Novel & Cerita Crescent City 3

BRAD’S POV __________________________________ “Boss, you got eyes on that shadow in the alley? Two o’clock, moving fast.” Ruth’s voice crackles through the radio in my earpiece, sharp and urgent, cutting through the night’s hum like a blade. The air out here on Crescent City’s east edge is thick—damp fog rolling off the river, mixed with the rot of garbage bins and the faint metallic tang of blood from last night’s deal gone south. My boots crunch on gravel as I crouch behind a rusted dumpster, my hand steady on the Glock tucked in my waistband, silver bullets loaded. Levin’s orders were clear: patrol the perimeter, keep Damon’s wolves at bay. But with the scout ambush last night—Levin’s guy

The crowd found their way to their assigned seats and the large room, filled with approximately two thousand werewolves, fell silent. “Alphas. Lunas. Betas, and distinguished guests. I am Alexander du Monte, and this is my lovely Luna, Cherry. My Beta, Joseph Betancourt, and his mate, Lucille. My Gamma, Tabitha Ming and her mate, Daniel. I am also joined by my healer, Diamond, oracle, Cheyenne and priestess, Ophelia. Welcome to the Crescent City Pack.” There was a thunderous applause punctuated by howls and yips. Alexander raised his hands to silence the crowd.

he informs me, smiling in remembrance. We stay at the waterfalls for a long time, enjoying the view, and I can tell Jeremy is still in deep thought. I wonder what's going on with him. His phone rings, and he looks at it, and suddenly his eyes glaze over. " Shit, we need to leave, now!" he says, holding my wrist and walking towards the car fast. " What is it?" I ask, opening my door. He insisted on driving. " Crescent Stone City is under attack," he says, jumping into the driver's seat and starting to drive fast.

Whenever the moon was crescent, we'd go to our past leader's graves to pay respect but whenever we couldn't go, we'd just pray and watch the crescent moon. But this was my favourite place, there was barely anyone passing by this place. And also, Cameron didn't know about this place. I never brought him here. I sat down on the ground and sighed deeply. It was the last day of winter, March 19 in the human's realm right now and here in crescent moon, the winter solstice was here. This evening, there would be darkness for a short while. It was a event celebrated in crescent moon though. It was called the FIRE RELEASING CEREMONY.

“This…” Sarah mumbled, breaking the silence. “This is the Crescent pack territory?” She already knew the answer. It was obvious, through the dirt and ash she could make out the platinum white hair of the Crescent wolves. However, she couldn’t help but ask. Because no matter how much she stared at the photos, it made it all the more impossible. “But that’s not possible!” Sarah added when no one answered. “The wolves of the Crescent are the strongest out there! How could they just be wiped out like that?!”

The scent of smoke thickened, drifting through the trees like a warning. Lilith’s muscles tensed, her claws still half-extended from training. Her heart thundered—not with fear, but with the instinct to run, fight, kill. Nathan held up a hand, silencing her. His eyes burned crimson in the fading light as he crouched low, nostrils flaring. “Three of them,” he whispered. “Downwind. Moving fast.” Lilith strained her senses. At first, all she caught was the acrid smoke curling in the air. But then… faint footsteps crunching through leaves. The metallic tang of silver. And—her stomach twisted—the sharp, oily scent of wolfsbane.

--- 10:45 PM The ancient clock on Deimon's chamber wall ticked toward midnight, each second echoing like a death knell. Everything was in position. Below, the entire Crescent clan marched through snow-laden paths toward Ascension Hills, their breaths forming ghostly plumes in the cold air. The procession moved in eerie silence, thousands of footsteps crunching through ice and snow.

“We will also be able to sense each other a whole lot better. Know if we are in danger, or upset… A lot will improve.” I sat up and stared down at the lake. Tiny diamonds were reflected on the water. The moon was further to my right. The crescent image was not so clear but it was not hard to tell what it was. It swam at one spot and gave the lake some color in the dark. A crescent moon reflection. The moon was out here listening to our screwed up stories and wondering how we were going to fix it. I had no clue. But I was very sure that we were going to pull through. If what it takes is us moving mountains, then mountains we will move.

The kind that settles comfortably between people who have stopped performing for each other. When we reached Carson City, the air felt different. Ordinary. No magic humming beneath the pavement. No wards layered into stone and glass. Just a city doing what cities do, existing without asking anything of us. Nevada did not ask questions it had learned better than to want answers to. The clerk barely blinked when I slid our IDs across the counter. Twenty-three. Nineteen. Legal. Consensual. No waiting period. Zenith’s fingers tightened around mine as the certificate was stamped. It was a quiet sound. It felt louder than thunder.

he lifts me up once more with a harsh grip, heaving breathlessly as he drags me away, “-right where it all began.” “The Crescent City?” I hear my wolf faintly comment before slipping away into the slumber brought on by the wolfsbane, mercilessly dragging me away into unwelcomed oblivion.