CHAPTER 127: CRESCENT.

~ Lilith’s POV ~

Crescents. Crescents. Crescents.

The day I had longed for, the day I had bled and suffered for, was finally here. My family—the true Crescents..were waking. Stronger than ever before.

My fingers trembled as they trailed across the jagged surface of the broken statue, the stone that had once been their prison. Fine cracks spread like veins across the cold marble, proof that life was already stirring within them. The ancient spell was working.

The blood of the twins had helped. It always had to be blood. And now, it was time for the final movement.

From my cloak, I drew out a handkerchief containing the twins’ blood. I pressed it into the urn of ashes and lifted it to my lips The ashes scattered, drifting in the air like black snow, landing upon every single statue.

The binding step. The tether. The moment that tied every Crescent together.

Agony struck instantly. Black blood spilled from my mouth, thick and burning, and my fingers shook violently. My knees weakened, and I could barely hold myself upright. I knew Hazel and her unborn children were enduring the same torment—our bond ensured that what I suffered, they suffered too.

The stones groaned. The ground split. From every fracture in the statues, light bled through like molten fire. Then suddenly, the light was gone. Darkness consumed everything.

Day collapsed into night. The earth itself rebelled. A deafening vibration shook the ground, tossing me to the floor. My body smacked against the dirt, and I clawed at the ground to keep myself steady.

Then silence...For a heartbeat, nothing. Just the taste of blood and dust in my mouth.

When the vibration ceased, a heavy cloud of white dust filled the air. I coughed, choking, my lungs screaming as the haze blinded me. My chest heaved, my eyes stung. Then—

"Lilith...?"

That voice. That voice pierced me deeper than any blade. My soul recognized it before my ears even did. My heart clenched so tightly I thought it might shatter.

Tears stung my eyes. "No... no, it can’t be—"

But it was.

As the dust began to fade, as the fog of centuries lifted, I saw them. All of them. Standing before me, whole. Alive.

Jonathan. Ruby. Alice. And the others.

My chest swelled so painfully I thought it might burst. For a moment I could not breathe.

Alice moved first. Her fiery red hair caught in the dim light as she rushed to me, falling to her knees and wrapping her arms around me before I could react. Her sobs echoed against my ear.

"Lilith! Oh my goodness... I can’t believe I’m seeing you again!" she shrieked, her voice breaking.

Tears spilled freely down my cheeks. My hands clutched at her as though I feared she might disappear if I let go. "Alice... oh, Alice, I’ve missed you."

I inhaled the familiar, comforting scent of her hair. It grounded me, softened the edges of my pain. When she finally pulled back, she cupped my face with both hands, eyes wide with worry.

"Gosh, you look so stressed. What have they done to you?"

I smiled weakly, shaking my head. "I’m fine, Alice. Everything... everything I’ve endured was to bring you back."

Her eyes glistened. "Always and forever, isn’t it?"

I lifted my pinky finger, and without hesitation she lifted hers. We hooked them together, sealing the vow once more. Then, with a strength that surprised me, she helped me to my feet.

Ruby was next. She fell into my arms, her embrace fierce, grounding me even further in this miracle I had fought so hard for.

Then Jonathan.

His gaze was steady, proud. "You did well, Lilith. You honestly did well."

I swallowed back a sob and stepped into his arms. The warmth of his hug nearly unraveled me completely. Oh, how I had missed Jonathan. I had chosen Marcus, yes, but Jonathan had always held a piece of me. And now he was here, in the flesh, my family whole again.

When I pulled back, I whispered the truth: "Everything has been destroyed. Klaus and his family still hold New Orleans. His son, Cayden, rules now. He fathered triplets. One is gone, but two remain. They control the pack."

Jonathan’s lips curved in a dark smile. "Good. As long as wolves exist, and as long as they are unaware of us, our victory will come. Do they know we’ve returned?"

I shook my head. "No. None of them know."

"Perfect," he said. "That ignorance will be their doom."

Alice’s voice trembled. "What about Dahlia?"

I turned to her, my face hardening. "She’s dead."

"Dahlia never dies," Alice whispered.

"She’s dead," I repeated coldly. "I sent her to hell with my own hands. She is gone forever."

Jonathan chuckled darkly. "Then it is simple. One: the packs don’t know we’ve returned. Two: Dahlia is gone. That makes our task... very, very easy."

A slow, wicked smile spread across my lips. "Yes," I whispered. "Very easy."

Jonathan moved away from me and strode toward a giant slab of rock, the dust still swirling faintly around his tall frame. He stood there like a king reclaiming his throne, his broad shoulders rigid, his body covered in sacred markings that glowed faintly under the dim light. His black hair clung to his forehead, and when his piercing green eyes swept over us, the room seemed to shrink.

When he spoke, his voice carried the weight of prophecy.

"The Crescents are back," he declared, his words echoing against the cavern walls, "as though we never left. Years ago, they destroyed us—werewolves and witches combined—sealing us away to rot, to be forgotten, to bring us to our doom. But they underestimated us. They underestimated her."

His eyes flickered toward me, and I felt the burn of his gaze in the pit of my stomach.

"Our honorable Lilith," he continued, "escaped their chains. Our fate rested in her hands, and she did not disappoint us. She has brought us glory, awakening us at the perfect moment. Now, we rise. We will reclaim New Orleans. We will bend the wolves to our knees, shackle the witches, and crown ourselves as the strongest beings to ever walk this earth. All hail the Crescent!"

"All hail!" the others roared, their voices rumbling like thunder.

My stomach turned. Their cheers felt heavy in my chest because I knew what he did not—about Hazel, about the children, about Azel. My joy at resurrecting them had blinded me to the storm that was about to break.

Jonathan slammed his fist against the rock, cracking the surface, then turned toward me with lethal intent. He began walking, slow, deliberate, every step radiating authority. My breath caught. He was shirtless, the sacred markings moving like living ink across his chest, his green eyes locked on me with a hunger that was both terrifying and... devastatingly beautiful.

The most dangerous of us all. And somehow, the one I could never truly resist.

"Lilith, dear..." his voice curled around me like smoke. "How is my mate?"

My heart froze. "M-Mate?" I stammered.

His gaze dropped to my stomach, sharp and knowing. "You are no longer pregnant, are you?" His lip curled with disgust. "Not since you left me for that wolf."

My throat tightened. I wanted to scream that it wasn’t like that, that it had never been that simple. But his words cut deep, and the memory of my choices weighed heavier than the dust in my lungs.

He sneered, bitterness dripping from his tone. "I should not be offended. Not when I discovered the truth. My fated mate... is your daughter."

The world tilted. My blood went cold.

Jonathan’s voice hardened. "Where is she?" His green eyes bored into mine, sharp enough to peel the skin from bone.

I stammered, unable to form words.

"Is she dead?"

"No!" I burst out, my voice cracking. "No, she’s alive."

Alice, sensing my unease, stepped forward, her hand outstretched as if to shield me. But Jonathan raised a single hand, and the command in his aura forced her to stop in her tracks.

His focus never wavered. "Then where is she? My mate. She must have grown in our absence, yes? Tell me, Lilith. Where is she?"

I swallowed hard, my tongue trembling against my teeth. "She... she is married now. She has children. She has... mated someone else."

The fury that consumed his face was like watching a storm devour the sky.

"Bullshit!" Jonathan’s voice thundered. "I am her rightful mate! She cannot take another. She cannot belong to anyone else but me. What have you done?"

My chest heaved. "She has truly been mated to another—"

His hand shot forward, seizing my neck with crushing strength. My feet left the ground as he lifted me with terrifying ease. My hands clawed at his wrist, but he was as strong as the earth itself.

"What have you done, Lilith?" he snarled, his breath hot against my face.

Alice lunged, but Ruby caught her by the wrist, shaking her head silently.

"Tell me!" Jonathan roared, his grip tightening.

My vision blurred, but I forced the words out through strangled breaths. "I... I made her the fated mate of Klaus’s triplets. She is my connection to the pack. Through her, I could bind us to power."

His eyes widened, fury and disbelief twisting his face. His hand shook around my throat.

"You... you mated my mate... to them?" His voice broke into something raw, dangerous. "How dare you?"

Tears pricked my eyes. "I had no choice!"

"You had every choice!" Jonathan’s voice cracked with venom. "Do you know how badly I wanted you? Do you know how I burned for you, even when you ran? And when fate mocked me, giving me your child as my mate, I accepted it. I embraced it! And you—" His voice shook with rage. "You gave her away. You gave her to wolves!"

His green eyes blazed, wild and broken. "No. No, you’ll pay for this. You’ll fucking pay for this!"

She is mine!