The Moon Rises (Gigi Monroe)

by Angela Horn

  Gigi smiled. “They’ll just break more of my windows.”

  “True.”

  “I’m not used to anything, so I’m not sure how to respond right now.”

  “Oh, very well,” Simon said, taking her hand and walking to the door. “You will give me a very nice goodnight kiss and I will say farewell. You will then think over how much better I am than those stupid dogs. Next time I see you, we will make plans for our next date.”

  “You’re good at being bossy,” Gigi said, grinning.

  Simon gave her a tiny smirk. “You have no idea.”

  “Thank you for dinner and the dress and flowers.”

  Leaning down, Simon kissed her softly. His lips teased before his teeth nipped at her lower lip. Gigi swallowed hard and wondered whether she really wanted Simon to leave. Maybe he could stay so she could make him feel good too. Before she might suggest this idea, Simon opened the door and released her hand.

  “You are in too much of a hurry,” Simon told her with a naughty smile.

  “I’ve only been around for two decades. Time feels short to me.”

  “Yes, but soon you will be eternal and I can teach you to be patient.”

  Gigi said nothing because she didn’t want to tease, but the idea of being with Simon every day for a hundred years felt like a path she wanted to follow. Simon said to be patient though, so she just smiled as he disappeared into the night and his waiting car.

  Once he was gone, Gigi eyed the mess on the floor and wondered which Were would have spied on her and destroyed her window. She might never know who did it, but she did know that from now on she would keep her drapes closed in the evenings.

  Chapter Thirty Two

  Once the front gates of the large estate opened slowly, Ella pulled up the drive to the main house. It was a lovely home with thick moss covering the sides and curious ivy curling up the front columns. Even if the sun hadn’t set an hour earlier, much of the front lawn would be shadowed by massive willow trees. Gigi wished to explore the lush grounds, but she knew this wasn’t the time.

  Approaching the front porch, Ella and Dahlia took the lead while Justine stayed close to Gigi. Dahlia, looking mysterious under her cloak, knocked on the door. Barely a moment later, Nolan answered wearing a black tee and blue jeans. Even looking less formal than when he was at the club, he was still very handsome as he smiled warmly at the four females.

  “Please come in. My mother is waiting for you in the parlor.”

  Gigi followed the other females and Nolan who peeked back at her and smiled again. Inside the parlor, Mira sat near the windows, staring out at the darkening night. She turned to the females and gestured for them to enter.

  “Oh, sweet Gigi, so wonderful to see you are well. My dear sons told me how awful your injuries were, yet here you are as good as new.”

  Gigi smiled, but she felt odd being in the home of powerful witches who might want to harvest her. Mira didn’t seem evil, but Simon called her kind a scourge.

  “Thank you for helping me,” Gigi said as the females sat around a table.

  “I’m so glad you asked for my help. False memories sound so very troubling. Poor child deserves to know her past.”

  “Your services are greatly appreciated,” Ella said in an oddly professional tone. “Alpha O’Connor sends payment as a thank you for your assistance.”

  “Master Vamp Reynard sends his regards as well,” Dahlia said, “and a gift for your gracious help in this matter.”

  “Oh, how very wonderful for you to have such benevolent males in your life.”

  Gigi wasn’t sure what was happening, but she sensed Mira was annoyed now. The witch’s face never changed from its pleasant expression and her blue eyes found Nolan who also seemed perfectly content. Ella and Dahlia were acting strangely by being so stiff and formal. Justine was pretty normal though, as she spent most of her time stealing glances at Nolan.

  “Shall we begin?” Mira said, turning to Gigi who sat next to her.

  “Yes, please.”

  Mira took Gigi’s hands into hers, closed her eyes, and inhaled deeply. Soon the witch murmured, “I see the majesty of stars all around me. I see Saturn’s rings and the winds of Neptune and the volcanoes of Mercury.” Opening her eyes, Mira frowned. “But that is all I see. There is no more.”

  “You don’t see Mamma Celeste?”

  “No, child, I see nothing more. Someone has built very powerful walls in your mind to block your memories.”

  “Why would someone do that?” Dahlia asked.

  Mira shrugged as she leaned back in her wide chair.

  “A girl from a good family was raped during a party some years ago. She was quite expectedly traumatized, so her family created a wall in her mind to suppress the memories from that night. As I understand, the girl has no ill effects from the attack or the wall. She does cry whenever a song from the dreadful night is played. While she doesn’t understand why she cries, it does her no harm.”

  “Whoever took her memories is trying to protect her?” Dahlia asked.

  “No, not taken, but hidden. Do you have witches in your family?” Mira asked Gigi.

  “I don’t know my family.”

  “Ah, maybe this is your answer. Losing one’s family could lead to such a trauma someone might have created all those walls to keep you from remembering the pain.”

  “My family is dead?” Gigi asked, instantly panicked. “Why do I remember Mamma Celeste?”

  “Who is Mamma Celeste?”

  “I think she’s my mother. My only memories are of her. I am very young in the memories and they are just tiny glimpses of her.”

  Mira studied Nolan then raised an eyebrow. “How did you come to live in the Circle?”

  “I don’t know. I just woke up here one day with memories that didn’t feel real. Once I started thinking they weren’t real, they went away.”

  “Woke up where?”

  “In my apartment.”

  “Do you have memories of renting the apartment?”

  “No, so I asked the landlady about when I rented the apartment, but she seemed confused. She told me I filled out an application and she called my references, but she couldn’t find the references or my application when I asked to see them.”

  Mira’s eyes again flickered to Nolan who looked concerned.

  “Tampering with your memories takes great magic. You do not have just one wall like with the poor raped girl, but a maze of them. Not just anyone can perform this type of magic. To be so thorough would have taken time too. Whoever did this to you seems to have also tampered with the memories of your landlady. This magic is very curious.”

  Mira took Gigi’s hand again and closed her eyes.

  “I sense no magic in you. Nothing which lingers, not even the magic of the one who healed you. Could I examine where your injuries have healed?”

  While Gigi nodded, both Ella and Dahlia were unhappy with this request. Standing, Gigi allowed Mira to pull up her shirt and examine her stomach and chest. Mira then lifted Gigi’s hair.

  Nolan’s eyes met Gigi’s. He smiled, trying to reassure her which made her anxious instead. The way Ella and Dahlia were exchanging annoyed glances didn’t help either.

  “Not a single mark,” Mira said as Gigi returned to her seat. Mira and Nolan again shared a troubled gaze. “In theory, powerful enough magic might do such a thing, but I have never seen such a perfect healing.”

  “Do you think Mamma Celeste is real?” Gigi asked.

  “You might remember her because the walls weren’t placed just right or perhaps she isn’t real? The mind doesn’t want to be walled off and it can create memories which soothe. Do your memories of Mamma Celeste soothe you, child?”

  Nodding, Gigi said in a small sad voice, “She’s not real?”

  “Possibly. Your memories remain, but powerful magic holds them in the darkness of your mind.”

  “Who could block out so many memories?” Dahlia asked.

  “Oh, many witc
hes have the power to install walls in the mind. For her to remember nothing and for me not to move past them, it must be a sorcerer. Whoever did this, also added the images of space as a way to warn those like myself not to meddle. The vastness of space is like a threat. To break past the walls could mean losing myself in the vastness of her mind. If I were properly prepared though, I could push past the walls with the protection of my clan.”

  Standing up, Dahlia smiled. “Thank you, Mira, for your assistance, but we wouldn’t want to put you in danger. We should go.”

  Mira smiled, but her eyes lost their pretend friendliness. “I would like to speak with Gigi alone. Would you three please wait in the foyer with Nolan?”

  Ella and Dahlia wanted to say no, but Mira did something which made the room feel heavier. The magic intimidated the females who grudgingly followed Nolan out of the room. Once the door was shut, Mira took Gigi’s hand.

  “Someone very powerful has tampered with your mind. If you do not learn who, you will never be able to protect yourself. The Vamps and Weres want to keep you weak, so they can lust after you. I offer you the chance to know the truth.”

  Gigi knew the truth was usually a good thing, but she was nervous because Simon warned her to be careful with the witches.

  “Will it hurt if you break the walls?”

  “No, no. I will take precautions. We will both be fine and you will learn who you are and who has toyed with you in this treacherous manner.”

  “Can I think about it?”

  “Of course, my dear,” Mira said, standing up and walking with Gigi, hand in hand to the foyer. Before they reached the others, the witch sighed. “Beware of the males who control your friends. They want you for their pleasure, but they do not care for your well being. You are alone in the Circle, beautiful and innocent. They want to benefit from your situation, but I hope you will trust me to help you.”

  Gigi wanted to trust Mira, mostly because she wanted to know who was controlling her. She also wanted to know if Mamma Celeste was real, but Gigi didn’t trust Mira especially after the witch used magic to make her friends leave.

  Trust her or not, it made sense to let Mira push past the walls. Eventually the witches would want to know her secrets. If Gigi agreed and under the watchful gazes of the packs and Simon, maybe the process could be done in a less aggressive manner.

  “I’ll sleep on it and let you know tomorrow,” Gigi said as they reached the foyer where the others waited.

  While Ella and Dahlia did their formal goodbyes, Justine smiled shyly at Nolan. Then the females were out the door and back in the car in a rush.

  Gigi expected her friends to tell her not to trust Mira. Instead they were all very quiet for the rest of the ride. When they dropped off Gigi first and then left without mentioning Mira’s offer, she suspected they wanted to talk to their bosses first. Feeling a bit like a pawn, Gigi wasn’t sure if she should trust her friends any more than she trusted Mira? Missing Sara, Gigi realized her missing friend was someone she trusted to tell the truth in a way she didn’t trust anyone else.

  Soon Gigi sat in her pretty pastel apartment and thought about Mamma Celeste. Knowing her mother was out in the world, even if she was dead, brought Gigi comfort. To think she never existed at all felt like something important was stolen from her. The grief of losing Sara returned as Gigi felt herself grieving Mamma Celeste.

  A knock on the door startled Gigi because she rarely enjoyed visitors. Thinking it might be one of her friends, she answered without checking the peephole. Instead Gigi found Nolan now wearing black dress slacks and a white shirt which was open enough to show a hint of chest hair. He looked very handsome and smelled really good and Gigi stood sort of dumbfounded. Nolan smiled and her thought process shifted from his looks to his reason for standing before her.

  “Hello, Nolan.”

  “May I come inside and speak with you for a few minutes?”

  Nodding, Gigi allowed him to enter.

  “I told your mother I would let her know in the morning what I decided.”

  “Yes, but my mother doesn’t know I’m here. It’s probably best if we keep her in the dark about my visit.”

  Gigi frowned as she followed Nolan to the sofa. His expression was soft, yet she noticed uncertainty in his blue eyes.

  “My mother is a good woman, but she is too curious for her own good. Have you ever heard of the saying about how curiosity killed the cat?” Once Gigi nodded, Nolan sighed. “In this scenario, you’re the cat.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “Your mind has been tampered with and I can understand how you and my mother would want to break down the walls to learn the truth. Did my mother explain how dangerous a task this would be?”

  “She said she would take precautions.”

  “Yes, to protect herself. There are no precautions to protect you.”

  “Your mother wants to hurt me?”

  Nolan scooted closer. “Please don’t misunderstand. My mother means well, but she is so curious and maybe a bit arrogant. She can’t see how much danger she puts you in. Those walls in your mind were created by a powerful creature that won’t be happy to have his work destroyed. This fact puts my mother in danger too, but she can only see a mystery she desires to solve. For you though, the danger isn’t simply related to the one who did this to you. There are more immediate consequences she is willing to overlook, but I am not.”

  “What kind of consequences?”

  “The girl my mother told you about. It’s true she did not seem bothered about the wall, but then she began dating a witch who sensed it in her mind. He pushed her to remove the wall and find out what was being hidden from her. He meant well, but when the wall came down, she fell into a coma for a week.

  “Not because the memory was too traumatic, but because her mind was overwhelmed by the magic of the destroyed wall. While she did recover and is fine now, she only had one wall removed. The night you were almost killed, I looked inside you, just to understand your injuries and I sensed the walls in your mind. As my mother said, they are not really walls as much as a maze.

  “To bring down even one or two would start a chain reaction. So much magic was used to create the maze and the magic will not disappear when the maze crumbles. The magic will overwhelm you. You could die or fall into a coma. More likely, you would dissolve into insanity.”

  Gigi remembered Simon’s warning about the witches and she found it strange how Mira and Nolan could disagree about the right course to take. Ella said Nolan and Spencer were mama’s boys and didn’t wipe their asses without asking their mother first.

  “Why would you go behind your mother’s back to help me?”

  Nolan took a deep breath and studied her apartment again. Smiling at her, he nodded.

  “The night you almost died, I hated feeling helpless. You are special, Gigi. While I don’t truly understand exactly what makes you special, I would like for you to survive long enough to find out. If you let my mother or anyone else break down those walls, you won’t survive in a meaningful way.

  “When you first walked onto the witch floor, I was very curious about you. Seeing how you’ve survived in a harsh place like the Circle impresses me. I gain nothing from going behind my mother’s back. I hope you’ll trust me and refuse to allow her to tamper with your mind. It’s been tampered with enough.”

  Maybe Nolan really was nicer than the other witches? While she didn’t trust him and was beginning to wonder if she should trust anyone, Gigi knew Nolan was trying to help her. He wanted her to stay away from magic. For a witch, this must be a difficult stance.

  “I’ll tell your mother no and say it’s because I’m afraid to know the truth. That doesn’t sound like a lie.”

  When Nolan smiled beautifully at her, Gigi understood why Justine was so crazy over the witch.

  “There’s one more thing,” Nolan said. “The one who took your memories has left a mark on you.”

  Gigi remembered how Mira looked at her
neck. “What kind of mark?”

  “I sensed it the night you were hurt and I told my mother. She looked at it tonight and can not place it. On the nape of your neck is a small symbol.”

  “What does the mark do?”

  “It might help him track you or it could just be a way to brand his work. Without knowing what the symbol means, I can not tell you what the mark does. I just thought you should know.”

  Gigi ran her fingers over the back of her neck. “Can I take it off?”

  Nolan gestured for her to turn around then he studied the area, hidden just under her hair.

  “It is not a tattoo. Having been applied with magic, this symbol should be removable with magic. I do not suggest you try though.”

  Gigi turned around and frowned at him, feeling weird having a mark on her, as if she was property.

  “Is this like breaking the walls? I should leave well enough alone.”

  Nolan smiled sadly and nodded. “Someone very powerful has marked you as his possession. Without knowing who or why, challenging him could be very dangerous for you.”

  “Why didn’t your mother mention this today?”

  Nolan fidgeted and bit his lower lip, thinking up a believable explanation. “She most likely didn’t want to worry you.”

  Accepting his lie because Nolan took a chance by helping her, Gigi now understood why Simon said the witches were a scourge. They viewed her no differently than the one who tampered with her mind and marked her like cattle.

  Chapter Thirty Three

  Gigi stared at Michael who growled at her as he tried to force her hand down. He was very strong and should have pinned her by now, but she had been working out at Declan’s gym. She held her own for nearly a minute before Michael pounded her hand into the kitchen table.

  Gigi frowned at the ferocity of his behavior then smiled because she noticed how he was still irritated which meant somehow he thought she had won. She really liked beating Michael because he would cuss at her in other languages and sometimes throw objects at her. Mostly she had to dodge pillows, but once he used Kleenex. This sent Finn into hysterics when Michael kept picking up the tissues and throwing them again as if he might get a better result.