Page 3 of Moon's Call

Miller’s Creek soon appeared ahead, its water gleaming silver in the moonlight. With a final burst of speed, Draken cleared the distance, landing gracefully on the creek’s bank several lengths ahead of the others.

“Show-off,” Chuck panted as he arrived second, followed closely by Scorpio.

The rest of the wolves tumbled in behind them, their mental voices filled with good-natured complaints and congratulations. Draken stood tall, his fur ruffled by the night breeze, trying to project confidence even as uncertainty gnawed at his gut. What if his mate wasn’t what he expected?

TWO

LORELEI

Lorelei leaned against the rooftop railing, her red cocktail dress catching the breeze as she gazed up at the full moon. The city sprawled below, a tapestry of lights and shadows, but her attention remained fixed on the luminous orb above. Her finger traced the rim of her champagne glass while the sounds of laughter and music drifted from the party behind her.

“The big three-o,” she whispered to herself, testing how the word felt on her tongue as the moonlight painted silver streaks in her brown waves.

The moon had always been her confidant during moments of reflection, ever since she was small. But tonight, it seemed to pulse with an unusual energy that matched her own restlessness.

Her watch ticked to midnight.Happy birthday to me.

Suddenly, the concrete beneath her feet shook. The champagne in her glass rippled, creating concentric circles that caught the moonlight. The tremor built, rattling the string lights that decorated the rooftop. Lorelei gripped the railing as the vibrations traveled up through her bones, bringing with them a strange warmth that spread through her chest.

“What the—“ The words caught in her throat as smaller tremors followed, each one sending peculiar tingles through her fingertips. The sensation felt less like danger and more like... recognition. As if the earth itself was wishing her happy birthday.

Behind her, glasses clinked, and her friends’ voices rose in pitch.

“Did everyone feel that?”

“An earthquake? In this city?”

“Lorelei! Are you okay over there?”

She remained at the railing, transfixed by the way the tremors seemed to sync with her heartbeat. The moon appeared brighter now. Something fundamental had shifted, and not just in the tectonic plates beneath the city.

“I should check the news,” she murmured, pulling out her phone. But her fingers hovered over the screen, distracted by the lingering warmth in her hands. The practical part of her brain - the part that calculated load-bearing walls and stress points - insisted this needed investigation. Yet another part, one she hadn’t known existed until now, whispered that some questions weren’t meant to be answered through Google searches.

The sudden click of heels against concrete announced the arrival of Lorelei’s friends, their cocktail dresses creating a rainbow of silk and chiffon as they rushed to her side. The lingering warmth in her palms faded as Helena’s emerald dress brushed against her arm.

“Are you all right?” Helena steadied herself against the railing.

“I’m fine,” Lorelei said softly. “Though I can’t help thinking this is some cosmic sign that my thirties are going to be... unstable.”

Isolde’s sapphire dress sparkled in the moonlight as she laughed. “Please. The only thing shaking up is your life, in the best possible way.” She clinked her glass against Lorelei’s.

Her friends’ presence settled Lorelei’s nerves, even as her fingertips continued to tingle. These women had been her constants through college, through career changes, through every milestone. They’d celebrated each other’s promotions, consoled each other through breakups, and now they were all stepping into their thirties together.

“You know what?” Lorelei raised her glass. “Maybe you’re right. Maybe it’s time for a shake-up. We’ve mastered our careers-“

“Some of us are controlling actual air traffic,” Thea interjected.

“Others are discovering new stars,” Seraphina added.

“And one of us designs buildings that could withstand whatever that tremor was,” Everly nudged Lorelei.

“The point is,” Lorelei continued, “maybe the earth moving under our feet isn’t such a bad omen. Maybe it’s just the universe’s way of saying ‘get ready.’”

They all raised their glasses, “To getting ready!” the crystal glinting in the moonlight.

As they toasted, Lorelei couldn’t shake the feeling that the universe had something specific in mind for her, something beyond the typical thirty-something shake-up her friends were talking about. But surrounded by the warmth of friendship and champagne, she decided that whatever came next, she’d face it with the same precision and planning she applied to her architectural projects.

“Speaking of getting ready,” Helena swirled her champagne, “my mother keeps asking when I’m going to get married to a nice accountant.”

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