Page 32 of The Heart of Moonlight Falls

“I know. And I don’t want to give up.” James was determined not to. “But we don’t have control over this situation, and everything we do is a reminder. What if that horrible shade comes back and casts spells on the veins again? What if it makes the imbalance even more unstable?”

“I don’t know, James.” Hazel gripped his shoulder. It would have been more comforting if there wasn’t obvious fear in Hazel’s eyes.

Sebastian walked back over to them, his phone call apparently finished.

“Anything?” James asked.

Sebastian grimaced. “Owning part of Nelson Power doesn’t give me access to their intellectual property. Even offering to exchange my shares for the information got me nowhere. Whatever they know isn’t getting out. I can’t even get more information on Nelson Storm. Being a descendant doesn’t seem to mean much.”

“Oh well, it’s what we expected.” James tried his best not to be dejected. The secret of how to safely extract power from the veins was never the most likely solution, so not finding it out wasn’t a setback. Still, it would have felt better to be able to try taking power from the veins and see what happened to rule it out completely.

Doing nothing was killing them slowly, but there wasn’t anything else to say about the dead end, so James and Hazel got back to fixing the lights while Sebastian sat against a nearby tree and listened to music.

Now that the darkness was gone, all the tourists seemed to have returned. People were in and out of Beth’s souvenir shop, wandering around the circle and taking pictures of the stone.

For the first time, the peaceful familiarity of Moonlight Falls didn’t comfort James. Seeing things go on as if nothing was wrong put him on edge.

James couldn’t help scrutinizing all the locals who passed by. Most of them probably hadn’t found out about the veins, but he was wary of anyone who’d been at the meeting. He noticed a woman standing by the ice cream shop who seemed to be staring at them. He frowned at her. She wasn’t familiar, so it was unlikely she was a Moonlighter or had been at the meeting, but James swore she was looking at Sebastian.

Sebastian had his eyes closed. He looked dazzling sitting under the tree, surrounded by fall leaves, soft autumn light warming his skin. The season suited him, the fall colors complementing his ginger hair and rosy cheeks. James suspected spring and summer would suit him just as well. He’d look absolutely ethereal, surrounded by all the freshly blooming flowers, and would enjoy the long days spent in his garden.

James couldn’t wait to see the seasons change with Sebastian. He longed for the years ahead and all the little routines they would build together.

Sebastian opened his eyes and looked at James from beneath his lashes. A deeper red tinged Sebastian’s cheeks in response to whatever expression he found on James’s face. Fuck, James loved him so much.

The back of James’s neck prickled, and his attention was torn from Sebastian. He looked across the street to find the woman still staring. James glanced between her and Sebastian, not sure what had her attention.

Sebastian followed his gaze. He sat up abruptly, all the softness leaving his features. Sebastian slowly pulled the headphones off his ears.

“What’s wrong?” James asked.

Sebastian didn’t speak right away, and when he did, his voice was barely audible. “That’s my mom.”

13

SEBASTIAN

Sebastian was stunned. It was more likely he’d fallen asleep under the tree and this was a dream or nightmare than his mom had actually shown up. He’d never imagined he’d see her again.

But there Samantha Storm stood. Was she going to come over or just gawk from afar? Sebastian certainly wasn’t going to her.

“That’s your mom?” James asked in disbelief, stepping partially in front of Sebastian as if trying to shield him.

“The one and only,” Sebastian said dryly.

Hazel came up beside them. “She better be here to help.”

James snorted. “Don’t count on it.”

Now that three people were staring at her, Samantha seemed to decide it was time to approach. Sebastian didn’t get off the ground. He wasn’t sure if he could. He’d been half-ready to face his mom over the phone but after her not answering repeatedly, he’d begun to worry he’d never hear from her again.

He hadn’t been prepared for this.

His mom walked toward him like she was trying to act casual, her face carefully neutral. However, the death grip on her handbag gave away her nerves. She didn’t acknowledge James or Hazel as she looked down at Sebastian sitting in the dirt. “Sebastian.”

What a greeting. Totally worthy of twelve years apart.

Sebastian stood. He was a full head taller than his mother now. He turned to James. “You might want to check if hell froze over.”

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