I hesitate-not because I doubt Poppy, but because it suddenly hits me how focused I’ve been on the mission that I never stopped to think about who would stay with Jaxon. That used to be my first thought-his safety and comfort always came before my own.
Now, something inside me feels different. I’m not sure whether to be frightened or comforted by this change. Maybe it’s the effect of this new gift pulsing beneath my skin. Or perhaps I’m finally learning to trust those around me-to believe that I don’t have to carry everything alone for him to be safe.
Poppy must sense my hesitation because she reaches out and squeezes my hand gently. “He’ll be safe with me, Paige.”
I nod, swallowing hard against the lump forming in my throat. “I know.”
Ronnie sets his cup down decisively. “Then it’s settled. Callen, Parker, and Leo, take the lead with the enforcers. Make sure we’re not walking into a trap. The rest of us will follow.”
“We had eyes on most of the creek all night,” Remy adds, “but it’s better to be cautious before we take Paige out there.”
“Understood,” Ryder says, slipping into Alpha mode. “Let’s move.”
“Don’t worry about anything here,” Poppy says, resting a reassuring hand on my shoulder. “You’ll probably be back before he even wakes up. He’ll be fine.”
I smile gratefully and pull her into a brief hug before stepping outside with the others.
The morning air is crisp and clean, fully waking us from our drowsiness. Mist curls low over the grass, shimmering in the pale dawn light. The forest beyond looks half-asleep, shadows stretching long and soft, but beneath that quiet lies a taut tension. This stillness isn’t peace-it’s anticipation.
Callen and Parker jog ahead, and we fall into formation without a word. Ryder leads at the front, Ronnie and I move in the middle, and Remy brings up the rear. Our boots make little sound on the damp earth.
After a moment, Ryder breaks the silence, his voice careful. “Tell me again. Everything you saw.”
I focus, drawing the memory into sharp relief. “The creek was clear, but the light came from beneath the surface. It wasn’t a reflection-it felt alive. There was a man kneeling by the bank. I couldn’t see his face, but his hands were black, coated in something.”
“Poison?” Remy asks softly.
“Maybe,” I reply, shrugging. “I hope I’ll understand more once we get there.”
The trees thin as we approach the creek. The air feels heavier here, as if the place still holds the weight of what happened before, even though the healers say the water is safe now. The current moves sluggishly, the water looking more like chocolate milk than clear stream, as if someone recently stirred up the sediment at the bottom.
“What now?” Parker asks, and all eyes turn to me.
Ronnie steps closer. “Paige, does this feel like the place from your vision?”
I scan the creek, trying to match the scene before me to the fragments flickering behind my eyelids. The trees crowd close, some dipping their branches low enough to touch the water. But something about the angle feels off. In the vision, there was more light, the creek bent more sharply, and the current sounded faster.
I shake my head slowly. “No… it’s close, but not quite right.”
Ronnie studies me, his expression unreadable. “Then don’t think. Just feel. Follow your instincts wherever they lead.”
I swallow hard, uncertain what I’m supposed to find, but the pull in my chest is undeniable. At first, it’s subtle-like a faint heartbeat out of sync with my own. I take a few steps upstream, the others falling silently into line behind me.
Beneath the rush of water, I catch it-a low vibration, too soft to be heard, more like a rhythm pulsing through the ground. It travels up my legs, into my spine, syncing with my heartbeat until I can’t tell where I end and the creek begins. Warmth spreads beneath my skin, chasing away the morning chill.
After about a minute, the path opens up slightly. A fallen tree lies across the water, draped in moss. The light here is brighter, pale gold filtering through the canopy and scattering across the creek’s surface. The moment I see it, something inside me settles.
“This is it,” I whisper, the certainty hitting me so hard it almost takes my breath away. “This is where it happened.”
Ronnie nods once, eyes scanning the bank. “Then we start here.”
A heavy silence falls over us. It’s so quiet I hold my breath. Ryder’s jaw tightens, his eyes challenging the tree line as if daring the forest to make a move. Callen stands close enough that his shoulder brushes mine-a silent reassurance I didn’t realize I needed until I lean into it.
**Paige’s Perspective**
The forest around us lay hushed, the air thick with stillness. Only the gentle rustling of leaves stirred in the soft breeze, while the enforcers formed a wide circle, their watchful eyes scanning the perimeter carefully. The quiet was almost tangible, a fragile calm before something unknown.
Remy was the first to break the silence. Crouching beside the creek’s bank, he whispered, “There’s some kind of residue here.” His brow furrowed as he examined the water closely. “I can’t tell if it’s chemical. There’s no scent I can pick up.”
Ronnie stepped forward, rolling up his sleeves with a serious look. “Don’t touch the water directly,” he warned firmly. “Even the smallest trace of that poison can be deadly.”
Despite the caution, an irresistible pull drew me closer. It was instinctive, magnetic-my heartbeat quickening as if the creek itself was calling me. The water looked ordinary, but beneath its surface something hummed quietly, like a hidden pulse beneath layers of earth and stone.
I knelt down, ignoring Ryder’s sharp warning, “Paige…” My fingers reached out almost of their own accord. The instant my skin met the water, time seemed to freeze.
Ripples spread outward, shimmering with an ethereal glow. A soft, liquid light-gold interwoven with silver-bloomed where no light should have existed. It didn’t mirror the sky above but instead created its own luminous dance, pulsing rhythmically, once, twice, and then fading back into the clear current.
Startled, I jerked my hand back. Tiny droplets clung to my skin, glowing faintly before vanishing, leaving behind a warmth that wasn’t burning or cold. It felt alive-breathing, almost sentient.
Everyone stared at me in stunned silence.
Ryder was the first to break the spell, stepping closer with a cautious, low voice. “Paige… what did you just do?”
“I honestly don’t know,” I said, breathless and still shaken. “I just touched it.”
Ronnie’s sharp eyes flicked between me and the creek. “That’s not something I’ve ever come across,” he muttered. “I’m almost certain it’s not a power the Moon Children had.”
“What do you mean?” Callen asked, his brow knitting in confusion.
Ronnie hesitated, leaning in to study the water as if it might reveal some secret. “I’ve researched everything I can on Moon Children,” he said quietly, his voice tinged with unease. “But whatever that was… it’s not something I’ve ever seen recorded before.”
The wind stirred the leaves overhead, their soft rustle filling the silence. I looked down at my hands, still tingling, a faint shimmer flickering beneath my skin.
“It didn’t feel dangerous,” I whispered. “It felt like it was… listening. Like it knew me.”
Uneasy glances passed between the group. Ryder’s expression softened, protective and steady. “We’ll figure it out,” he assured me. “Whatever this is, we’ll handle it together.”
Ronnie, however, didn’t look convinced. He rose slowly, eyes lingering on me with a mixture of awe and something else-worry, perhaps. “Let’s hope so,” he sighed. “Because that wasn’t Moon Child magic. I’m convinced it’s something much older.”
The creek resumed its slow, gentle flow as if nothing unusual had occurred. The forest’s familiar sounds returned-the birdsong, the whisper of leaves, the pulse of life-but everything felt subtly altered, changed in a way I couldn’t quite place.
I stood and brushed my hands on my jeans, but the warmth beneath my skin remained, spreading through my chest like sunlight breaking through a cloudy sky-steady, alive. It should have comforted me, yet a thread of unease wound its way up my spine.
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