Maikoda: Power of the Moon (Blue Moon Trilogy Book 2) Read Free Page A

cartoons,” Susan whispered as she picked up the girl’s unfinished breakfast, piled it onto a tray and walked towards the living room as Nali trailed in her wake, her eyes curious.
                  Martin moved over to the kitchen table and sat down across from Layla and Brett. “We still haven’t found her.” 
                  Looking directly at Layla, he sighed. “We’ve spoken to all of our contacts, but no one has seen Suzette. We thought she may have been heading for the Mexican border to hide out, but so far, nothing. The only logical answer is that someone is helping her. Hiding her from us.” 
                  “Based on what you told us about that last fight, Layla, and the video footage, she should need a while to recover. Even with the blood bags and the transfusion, it would still take her a month, at least, to be full strength. That means someone else is interfering with my investigation. And the only ones with the connections to make her disappear this thoroughly are the members of the Council.” 
                  Martin stood, tension radiating from his normally cool body.  “We have to be careful here. If the Council hears that we are accusing any member of harboring a murderer, we will be ripped to shreds.” 
                  He looked towards the front of the house where Susan and Nali were.  “All of us.”
                  “So, we just find her ourselves and take care of the problem.” Brett spoke the words that lingered in the back of Layla’s mind.
                  Martin shook his head. “Unfortunately, it’s not that simple. If someone is indeed hiding her, that means she has connections. And,” he held up a hand before Brett could protest, “if I can’t find her, it may mean her connections are higher up. If we find and kill her, we could actually do more damage and add fuel to the flames of the war. We have to tread carefully.”
                  Layla’s nostrils flared. It was not fair that Suzette was not being punished for all that she had done. She had destroyed so many lives and she was not being brought to justice. All because of protocol? How was that even a thing? Anger started to build up in her system. She wanted to let her beast out, to unleash her pain on the world that seemed to encourage the unfairness that Weres like Suzette exploited. 
                  Brett’s hand touched her knee and she took a few deep breaths to bring herself under control, as his essence flowed over her and calmed her beast.
                  “Babe, relax,” he rubbed her leg reassuringly. “We’ll get her, I promise.”              
                  Martin nodded in agreement. “We will find her and we will find out who is hiding her. And when we do…well, we’ll simply have to do what we have to do.”
    *
                  The dreams started again that night. Layla lay in bed, her head throbbing as the events from the past few months crowded her mind. The moonlight streamed through the lone window across the room and she closed her eyes, trying to sort through the images and memories vying for space. The images flickered like a TV screen in her head. Her mother with her long blonde hair covered in blood, Suzette half-transformed, Brett bound and bloodied. 
                  The memories played again and again and Layla groaned at the futility of trying to sleep as her mind seemed to want to indulge in the worst moments of her life. She grabbed her purse from the nightstand and rummaged through until she found her sleeping pills. Quickly popping two in her mouth, she forced them down, too tired to walk to the kitchen for a glass of water.
                  In minutes she was asleep, her dream state just as restless as when she was awake.
                  It began with a howling at the moon. Layla