Chapter 146 Liam's Insight

Chapter 146 Liam's Insight
POV: Luna
I woke up in the infirmary.
Again.
My head was pounding. My whole body ached like I'd been hit by a truck.
"Easy," a familiar voice said. "You took a pretty bad hit."
Liam.
He was sitting beside my bed, looking worried.
"What happened?" I asked, my voice rough.
"Cole and his It-Girls knocked you out with dark magic. We found you unconscious on the lawn about an hour ago."
"We?"
"Your pack. We were looking for you when we felt the disturbance through the bonds."
Right. The pack bonds. Thank god for those.
"Where's Cole now?"
"Gone. He and the It-Girls disappeared before we could catch them."
Of course they did.
I tried to sit up and immediately regretted it. Pain shot through my skull.
"Whoa, take it slow," Liam said, helping me. "The nurse said you need to rest. Dark magic concussions are no joke."
"I'm fine."
"You're stubborn is what you are."
Despite everything, I smiled. "You're one to talk."
"Fair point."
The door opened and my friends poured in.
"Luna!" Nova hugged me carefully. "Are you okay?"
"I've been better. What did I miss?"
"Everything," Aria said grimly. "Cole's officially gone rogue. The Headmaster issued a warrant for his arrest."
"About time."
"There's more," Sienna added. "The Council documentation? Fake. Cole was never a Council spy."
My stomach dropped. "So everything he said—"
"Was a lie. Start to finish." Lyric pulled out her tablet. "I dug deeper into his background. His real background. Luna, he's been working with the It-Girls since before he came to Silverwood."
"How long before?"
"Years. Since he was a student at Thornheart Academy. This whole thing was planned from the beginning."
I felt sick. Every moment with Cole. Every kiss. Every promise. All of it had been manipulation.
"I'm an idiot," I muttered.
"You're human," Liam corrected. "You trusted someone you loved. That's not stupid. That's brave."
"Brave would have been seeing through him sooner."
"Stop." His voice was firm. "Cole is a professional manipulator. He fooled the Academy. He fooled the Headmaster. You're not weak for falling for it."
Through the mate bond, I felt his sincerity. His absolute refusal to let me blame myself.
It helped. A little.
"Okay," I said. "So Cole's evil. The It-Girls are planning something. What do we do about it?"
"We investigate," Liam said. "Figure out what they're actually planning and stop it."
"How?"
He grinned. "With my incredibly impressive investigative skills, obviously."
"Modest too."
"That's my best quality."
The nurse came in and kicked everyone out except Liam.
"Five more minutes," she said sternly. "Then she needs rest."
When we were alone, Liam said, "I need to show you something. But it requires you getting out of bed."
"The nurse said—"
"I know what she said. But this is important."
He helped me up. My legs were shaky, but I managed to walk.
We went to an empty classroom. Liam had set up what looked like a detective's murder board.
Papers. Photos. Red string connecting different pieces.
"Okay," I said. "This is either really helpful or really creepy."
"Both, probably." He gestured to the board. "I've been tracking the It-Girls' movements for the past week. Look at the patterns."
I studied the board. Pins marked different locations around campus.
"They're meeting in specific spots," I realized. "Always the same places."
"Exactly. And look at what those places have in common."
I traced the connections. "They're all near ley lines. Magical energy convergence points."
"Very good, Eclipse. Top of the class."
"Why would they need access to ley lines?"
"Because whatever spell they're planning requires massive amounts of magical energy." He pulled up another chart. "I've also been tracking magical disturbances. Every time the It-Girls meet, there's a spike in dark magic residue."
"They're practicing. Getting ready for something big."
"Exactly."
I looked at Liam with new appreciation. "How did you figure all this out?"
"Told you. Incredibly impressive investigative skills."
"Seriously."
His smile faded. "My family trained me. Before they sent me here, they taught me how to track magical signatures. How to recognize patterns. How to investigate without being detected."
"The network you mentioned."
"Yeah. They're not all bad, Luna. They do protect people. Even if their methods are sometimes questionable."
"Like sending you here to recruit me?"
"Like that, yes. But I told you. I'm not following their orders anymore. I'm here because I want to be."
Through the mate bond, I felt his truth.
"Show me more," I said.
We spent the next hour going over his findings.
The It-Girls weren't just meeting randomly. They were building something. A network of magical nodes across campus.
"It's like they're creating a giant spell circle," I said. "But for what purpose?"
"I don't know yet. But it's connected to the rogue attacks."
He showed me another chart. Every rogue attack had happened near one of the It-Girls' meeting spots.
"They're summoning them," I realized. "Using the ley line energy to pull rogue wolves through from somewhere else."
"That's my theory. But there's more."
He pulled up a photo. It showed a sigil carved into a tree.
"I found this near the eastern ley line. Recognize it?"
I did. It was the same symbol that had appeared on Selene's door after the Thornheart threat.
"They're targeting the princess specifically."
"Not just targeting. Tracking." He showed me more photos. The sigil appeared in multiple locations. "Everywhere Selene goes, this mark shows up within hours."
"How is that possible? We've been watching her constantly."
"Because someone on the inside is placing them. Someone with access to her schedule and location."
"Cole."
"Probably. But maybe not just him."
"You think there are other traitors?"
"I think the It-Girls have been here longer than we realized. And they've recruited more people than we know about."
That was terrifying.
"We need to tell the Headmaster," I said.
"Already did. He's investigating. But quietly. If the traitors know we're onto them, they'll just hide deeper."
Smart.
My friends appeared in the doorway.
"Sorry to interrupt," Aria said. "But you need to see this."
We followed them to the library.
Sienna had books spread across a table. Ancient texts on dark magic.
"I've been researching the spell pattern Liam identified," she said. "I think I know what they're planning."
"What?"
She pointed to a page. "It's called a Convergence Ritual. It uses multiple ley lines to tear open a portal to the otherworld."
My blood ran cold. "They're trying to breach the sealed door."
"Worse. They're trying to shatter it completely. Release everything on the other side."
"Why would they want that?"
"Power," Lyric said. "The otherworld contains ancient magic. Raw. Unfiltered. If they can access it—"
"They'd be unstoppable," I finished.
"Exactly."
"But opening that seal would destroy reality. The goddess told me that. Everything would collapse into chaos."
"Maybe they don't care," Aria suggested. "Or maybe they think they can control it."
"They're insane."
"They're desperate," Liam corrected. "Desperate people do insane things."
I looked at the spell description again. "How do we stop it?"
"We need to disrupt the ley line network," Sienna said. "Break the connections before they can complete the ritual."
"When are they planning to do it?"
"The next full moon. Three days from now."
"Of course. Maximum magical energy."
We spent the rest of the day planning.
If the It-Girls had nodes at each ley line convergence, we needed to destroy them simultaneously. Otherwise, they'd just rebuild.
"We need to split up," Aria said. "Each team takes a different node."
"That's dangerous," Nova protested. "What if they're expecting us?"
"They probably are. But we don't have a choice."
I looked at my pack. At Liam. At the friends who'd stood by me through everything.
"Okay," I said. "We split up. But we stay connected through the pack bonds. First sign of trouble, everyone retreats."
"Agreed."
We divided the nodes. Nova and Aria would take the eastern convergence. Sienna and Lyric the western. Liam and I would handle the northern node, the largest and most dangerous.
"What about Selene?" I asked.
"She stays in the safe room," Aria said. "With full guard. No exceptions."
"She won't like that."
"She'll live with it. Literally. If she's out there, she's a target."
Fair point.
That evening, I went to tell Selene the plan.
She was in her suite, surrounded by books on royal magic.
"You're researching," I observed.
"Trying to understand my own power. If I'm being targeted for it, I should at least know what I have."
"Finding anything useful?"
"Maybe. Royal wolf magic is different from Eclipse power. It's about connection. About binding packs together."
"That sounds powerful."
"It is. But it's also vulnerable. If someone breaks the bonds, the whole structure collapses."
"Is that what the It-Girls want? To break royal bonds?"
"Possibly. If they could control royal magic, they could manipulate entire kingdoms."
That was terrifying.
"We're going after them," I told her. "In three days. During the full moon."
"I want to help."
"You can help by staying safe. Let us handle the fighting."
"Luna—"
"Please. I can't protect you and fight them at the same time. I need to know you're safe."
She sighed. "Fine. I'll stay in the safe room. But I'm not happy about it."
"I know. But thank you."
I left her suite and headed back to my dorm.
Liam was waiting outside.
"Can't sleep?" he asked.
"Too much on my mind."
"Want company?"
"Always."
We went to the roof. Our usual spot now.
The stars were bright. The moon was waxing. Getting closer to full.
"Three days," Liam said. "Then this is over."
"Or it's just beginning."
"Always the optimist."
"Always the realist."
We sat in comfortable silence.
Then Liam said, "Can I ask you something?"
"Sure."
"What happens after? After we stop the It-Girls and save the princess?"
"I don't know. Graduate eventually? Try to have a normal life?"
"With me?"
I looked at him. At my mate. At the person who'd stood by me without lies or manipulation.
"Yeah," I said. "With you."
He smiled. "Good. Because I'm not going anywhere."
He kissed me. Soft. Sweet. Perfect.
Through the mate bond, I felt our connection strengthen. Solidify.
This was real. This was right.
When we pulled apart, I said, "Thank you."
"For what?"
"For being honest. For being here. For being you."
"Anytime."
We stayed on the roof until late, talking about everything and nothing.
For a few hours, I let myself forget about It-Girls and conspiracies and world-ending rituals.
I let myself just be a girl with her boyfriend, watching the stars.
Then Liam tensed.
"What is it?" I asked.
"Do you feel that?"
I focused on my senses. My mark was tingling. Warning.
"Magical disturbance," I said. "Close. Getting closer."
We stood up, alert.
Below us, I saw movement near Selene's wing.
Dark figures. Moving fast.
"They're going after the princess," Liam said.
"Now? Before the full moon?"
"Must be a backup plan. In case we disrupt the ritual."
We ran.
Down the stairs. Across the courtyard. Toward Selene's suite.
But we were too late.
The guards were down. Unconscious but alive.
The door to her suite was open.
Inside, everything was chaos.
Furniture overturned. Books scattered. Signs of a struggle.
But no Selene.
"They took her," I breathed.
On the wall, written in dark magic, was a message.
Come to the northern convergence. Alone. Or the princess dies.
"It's a trap," Liam said.
"I know. But I don't have a choice."
"Yes, you do. We call for backup. We go together."
"They said alone."
"And you're really going to trust them?"
He had a point.
Through the pack bonds, I reached out to my friends.
Selene's been taken. Northern convergence. Now. Everyone come.
Responses flooded back immediately.
On our way. - Nova
Almost there. - Aria
Two minutes. - Sienna
My pack was coming. Together, we were strong enough to face anything.
Even the It-Girls.
Even Cole.
"Let's go," I said to Liam.
We ran toward the northern convergence.
Toward whatever trap was waiting.
Toward the confrontation that had been building all year.
And as we ran, I felt it.
Another magical disturbance. Massive. Powerful.
Coming from the exact spot we were heading.
They weren't waiting for the full moon after all.
They were starting the ritual now.