Bad Moon Rising {J. Black}

*solstice betrayals & new beginnings*

Dearest Readers,

Thank you all for reading and for your continued support! I am definitely on a roll here, so I hope you enjoy learning more about the past with Andie in the mix and exactly what she has been dealing with while in her search. Also, I hope you all get excited with the Easter Eggs in this chapter as well as the promise of what's to come ;)

XOXO Ally Layne.

***I'm also going to say that Luke is younger in this story than canon, he's only two or three years older than Percy & Andie in this one! Just wanted to give you all a heads up even though I never explicitly write it in the story :)*** 

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"You shall be betrayed by the one who calls you friend,

And you shall fail to save what matters most in the end."

I was confused.

Percy and I had failed to save our mom, but only because we let her save herself. It was the right thing to do, she was completely capable, especially after discovering why she was taken in the first place.

But, like most things, I let it drop for now.

I let my brother drag me to the sword-fighters arena and we both stopped in awe at the sight of seeing Luke Castellan there, pounding into the dummies with a sword that was tearing their heads off in quick succession.

He was dripping in sweat, his eyes narrowed and focused, and his footwork was to die for. If Percy wasn't there I totally would've keeled over in a faint at the defined muscles on his arms.

Finally, he saw us, and stopped mid-swing. "Percy, Andie."

"Luke," I greeted, as my brother started to have words of apology stumble out of his mouth.

"It's okay, just doing some last-minute practice," he amended, his voice low and cooler than I had remembered it being.

Percy pointed out Luke's new sword, and I watched as Luke's eyes iced over as he watched the blade gleam wickedly in the light of the setting sun. "Oh, this? New toy. This is Backbiter."

I blinked. "Backbiter?"

Luke turned the blade in the light. "One side is celestial bronze. The other side is tempered steel. Works on mortals and immortals, both."

"And you think that's wise?" I tilted my head, ignoring Percy's stiffening form at my side.

Luke let out a chuckle that felt like ice freezing over my veins. "It's necessary, Andie. I'm sure you of all people would know that."

It felt like a punch in the gut. What I had told him about Smelly Gabe was told in confidence, not to be just thrown back at me like-

With a small grin, Luke slid the sword back into its scabbard. "Listen, I was going to come looking for the both of you. What do you say we go down to the woods one last time, look for something to fight?"

"You shall be betrayed by the one who calls you friend."

I could've hit Percy for agreeing to go off in the woods with Luke, who was acting all kinds of weird. But being the good sister I am, I refused to let him go alone.

I listened as Luke spoke, becoming more and more angry by the minute. "The heck with laurel wreaths. I'm not going to end up like those dusty trophies in the Big House attic."