All Chapters of CHASING HIS LUNA BACK: Chapter 161 - Chapter 170

Silas's point of viewI left the mission halfway through because my gut told me to. The radio in my ear still crackled with the dry voices of the men I had left to hold the perimeter, but the message from Lara had overwritten everything else. Aurelia was in the infirmary. She had fainted. The word folded through me like a cold stone. I grabbed my pack, barked orders to the nearest man, and ran.When I reached the chamber, she was still pale, but alive. Her eyes found mine and for a moment everything else blurred. Then she told me, like a quiet thunder, that she was pregnant. Relief tore through me so hard my knees went weak. I steadied her on the bed, touching the hollow beside her ribs like I could feel the future, then I left her with the nanny and a dozen instructions that read like a litany.“Watch her,” I said. “No one goes near her without my say. Keep the logs of who comes and goes. No strange hands.”The nanny nodded and did what she always does, the kind of obedience born of

Aurelia's point of viewThe house hummed in the small way it hums when the people you love are out in the dark doing dangerous things. I lay in the bed after Silas left and watched the ceiling until first light unstitched the night. His boots had barely cleared the drive and already I felt the shape of his absence like a bruise. I should have rested. I should have forced my bones to keep still. Instead I reached for the journal.The leather was cool under my palm. The place where my blood had touched it the night before left a faint dark ring, like memory made visible. I set it on the small table by the window and pulled the blanket up over my legs, as if the motion alone would give me courage. The pages were half-awake. I could almost hear them breathing where the ink had stuttered into life. I had promised myself no more careless payments. I had promised myself I would not hand over parts of myself without counting the cost. Still, the map was incomplete. Roderick had given us ancho

Aurelia's point of viewThe soft patter of little feet woke me before sunrise. Sara and Kael burst into the room, their laughter and chatter filling the air. For a fleeting moment, I felt the warmth of family, of normalcy that the way life should be. Sara pressed her small hands against my belly. “Mama… is it true? We’re really going to have a little brother or sister?”I smiled, brushing a strand of hair from her face. “Yes, my loves. You’ll both be big siblings very soon.”Kael’s bright eyes searched mine anxiously. “When will Daddy be back? Is he working again?”I tried to sound calm. “He’s working hard to protect us. He’ll come back soon, I promise.”Sara’s expression turned somber, her tiny lips trembling. “Mama… I had a vision. A hooded figure tried to take me away from you.”My chest tightened. The fear in her eyes mirrored the same fear I had tried so hard to suppress. I forced a gentle smile and cupped her cheeks. “Nothing will happen to you, Sara. Daddy and I will protect yo

Aurelia's point of viewThe chambers felt quieter than ever when we returned. The weight of the day still clung to me like ash. Silas guided me toward the bed, his touch firm but tender, and I sank onto the mattress without protest. He sat on the edge beside me, his expression somewhere between frustration and concern.“You’re burning yourself out,” he said finally, voice low but sharp enough to make my heart twist. “You’re pouring your blood into those damned spells, into that journal, into every curse and prophecy… and for what? You’re saving everyone’s tomorrow while ignoring your own today.”He wasn’t wrong. I wanted to argue, to tell him I was fine, that I was strong enough to handle this, but the exhaustion pressing behind my eyes told another story.“I can’t stop now, Silas,” I whispered. “Draco’s growing stronger every day. If we don’t act first—”He cut me off, his thumb brushing across my cheek. “If you fall, Aurelia, there won’t be a war to fight. Don’t forget that.”The wo

Silas's point of viewThe road back to Blackfang crawled slower than the run out. Night in the pack lands always smells of damp earth and old smoke, but that night the air tasted thicker, as if it were holding its breath for what was coming. I carried Roderick’s crate like a promise I wished I didn’t have to keep. I had done what had to be done, crossed the line between justice and necessity, and still the cold knot in my gut tightened. There are some tasks that clean nothing. They only move the filth from one place to another.We reached the yard under an honest bruise of moon, horses stamping, men moving like shadows. Dalton met me with the quiet I had come to trust. He didn’t ask questions; we have long since learned that eyes can carry more than words. He took the crate and stowed it away with the rest of the proofs we didn’t want anyone to see unless they needed to.Inside the house the lamps burned low. I expected silence and found Aurelia awake, sitting up, the journal folded o