“What am I looking for?

“Look at her hand,” she said, gesturing to the statue. The figure stood with her arms outstretched at her sides, palms up and facing forward. “You’ll see the effect as soon as the moon sets.”

“Effect?” As soon as the words left my mouth, I noticed that the figure’s hand began to glow. Bright light emitted from the palm, forming the shape of a crescent moon.

Shit.

I stared at it, dumbstruck, then looked down at my own palm. It too, was glowing. Brighter than ever, as if it were responding to the moon and the statue.

I felt Fiona’s gaze on me and closed my palm into a fist. “Why does it happen?”

Fiona shrugged. “We don’t know. But she’s definitely you—or an ancestor—and the Moon Stone was important to her.”

“I’m one of them, aren’t I?” The words escaped me, soft and low. “What were they, exactly?”

“Wolves, like us. But maybe not quite the same.” Fiona shrugged. “They’ve been gone for centuries. And though they wrote things down on these stones, they didn’t write everything.”

“What else did they write?” I asked.

Fiona strolled to one of the stones and pointed to the carvings that had been etched deep into the rock. There were pictures of a woman—likely the same woman as the statue—and several wolves. It was difficult to tell what the story was until Fiona spoke.

“We think that she was meant to shift like the rest, but she never could. Something stopped her. As a result, she was torn apart.” She pointed to a gruesome carving in which the woman lay on the ground.

I frowned. “How are you making that connection? She’s just lying there.”

“Touch the stone.”

I drew in a bracing breath and did as she said, resting my hand against the carving. Immediately, images flashed in my mind. Emotions.

Pain. Fear.

Suddenly, I was her, feeling everything she felt.

Just like me, she desperately wanted to shift. Her body screamed to transform, but she couldn’t. Whatever stopped her was impossible to determine, but it was totally immovable.

When it became too much, the pain exploded outward from her—from me--tearing us apart inside. It sucked the strength from my muscles and the breath from my lungs.

I collapsed, my legs giving way beneath me.

Lachlan caught me at the last minute, swooping me up against him so that I wouldn’t hit the ground.

I gasped as I tried to catch my breath. As I was no longer touching the stone, everything felt just a little better.

“Are you all right?” Lachlan’s hands burned against my skin where he held me.

“I’m okay.” Shakily, I tried to stand under my own power.

Fiona moved around to look at me, a strange expression on her face. “You freaked out, there.”

I rubbed my head. “That’s not normal?”

“Normally, we see what happened to her. We don’t feel it. What was it like?”

“I—” I swallowed hard. “I’m pretty sure she died, torn apart by the broken magic inside her.”

Fiona nodded. “That’s what we always surmised.”

I looked at the stone behind her, my gaze riveted by the carvings that were illuminated by the newly risen sun. If that really was me—and it sure felt like it—then how much longer did I have?

The need to shift had been growing stronger every day. Eventually, it would be too strong.

I didn’t have long.

I shivered, swallowing hard. “What happened to the rest of these wolves?”

“We think they went like her. Unable to shift, so they died out.”

“They can’t be entirely gone.” If they were, I wouldn’t be here.

Fiona shrugged. “Perhaps.”

I had to find them. They would have answers.

But even as I thought it, I knew how ridiculous it sounded. If there was another breed of wolves out there—a pack different from the rest—we would know about it. No question.

Right?

I looked at Lachlan, who had stopped photographing the stones to stare at me with eyes too dark with concern.

I shifted uncomfortably beneath his gaze, not liking the possible hint of pity. I’d kick his ass if there was pity there.

“Do you have any idea who stole the stone?” he asked Fiona. “Any clues?”

Fiona looked at him. “What’s in it for me if I share?”

“We want the same thing: for the thieves not to have the stone. When we find them, we’ll return the stone to you.”

She crossed her arms and pursed her lips, considering. “Fine. We don’t know much, but we do know that one of the figures wore the symbol of the Ascending Brotherhood.”

“What’s that?” I asked.

Lachlan frowned. “The gang that operates out of London’s docks?”

“The very same.” Fiona nudged the dirt with the toe of her boot. “It was found just about here. The symbol was etched into a money clip. Seems to have fallen out of his pocket, along with two hundred quid.”

“That seems too convenient,” I said. “Do you believe it was genuinely lost and not planted?”

Fiona shrugged. “The cash suggests a genuine loss. Who would leave that behind?”

“Or it’s collateral damage.”

“Were there any other clues?” Lachlan asked.

“Just footprints in the dirt, but nothing we can trace.”

Damn. “Would you be willing to give us the money clip?” I asked her. “I have a friend who can read information about objects through touch. She might be able to find more information.”

Fiona frowned, her gaze considering. She sighed. “All right. We’ve got as much as we can from it, anyway.”

“Will you be sending people after the thieves?” Lachlan pressed.

“We’re planning to, yes.”

“Let me go after them. They’re more dangerous than you realize, and there’s more at stake. We don’t want to alert them to the fact that someone is after them.”

“Of course someone will be after them.” Anger flashed on Fiona’s face. “We can’t allow them to do this and think they can get away with it. There must be consequences.”

“And there will be. But there are lives at stake in addition to artifacts and pride.” He gestured to me. “Her life, in fact.”

Fiona’s jaw tightened, and she stayed silent a moment. “Fine. But we’ll work together. A team. I will always be apprised of your progress and plans.”

“Of course.” Lachlan nodded. “And we’ll bring you the Moon Stone once we recover it.”

“Good. I can live with that.” She started back toward the car. “Now, let’s go. I’ll get you that money clip.”

“Thank you,” I called after her, hurrying to keep up. “We appreciate it.”

“Yeah, yeah. Just don’t let me down.”

Before climbing into the car, I turned back to look at the statue.

What the hell was I?

Nothing was as I thought. Had my mother known? Had anyone else? I certainly hadn’t. It felt like I’d been living a lie without even knowing it.