The car jolted over the rough terrain of the Blackthorn Timberlands, headlights barely piercing the thick, looming darkness of the forest.
"This is where the scouts sensed the Nightfang wolves, Alpha, but...we haven't been able to pinpoint the exact location..." The beta's voice had shifted. Now, it quivered with fear. He knew he'd pushed his luck earlier.
Useless.
I didn't need his scouts. I could feel the foreign energy crawling through my territory like a disease. Nightfang was close. The air smelled of bloodlust, the taste of violence sharp on my tongue.
"Almost there," Lyx growled in my mind, restless. He could sense it too.
Just then, a flicker in the corner of my eye caught my attention-something darting from the treeline. For some reason, my pulse quickened, eyes narrowing as I caught sight of her.
A woman.
She was a mess. Torn, bloodied, her long blond hair matted with mud and gore. Her dress, shredded and barely recognizable, was a ghostly pink. She looked like she had just crawled out of a grave. Weak. Fragile. A broken thing.
What business did she have in my territory at a time like this?
The Nightfang wolves' planned massacre...maybe she was one of the preys.
The beta slammed on the brakes, his voice trembling. "Shit! What the hell is she?! Alpha... should I- should I do something?"
I said nothing. My eyes stayed locked on her, dark and cold. She staggered closer, blood dripped from her legs, her trembling hands reaching out. Something primal stirred, but I pushed it down.
Then, she looked up.
Her eyes. Wide, empty, like the soul had already been ripped out of her. Her gaze swept the windshield, then the rear window, unfocused and hollow—yet somehow, impossibly, she locked onto me.
Her lips never moved, but her voice crashed into my mind.
Help me… Please…
I froze.
What the hell was this? She wasn't speaking aloud, yet I heard her as if she had screamed it into my skull. A mind-link? Impossible. Only wolves of the same pack could connect like this. So why—why could I hear her?
I could feel her fear, seeping through my skin like ice water, wrapping around my bones. But I didn't move. I watched her with cold indifference. I wasn't here to save anyone. The last time I saved someone, they buried a knife in my back.
I would not make that mistake again.
She reached the front of the car now, bloodied hands slamming weakly onto the hood, her vacant eyes fixed on mine. Not the driver. Not the car. Just me.
"Help..." It was no more than a ragged whisper. Her lips trembled, as though the very act of speaking was tearing her apart. She was a ghastly sight in the glare of the headlights—a bloody, broken figure with wild, terrified blue eyes.
Suddenly, she whipped her head toward the woods, sensing something. Her face shifted from hollow to sheer terror, and she pounded harder on the car with renewed desperation, her voice breaking.
"Help.... Please help!!!! The beast....it's already got Papa. And now it's also coming for me!!!! "
She was screaming now, desperate, her fists hitting the hood over and over.
The beta looked to me, panicked. "Alpha..."
"Shut up," I growled, rolling down the rear window. It's already got her dad? She's definitely not alone here. I needed to see where this was going.
But the moment the window dropped, a scent flooded the car, rushing in with the cold air outside-a sweet, intoxicating smell overwhelmed my senses. My blood turned cold as realization clawed its way into my mind.
No. My jaw clenched as reality hit like a punch to the gut. This bloody, broken shell of a woman was my mate. The mate I had waited a lifetime for.
This… pathetic thing was what the gods had deemed worthy of me?
Before I could react, the shadows behind her stirred—deep, unnatural, the darkness itself coming alive. My gaze locked onto the forest beyond her, and then-
Growl.
A monstrous shape exploded from the treeline. She barely had time to scream before she was lifted into the air, her feet dangling helplessly.
A massive werewolf. Not just any wolf-an alpha. Possibly the alpha of the nightfang pack.
Its black fur gleamed in the moonlight, its teeth, long and jagged, bared in a malicious snarl. Its eyes—burning yellow—locked onto mine as it gripped her throat, claws digging into her pale skin. She struggled, her legs kicking weakly, but it was useless. She was a ragdoll in its claws.
For a second I waited, expecting her to shift—expecting her to fight back. But she didn't. She just stared at the Nightfang alpha with wide, terrified eyes, as if she'd never seen a werewolf before in her life. It didn't make sense.
The creature snarled, its jaws snapping just inches from her face, saliva dripping onto her skin.
Something inside me stirred. Not pity. Not concern.
Rage.
The beta in the car whimpered, trembling like a pup. "What… what do we do, Alpha?"
"Drive," I growled, my voice a dangerous low rumble. "Drive away before I destroy the car. I'll handle this."
The audacity. This Nightfang mutt had the nerve to lay its filthy claws on what was mine.
I stepped out of the car, eyes locked on the beast. The Nightfang alpha turned its head toward me, a low, mocking growl rumbling from its throat.
"So… the new alpha of the pathetic Blackclaw pack finally decides to show himself." Its voice was thick with dark amusement.
"Congratulations! What have you come here for, alpha? haha..."
"Let her go," I growled, my words dripping venom. "Or I'll make you wish you'd never been born."
The alpha's laughter echoed, cold and guttural. He squeezed her throat tighter, lifting her higher, making her feet dangle off the ground.
"Her?" He tilted his head, mockingly. "This fragile little thing? Why do you care, Blackclaw? She's just a mere piece of flesh. No wolf worth their salt would waste time on her.
And....you think you can beat me? Haha...Blackclaw wolves are renowned for nothing but their pathetic strength. Bring it on. I'll be the one making you wish you'd never been born."
I clenched my jaw, fury exploding inside. Lyx, the beast, inside me was roaring and growing louder.
That's my mate. Finally in this second lifetime, I'm finally meeting my mate! Don't you dare touch her!!!!
Shock took over me as I realized I was slowly losing control of my own body.
His voice thundered through my mind, my control slipping. Let me out!!!!
"Yes...I'm letting you out. But I'm the one controlling. This is my fight!"
The last time I lost control was a decade ago when I was only a mere teenager-this couldn't be happening again. Not now. Not when I needed the ultimate control.
Haha.... Not this time, Luther....
It was already too late.
Lyx consumed me. My hands curled into claws. Pain ripped through my body as skin tightened. Black fur sprouted as darkness swirled around me.
My lips pulled back. Fangs stretched from my gums, dripping with venom, my eyes turned crimson bloodshot. My breathing became ragged as my body merged with shadow and fury.
"Finally..." It wasn't even my voice anymore. "I'm free to shred you into pieces. That woman is mine!!!"
The Nightfang alpha took a step back, eyes widening in shock at the formidable transformation.
"Die!!! "
It wasn't me anymore. It was Lyx.