Tangled in Moonlight: Unshifted novel Chapter 321

"Holy shit," Vanessa breathes, her eyes wide. "Is that—?"

I nod, unable to keep the smile off my face despite the gravity of the situation. It’s her first time seeing my mate’s new wolf form. "Yep, that’s Lucas."

Vester takes in the sight of the massive golden wolf sprawled across my living room floor. "How... when did this happen?"

"A couple hours ago," I say, running my fingers through Lucas’ thick fur. He leans into my touch, a low rumble of contentment vibrating through his chest. "The short version is that we finally tried to unlock his memories, and... well, this was the result. I’m not sure why he looks different now. Maybe Sister Miriam will know.

Selene? Do you?"

Hmm, is her nonresponse.

Vanessa takes a tentative step forward, her healer’s instincts clearly kicking in. "Is he okay? I mean, physically and mentally?"

A slight shrug. "Physically, he seems fine. Maybe even better than before. But mentally..." I trail off, glancing at Selene for support.

He’s disoriented, Selene supplies. The wolf is in control right now, but he’s not feral. Just confused. Waiting for Lucas.

I relay this information to Vanessa and Vester, watching as they exchange worried glances.

"Can he shift back?" Vester asks, the surprise on his face now faded back to his usual stoic expression.

I shake my head. "I don’t know. Probably not. His wolf is the one in control right now. Lucas is still healing."

Vanessa kneels beside Lucas, her hand hovering just above his fur. "May I?" she asks, looking to me for permission.

He lifts his head, surprisingly not growling or upset in any way. Then again, he was only irritated with Lisa; maybe it’s the lack of pack bond that bothered him.

I nod, and Vanessa gently places her hands on Lucas’ wolf body, checking him over with deft, professional movements. "He’s much larger than before, but I’m not sensing any issues in his joints. It’s hard to tell without a full check-up, but I’d say he might be stronger than before."

I turn to Selene. "You know, it’s really weird to keep calling him ’Lucas’ wolf’ or just ’the wolf.’ Doesn’t he have a name?"

Selene’s ears flatten against her head, and I can feel her reluctance through our bond. He did, once. But that was a long time ago.

"Come on," I prod gently. "What was it?"

Selene huffs, clearly uncomfortable. In our past life, when we were... closer, I called him Aurum.

"Aurum?"

The moment the name leaves my lips, the wolf’s ears perk up. His golden eyes lock onto mine.

"Aurum," I repeat, more confidently this time. The wolf—Aurum—lets out a soft whine and nuzzles my hand.

"It seems like that name holds some significance," Vester observes.

"It’s from his past life, apparently. The one he shared with Selene."

Vanessa’s eyebrows shoot up. "Past life? Ava, what exactly happened when you tried to unlock his memories?"

"Oh, no. That’s not from… No." Pressing a hand to my forehead, all the tidbits of information in my head take a minute to reorganize. I can’t remember who knows what anymore. "Selene has memories of her past life, and she and Aurum were mates then."