Chapter 15%
The night reeked of trouble long before I smelled blood.X
Maurine wanted to go out–again. She’d twirled in front of me in her silk dress, feigning innocence with that smug little smile she wore so
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“Come with me. Lucas,” she purred, fastening a glittering choker around her pale throat. “There’s a new bar downtown with imported bloodwine. We’ll have fun.
Fun. That word didn’t exist in my vocabulary when it came to guarding her.
Still, I nodded. “Of course, Maurine.T
Not because I wanted to. Not because I enjoyed parading behind her like a dog in heat. But because I had to. Because the shadows were moving faster these days. And because if I slipped–if the vampires got to her–it’d be the end of us all.!!
Maurine was the key.
She didn’t know it, not truly. And the last thing I needed was for the other packs and vampires to find out. So I played my part. The loyal knight. The tame Alpha. The shield between her and death
The bar pulsed with thumping music and cheap pheromones, Wolves, rogues, a few drunken fae–they all mingled in the chaos of moonlit debauchery. Maurine sparkled like a diamond amidst the grime, swaying with other she–wolves, laughing in that piercing. attention–starved way of hers.
I sat near the comer, arms crossed, eyes never leaving her.
“You’re always watching,” she said at one point, strutting over and leaning against me. “It’s kind of hot.”
I gave her a tight–lipped smile. “It’s called protecting.”
“Oh please, don’t flatter yourself,” she teased, running a finger along my collar. “We both know you’d guard me even if I told you to lick my boots E
She laughed, sauntering away before I could answer. And gods help me I didn’t even disagree.X
Then the air shifted. My wolf stiffened inside me first. The scent of ash. Blood. A flicker of shadow where there shouldn’t be one.3
The music masked the screams until they were too loud to ignore,
“GET DOWN!” I barked, shoving past drunk wolves and startled fae.!
They were here. The infected. Twisted vampires, long lost to their own minds–hoodlums, we called them. Deranged monsters desperate for the cure.!
Maurine E
“Lucas!” she screamed, tripping over her heels.
I leapt to her, claws ripping from my fingers, eyes flashing gold. I tore through the crowd, intercepting the first hoodlum as it lunged. My claw met its throat with a wet crunch. Blood sprayed, but another came!
Then another Too many..
I slammed Maurine behind me, baring fangs. “STAY DOWNI
She shrieked, covering her ears. I ripped through the infected, primal fury fueling my strikes. But one slipped past me–jaws locking on her arm before I could react.
“NO” I roared.!
I shredded it, sending black blood spraying across the floor, and yanked Maurine into my arms. She was trembling, wide–eyed, clutching her bleeding arm.
“Lucas-” she whimpered. “He bit me. Am I going to–7”
“No.” I tightened my grip, voice low and guttural. “You’re going to be fine.”
Because she was the key, Her blood would neutralize the poison. That was the prophecy. That was the reason I’d let myself become her knight.
I shifted halfway into wolf form and burst through the emergency exit with her in my arms, ignoring the chaos behind us. I ran–barefoot, fast, leaping over alley walls and rooftops until we reached the Aethon Pack house.
She was sale Or so I thought.
As soon as we crossed the threshold, her head lolled back.
“Lucas.” she murmured.
I looked down. Her skin had gone pale. Her eyes fluttered.
“Maurine? Hey–Maurine!” I shook her, panic setting in.
And then she collapsed.!!
“No, no, no–shit I caught her before she hit the ground, laying her carefully on the couch. Her breathing was shallow, her arm oozing dark blood, more than I expected &
Where was the immunity? Where was the resistance she was supposed to have?
I grabbed my comm. “REID! Get the healer Now.”
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And then she collapsed
“No, no, no–shit!” I caught her before she hit the ground, laying her carefully on the couch. Her breathing was shallow, her arm oozing dark blood, more than I expected.
Where was the immunity? Where was the resistance she was supposed to have?
I grabbed my comm. “REID! Get the healer. Now.”
I pressed a cloth to her bite, heart racing. My claws trembled against her fragile skin.
This shouldn’t have happened. This wasn’t supposed to happen. My thoughts were spiraling.!!
Maurine groaned, her head turning weakly.
I didn’t realize Beta Reid had arrived until I smelled his approach. His voice was low, urgent. “The healer’s coming. What happened?” “Hoodlums,” I growled. “Too many. She was bitten.”
Reid’s eyes widened. “But… she should’ve handled it. She’s the-
“I KNOW,” I snapped, then softened. “I know. I thought the same.”
He stepped forward, eyeing her. “We’ll handle this.
I nodded, but the fear in my chest didn’t fade. Because if the vampires were hunting her harder, if they were this close to touching her then the veil was lifting. The secret was slipping.
חיו
And if Maurine was compromised–then everything I sacrificed, every order I followed, every piece of myself I silenced for her sake- might mean nothing.
ACER AM
Chapter 16%
