"Where," he asked, each word like a blade, "is my mate?"
The guard swallowed, struggling to breathe.
"I... I don't know, Your Majesty," he stammered. "I swear it, I didn't see where she went. Lady Orla... she went into the chamber... and Lady Lara followed..."
"Followed?" Thornak's eyes flared like twin suns.
"She... she looked like she was sleepwalking," the guard whispered, as if speaking it aloud would summon a demon. "Didn't speak. Didn't blink. She just followed Orla."
"She was enchanted," Ruvan said from behind them, his voice rough. "That's black magic, Thorn. Controlled walking. She wouldn't have followed Orla by will."
Thornak grabbed him by the throat, claws pressing into tender flesh.
"If you breathe another lie, I will rip your spine from your body and wear it as a reminder of my mercy."
"No lies! I swear, They simply walked to the Eastern wing, P-please..."
Crunch.
Thornak's claws tore through the man's throat, silencing him for good. The body hit the floor with a wet thud. Breathing hard, the king turned to his Beta and Gamma. Blood dripped from his claws.
"Find her," he growled. "Find her fast," Thornak said, voice like iron. "And if she runs, cut her legs from under her and bring me whatever is left. In the meantime bring me Chamberlain Ysara."
He wiped a streak of blood across his arm.
Dain and Ruvan gave a short nod and left with Dorian.
Thornak's expression twisted into something primal, nostrils flaring, breath deepening, claws still slick with blood. A tremor ran through the stones beneath his feet, as if the castle itself was bracing for a storm.
Then, as if the goddess herself answered the scent of fury, Kael came running through the courtyard gate.
"Thorn," he called, urgent but controlled, something clutched in his hand. "I found this."
He approached without flinching, at least Thornak was still in half-Lycan form, mercifully. Full Jax could not be reasoned with, even by blood.
Thornak snatched the object from his brother's palm, a tiny charm, it hummed faintly in his hand, like it was alive.
"What is this?" Thornak growled, jaw clenched, the air vibrating with his fury.
Kael shrugged grimly. "No idea. Found it in Lara's sheets. I thought Ninzu might know."
....
By the time Dain and Dorian reached Lady Orla's chambers, they were empty.
Her gowns were still hanging, her jewelry untouched, but her scent was gone.
"Damn it," Dorian snarled, sniffing the air. "She covered her trail."
Dain strode to the window, eyes narrowing. The shutters were open, the wind cold. Below, faint scuffs on the ledge.
"She didn't go through the halls," he muttered. "She went down."
Dorian cursed. "She had help. No noblewoman climbs a tower wall."
He looked ready to break something. "Orders?" he asked turning to Dain.
Dain mind linked Thornak then turned to him, calm but coiled. "We are to seal every passage out of the city and post a bounty. Ten thousand gold. She is wanted alive but in any condition."
....
Maravelle walked back and forth in her room. The fire was low, the room quiet, but her thoughts were loud. She couldn't sit still. Not tonight.
She was remembering the past, the secret she had carried for years.
Back when her husband, the old king, was getting sick and losing power, Maravelle had been scared. Scared of losing her place. Scared of being forgotten. Then the exiled prince came to her.
He wasn't weak. He was angry. Smart. Dangerous.
He told her the Moonguard were dying, and he could finish what had started years ago. He just needed help from someone close to the throne. Someone like her. In return, he promised her something greater, power for her family. A crown for her bloodline.
So she helped him.
She delayed help to the Moonguard when they were under attack. She turned other nobles against them. She watched them fall.
And she told no one.
Now, all these years later, a Moonguard has risen and her powers were coming back. And Thornak, the Lycan King, was clearly under her feet. How cruel the goddess is to have made her his mate. Maravelle felt everything slipping from her hands.
Her chamberlain had come earlier and handed her a small piece of paper.
No name. No seal. Just a message written in red ink and it could only be read by her.
Maravelle stared at it, her heart pounding.
The prince hadn't forgotten, and now, he wanted her to give him the girl. Or lose everything.
She dropped the note onto the table like it burned her fingers. Her breathing grew shallow. Her hands trembled.
"After all this time..." she whispered.
She had thought the deal was dead, buried with the old king. She had played her part, hadn't she? She'd sown doubt, turned eyes away when it mattered most. But she never expected an heir to rise. And she never imagined Thornak would be her mate.
Now the Moonguard blood was stirring, stronger than anyone expected.
Maravelle sank into her chair, rubbing her forehead. Everything she had built, her position, her family's future, the influence she held over the court could vanish overnight.
And now she had her under a sleep spell and cloaked in magic, and on the way to the Moonguard vault to meet the sorcerer and the Moonguard Prince. She knew how dangerous it was, for if the truth came out, Thornak would not just strip her of power. He'd kill her.
But if she gave up the girl now... it would finish what they started.
And the prince, no, that creature, would win.
She looked at the fire. A low, flickering thing, barely alive.
The guilt scratched at her chest. But fear clawed deeper. She had once thought herself the sharpest blade in the court. Now she was bleeding from her own cut.
She had made her deal with a devil. And devils never forget.
Now she had to decide; protect the girl and risk her own destruction, or finish the betrayal and live with the blood on her hands.
Again.
....
Chamberlain Ysara stood near the carved archway, draped in her usual silks, though tonight, they looked more like funeral clothes. She dipped her head in greeting, but her hands betrayed her, trembling.
"Where is she?" Thornak's voice was low, guttural, more beast than man.
Ysara blinked. "Your Majesty?"
He moved so fast the stone cracked underfoot. One clawed hand slammed into the wall beside her, stone splintering like glass.
"Lara. My mate. Taken by your Orla."
Her composure faltered. "I... I don't know your majesty."
"I am in no mood..." His growl rumbled like thunder. Then he turned slightly. "Dain."
The Beta stepped forward, face carved from stone.
"Take Chamberlain Ysara to the lower hall. Lock her in the truth chamber. Drag every piece of information out of her. I want names, locations, accomplices, whatever it takes."
Ysara paled.
Dain seized her by the arm as her screams and pleas echoed down the corridor.
Thornak turned to Kael. "With me."
They moved swiftly through the palace, silence falling in their wake. When they reached Ninzu's chambers, the sorceress opened the door before they could knock-already waiting.
"Where is it?" she asked, arm outstretched.
Thornak handed her the charm. Ninzu hovered her hands over it, her expression darkening.
Ninzu hovered her hands over the charm, her expression darkening. "This spell... it's not just powerful, it's ancient. Dark. It wasn't made to be broken. Not by force."
Thornak's jaw clenched. "But it can be broken."
She hesitated. "Not easily. Not by me. Blood magic like this was woven to bind her essence to devour every trace of who she is. But there is another way."
Thornak's eyes sharpened. "Speak."
Ninzu stepped back from the charm and gestured toward the carved runes etched into the stone slab beneath it. "The Guardian of Starlight and Shadow. One of the Moonguard relics-the last defense of their line. If she can be reached, she could lead us to Lara... or even shatter the curse at its root."
He moved closer. "Can you summon her?"
Ninzu shook her head. "No. The Guardian answers only to the true heir, to Lara. I'm not the one she hears."
A beat passed, then Ninzu met his gaze, quiet but unflinching.
"But you might be. You are her mate. If Lara is in danger, truly in peril, the Guardian may respond to your call. To the bond between your souls."