Blood Moon

by KB Anne

  Blood Moon

  The Goddess Chronicles Book Two

  KB Anne

  Copyright © 2019 by KB Anne

  All rights reserved.

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  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

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  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, places, events, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictiously.

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  No part of this book may be reproduced or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.

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  Published by Gripping Tales, LLC, Pennsylvania.

  ISBN: 9798621623623

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  Cover Design by Anika Willmans, Ravenborn Covers

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  Editorial Services by Laura Parnum, Laura Parnum Books

  Created with Vellum

  To my readers,

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  KICK ASS.

  You got this.

  ~K

  Contents

  Join K’s Koven

  Prologue

  1. Hanging from the Gallows

  2. Insert Foot in Mouth

  3. Werewolf Nibbles

  4. Genetics Gone Wild

  5. Sleeping Fits

  6. Casket Knockouts

  7. Abysmal Happenings

  8. Night of the Walking Werewolf

  9. Twisting the Knife

  10. Swan Love

  11. Shit Show

  12. Lies and Deceptions

  13. Life Sucks

  14. Journeys to Other Places

  15. Bumpy Flight

  16. Creepy Cathedrals

  17. Piles of Something

  18. Discoveries and Strangers

  19. Love Bites For Reals

  20. Green Eyes and Scones

  21. Myth Busters

  22. Fairy Mound Visitors

  23. Midnight Visitors, Again

  24. Spell Work and Kisses

  25. Private Thoughts

  26. Love Potion Number

  27. Blood Suckers

  28. Towering Discoveries

  29. Tallest Tower Trappings

  30. Surprise Stalking

  31. Hear Me Roar

  32. Truths Revealed

  Join K’s Koven

  Also by KB Anne

  Acknowledgments

  The Second Prophecy

  New Drama

  Join K’s Koven

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  Join K’s Koven! Be the FIRST to find out about new releases from Best-Selling Author, K.B. Anne. PLUS, receive Newsletter Subscriber Only Bonus Content, insight on Celtic Mythology, Druids, Witches, Werewolves, and Magic, and so much more! Join K’s Koven today or visit KBAnne.com!

  Prologue

  I’ve tempted fate one too many times not to be surprised as the killer stalks toward me, but still I am. An ocean separated us. An ocean for god’s sake. But still he’s here. Ready to rip out my throat.

  * * *

  ~Gigi Brennan, BLOOD MOON: THE GODDESS CHRONICLES BOOK TWO

  1

  Hanging from the Gallows

  My best friend is dead. Dead. It doesn’t seem possible that the world continues to rotate around the sun without her in it. It certainly isn’t fair that I continue breathing while she gets shoved into a coffin and dropped into the ground.

  How did I, Gigi Brennan, release Clayone, the Original Werewolf?

  Oh, that’s right, because Gram and Uncle Mark—or really “Dad”—believe I’m the Celtic Goddess Brigit reincarnated.

  The last time I checked, goddesses don’t break into their neighbors’ houses, or lie to the school principal on a daily basis or, well, suck the tonsils out of anyone with a pulse.

  Do gods and goddesses even kiss? Zeus went far beyond lip locking with mortals. Ever hear the term “demigod”? Zeus had armies of them. But he’s a Greek god. Are Celtic gods and goddesses just as horny as him?

  Though, honestly, being Brigit is the least of my worries.

  The moment Lizzie stopped breathing, I stopped breathing. I stopped believing in everything and everyone. The lies Gram and Uncle Mark told me confirm that the world has gone insane. That it’s a world not worth living in anymore.

  A world I don’t want to live in anymore.

  Knock. Knock.

  “Gigi, honey?” Gram calls out from the other side of the door. “Some officers are here, and they’d like to speak with you and Scott about what happened up at the church.”

  Do I even know what happened? It feels like a bad trip, and one I don’t want to repeat.

  “I’m not talking to anyone,” I mutter into my pillow.

  The door clicks open, and she walks in. “Dear, you have to talk to them.”

  The mind-reading stuff is really a pain in the ass, especially when it’s my own grandmother reading my freaking mind.

  I flip over to face away from her. “I don’t want to.”

  The bed moves as she sits down next to me. Her presence alone calms me more than any tea or smell ever could.

  “Gi, you owe it to your friends to make sure no one else goes up there and gets injured. Or worse.”

  I stare at the wolf statue on my nightstand. Wolves are innocent. Pure. Good. How could someone turn them into a killing machine?

  “I don’t even know what to tell them.”

  Scott’s the storyteller. He’s the entertainer. He’s the good one.

  “You will,” she says.

  She’s always given me far too much credit. Credit I do not deserve.

  “You do deserve it, Gigi. You do.”

  * * *

  The climb down the stairs feels like I’m approaching the gallows. Not that the thought didn’t already cross my mind, but Gram, Scott, and Dad shouldn’t have to endure my death. The longer I live, the more I’ll suffer, and I should suffer for what I’ve done.

  When I enter the living room, I see Scott leaning against the wall and Dad standing at the door in quiet conversation with the two officers. In my heart, I know it’s right to call him “Dad.” He’s always been there for me, always watched out for me. Just like Scott. We might now officially, or at least metaphysically, be related by blood, but they have always been my people. They are my family, and I will do everything in my power to protect them.

  “Gigi, Scott, this is Officer Lamberton and Officer Smith. They’d like to talk to you about what happened yesterday. Shall we?” Dad says, gesturing to the sofas. The same sofas we passed out on last night. The same sofas where we discovered the shocking truth that I unleashed the evilest werewolf of all time. A werewolf who bit Ryan and killed Lizzie. A werewolf who will kill anyone who comes near the church in order to feed. In order to gain strength. In order to kill me. I don’t fear for my own life, but I fear for Gram, Scott, and Dad. I fear for these officers.

  “We’ve already been to the hospital to talk to Ryan,” Officer Smith says.

  I recognize him. He’s Tom’s dad. Tom plays football with Scott and Ryan.

  The flame of possibility blooms within me. “He’s conscious?”

  “He is, but he’s completely delusional. His version of the events yesterday is pretty outrageous. He claims some type of beast attacked the two of them. We’re hoping you two can help us figure out what we’re going up against when we go up there.”

  I raise my hand. “That won’t be necessary.”

  Everyone turns to me, and unfortunately, I know what they’re thinking.
I know what they’re all thinking.

  “It won’t be necessary to go up to the church. There isn’t anything there.”

  “Gi?” Scott says. He wants to tell them everything. Every last stinking detail.

  Don’t.

  His forehead bulges, but he keeps his mouth shut.

  “We were camping in the woods Saturday night, and we were telling ghost stories. We decided to hike up to the old church the next day. When we got there, we were messing around, trying to scare each other. It was dark inside, and it was covered with cobwebs. Then all of a sudden the floor collapsed and Lizzie and Ryan fell down to the basement or something. Everyone was screaming. Ryan lifted Lizzie, and Scott and I pulled her up the rest of the way. Blood was everywhere.”

  I babble on and on, unable to stop. Knowing if I do stop, even for a breath, I won’t be able to continue.

  “Then we pulled Ryan up. As soon as he was out of the hole, Scott lifted Lizzie, and we ran out of the place as fast as we could. We were so scared. When we were far away from the church, we finally stopped. That’s when I cleaned Ryan’s cut and bandaged him. I tried to find a pulse on Lizzie, but she was already . . . she was already . . .” A wave of sobs removes my power of speech.

  Scott wraps his arm around me, immediately calming me. “When we got them out of the woods, we drove to the hospital, but it was too late for Lizzie,” he says.

  “Ryan said they were attacked by some type of beast,” Officer Lamberton says. “Do you know what he’s talking about?”

  Unfortunately, I know exactly what he’s talking about.

  “The building was really old, and the floor was covered in animal droppings. A rat probably bit him when he fell.”

  A freaking giant rat.

  I cringe at the memory of Ryan’s blood-curdling scream. If someone lights a match near my mouth, I will burst into flames.

  Lamberton’s eyes shine as he caresses his holstered gun. “You’re sure there’s no rabid animal we need to hunt down?”

  The young cop seems to possess a fetish for his shiny weapon. A deadly instrument that, if past crimes in Vernal Falls are any indication, will never need to be used in the line of duty. Scott and I nod our heads in agreement.

  They buy our story hook, line, and bullshit.

  Officer Smith stands up with Officer Lamberton following. “Appreciate your time. We’ve got everything we need. If we have more questions, we’ll give you a call.”

  Dad shakes each of their hands. “Thank you, gentlemen.”

  “Ma’am,” they say together, nodding at Gram before Dad closes the door behind them.

  Gram wraps her arm around me. “You did great, Gigi. I knew you would.”

  Dad agrees with her, but there is one person in the room who is not in agreement.

  “Why didn’t you tell them the truth? Why did you lie to them? They’re going to think Ryan’s a complete nutjob now.”

  Dad crouches down in front of us. “Scott, that’s enough. Gi did the right thing. If you told them what really happened, do you think they’d believe you anyway? And what would happen to them if they went up to the church?”

  Before Scott can answer, Dad continues. “They would be killed. Clayone would feed on them and grow stronger with every death. Right now, he’s trapped in the church until the next full moon. That evening, he’ll be able to leave his prison to feed. When he builds enough strength, he will come here. The spells we have in place and the others we will cast should keep him out, but in just over a month, he will be more powerful than he has been in a thousand years.”

  “Why’s that?” Scott asks quietly.

  “On October 31, the eve of Samhain, there will be a Super Blue Blood Moon during the lunar eclipse. The strong oak doors of this house and the enchantments placed upon it may not be enough to protect any of us,” Dad whispers.

  Shit. What have I done?

  2

  Insert Foot in Mouth

  As we walk into the hospital, the unnatural stench of bleach and sickness slams into our nostrils like a freaking herd of football players at an all-you-can-eat buffet. I don’t understand how the world can continue moving forward without Lizzie in it.

  “So, what do we tell Ryan when we see him? Do we lie to him too?”

  He’s still mad at me for lying to the police. If he only knew about the searing pain in my throat every time I lie, he might be more sympathetic. Then again, I don’t want his sympathy. I don’t want anyone’s sympathy. My best friend is freaking dead, and I killed her.

  “Scott, you know it was for his own good. He can’t know what really happened, and we can’t provide Clayone with a free meal ticket. I can’t kill anyone else.”

  Nurses, doctors scurry past us, moving from patient to patient, trying to help the ones they can. But what happens to the ones they can’t save?

  “It wasn’t just you. I’m the one who told that stupid story. I’m the one who gave everyone the idea to sneak into the church.”

  I’m about to argue with him until I realize that we’re standing in front of Ryan’s room. My plan to remain upbeat and cheerful fails miserably when confronted with Ryan’s limp form. He’s always been the strong one. The one who saved me from being completely alone while I waited for my daily session with Principal Donahue. The one who saw past the freak beside him. Someone who didn’t know the Gigi of the past, who wasn’t related to me, but still sought my company and became my friend. To see him so weak and frail makes me reevaluate my own humanity. Because, of everything I learned over the past few days, I am human. A mortal, very breakable human.

  Fortunately, Scott, with his never-ending optimism and ability to shoot the bull even in the most difficult circumstances, manages to fill the void. “Hey, Ryan, you look like you were run over by an angry line of defenders.”

  Ryan laughs weakly. He wants to joke. He wants to banter back and forth with Scott, but he’s got only one person on his mind. “How is she? No one will tell me how she is.”

  And just like that, without a word or a nod, we’re at his side, each taking a hand.

  “She’s no longer with us,” I whisper.

  “She will be forever young in our hearts and minds. She will watch over you always, guiding you when you need her the most,” Scott adds.

  Ryan leans his head back against the pillows and closes his eyes. No longer needing to keep our emotions in check—no longer caring period—we weep for our lost friend. We weep for all we have lost, and our losses have been catastrophic.

  “I love her with all my heart,” he moans.

  “You’ll be with her soon,” I reassure him.

  He closes his eyes and falls into a peaceful sleep. My words give him comfort, and I am thankful I could give him that. After several long minutes of watching him, Scott tilts his head to the door. He needs to speak to me outside in private, because he’s pissed.

  As soon as we’re in the hall, he turns to me, his face angry and full of rage. “What the hell was that about?”

  “What?”

  “‘You’ll be with her soon?’ You basically told him he’s going to die. The doctors all say he’s improving. We need to boost his spirit, not knock him down. He is not going to die!” he shouts before storming off down the corridor, leaving a trail of people staring from him to me.

  I watch him leave, not really sure what I did or why Scott got so upset about it. I know Ryan is his best friend. I’d never want to hurt either one of them, but what I said felt true. What I said is true.

  But that doesn’t mean I should have said it. I just told my brother’s best friend, and one of my best friends, he’s going to die . . .

  I am a fucking asshole.

  3

  Werewolf Nibbles

  Scott left me at the hospital. Granted it was warranted—I am an asshole and deserve to walk the three miles home after what I said to Ryan. For the first time in days I am truly by myself, and I realize how alone I really am. No Lizzie. No Scott. No Ryan. Not even Breas. Not
that I can stand him or want his company, but with him around I wouldn’t be completely alone. No doubt he’ll show up tonight when we’re in the throes of an intense family game of “Name That Goddess.” He’ll waltz in, acting like he didn’t disappear for a few days, and beg forgiveness from Dad—which he’ll get. Because both father and son suffer from “all-shall-be-forgiven syndrome,” no matter how much of an asshole the person has been. Breas will grovel for a place to stay and promise he won’t pull another disappearing act. He’ll flirt with me, and because I am an idiot and weak and enjoy torturing myself, I will fall for his shenanigans again.

  In a way, it’s his fault that Lizzie died. If he hadn’t disappeared, he’d have gone camping with us, even if it was against my wishes. We still would have sat around the campfire telling ghost stories, but he would have told stories too. Stories of Ireland and the life he left behind. He would have charmed me with his false flattery. I would have hooked up with him early in the evening, because I am an asshole and wouldn’t care if my friends were watching. Scott would never have told the story about the church, we would never have gone searching for it, I wouldn’t have accidently released the Original Werewolf, and most important of all, Lizzie would still be alive and Ryan wouldn’t have been bitten.