't even noticed him walk in with Caulder.

"Thanks," I said, taking a step back from Caulder and only holding his hand. I didn't want to be all over Caulder in front of other people all of the time. "Where's Remy?"

Blade furrowed his eyebrows. "I assume she's still sleeping."

The confusion in Blade's voice made my chest tighten. "What do you mean? She went to go meet you."

Blade's confusion only grew. "I didn't know we were meeting up. I've been out on patrol with Caulder. I thought I could get back before she woke up. It looks like Caulder and I were both wrong in our assumptions."

The panic started to set in as I looked between Caulder and Blade. "She said you left her a note, telling her you had a surprise for you. She was all eager to go meet up with you."

Blade's body completely stiffened. "I didn't leave her a note."

I made eye contact with Caulder, and he looked just as tense as Blade as we all realized Remy could be in danger.

"Where did she go?" Caulder asked.

I swallowed hard and squeezed my eyes shut, trying to remember if she said. "She didn't tell me. She just said she was going out to meet Blade." My mouth was dry, and my heart was racing. I should have told Remy to stay with me for my birthday, but I didn't want to keep her away from Blade. If only I had known...

No. I needed to stop that way of thinking. It put me in a dark spiral when Caulder was taken by the Council of Magic, and even though everyone told me it wasn't my fault, I hadn't believed anyone until Caulder said it himself. I couldn't let myself spiral into the "What if" thinking with Remy.

"We have to find her," I said, moving towards the front door. I refused to be frozen with inaction again. My friend needed me, and I wasn't going to fail her.

-

REMY

I walked up to the gazebo, and I didn't see anyone nearby. It was a short walk from the pack house, and it was well within the allotted area we could go to, so I wasn't worried about not telling my parents where I was going. They had enough to deal with since we had been gone for several days, and my mom was still under supervision.

I picked up my speed a little bit, eager to see Blade. I hoped he was just sitting out of sight, but as I got closer, the gazebo seemed empty. I slowed my pace, wondering where Blade was. He would have seen me if he got tired of waiting for me and decided to go back to the pack house, unless he took a roundabout way back.

I paused before I reached the gazebo. Something felt a little off, so I looked around the area, trying to figure out why I felt a little strange. Nothing seemed out of the usual, so I moved forward, looking for any signs of Blade or a note he may have left. I still saw nothing, so I sat down on the little bench. I pulled out my phone to see if I had any missed messages from him, but there was nothing. I tried calling him, but his phone went straight to voicemail. Right, his phone had been crushed in the car accident yesterday. I wished I could link him at times like this. If I could reach out to him via a link, I could see what he was doing and ask him why he wasn't here. Not that it mattered currently. My werewolf abilities were still being suppressed, and I couldn't link anyone in the pack. Leaning back, I stretched my body, trying to make it feel a little better. I felt worn out from the little walk, and I hated it. I had hoped the wolfsbane would be out of my system by now, but Doctor Zayla did say it could take a couple of days, depending on the dose I was given. It was frustrating not feeling like myself. My senses were dulled, and my body ached. I imagined this was what it felt like to be extremely hung over.

Part of me wanted to go back to the pack house now, since I didn't want to sit around waiting for Blade to show up, but I was still worn out from the little walk and wanted to give my body a little break before going home. Plus, he said he had a surprise for me, and I didn't want to ruin that.

After a moment, I heard a branch snap, and I instantly stood up, expecting Blade to come around the corner to greet me. My face fell when I realized it wasn't Blade.

"Julie?" I asked, a little surprised to see her out here. Many people in the pack knew about this place, but it was more common for couples to hang out under the gazebo. "What are you doing here?"

Julie took a few steps forward, and something felt off about her energy. She didn't respond right away, which felt strange to say the least.

"I didn't want to do this, but I had no choice," she said, continuing to approach me.

"Didn't want to do what?" I felt on edge as she continued to approach me. What she said didn't answer my question, and it didn't make much sense. I was sure I was missing some sort of context.

"You're not the one I was after, but I have to scratch his back so he'll scratch mine. If I do well, he'll see I'm worth the effort. He'll start to properly love me," Julie continued rambling on.

My body tensed, and I found myself taking a step backwards as she continued approaching. Something was wrong with her, but I didn't understand what was going on.

"Who are you after? And who are you trying to impress?" I asked. I looked around us, trying to figure out what to do. Julie seemed like she was cracking, and she needed help, but I also got the distinct impression that she was dangerous.

"I just want that b***h who tried to steal Caulder from me gone." Julie curled her hands into fists, and I could feel the anger radiating off of her.

She was fuming at Harper. I wasn't surprised. Harper had embarrassed her in front of everyone, but I didn't understand why Julie felt like Harper stole Caulder from her. Caulder was never hers. He had slept with her, sure, but it never turned into anything more, and Julie wasn't the only one who Caulder had messed around with.

"She didn't steal Caulder from you. Harper is Caulder's mate," I said, holding my hands up. I hoped this information would make Julie realize she was being a little crazy. For the most part, werewolves respected the mate bond.

She pointed her finger at me. "Not you, too! Just shut up, okay? It doesn't matter. I don't want Caulder anymore, because I found my mate."

"That's great," I said with a forced smile. My danger radar was starting to go crazy. "Why don't you go to your mate?" I reached into my back pocket. If I couldn't link someone, I wanted to at least call for some backup. I was sure Julie was having some sort of mental breakdown, and I wanted to get her help. I also didn't want to be alone with her anymore.

"What are you doing?" Julie asked.

I slowly pulled my phone out. "I'm just going to call Caulder, tell him the good news."

Julie stormed forward and smacked my phone out of my hand. I heard a distinct crunch as it skidded across the floor. My fear grew tenfold as I saw the look in her eyes.

"Stop it. Just stop it." She swung her hand again, and this time she hit my face with the back of her hand. "I didn't want to do this, but I don't have a choice. You are the ticket to the life I want."

I held my stinging cheek as I went through all of my options. I could try calling for help. If a warrior was nearby, they would hear me. I could try running, but my stamina wouldn't allow me to get very far. If I could get my magic to work, I could try to shift away, but my magic had been sporadic with the wolfsbane in my system.

"I don't know what's going on, but let's just talk it out. Help me understand what's going on. Are you in trouble?" I asked. Maybe if I could get her to talk to me, I could get her to stop whatever this strange behavior was.

"It's too late for that. He wants you, and I promised to do whatever he wants," Julie said simply. She didn't sound crazy. She sounded determined, and it was clear talking wouldn't get me anywhere.

I moved as fast as I could, trying to run away. "Help!" I screamed as loud as I could, but that was as far as I could go before I felt my hair being yanked before I was sent tumbling to the ground. My hands scraped against the ground, and the sudden movement made my head spin.