Dominic, once Mike, morphed back into his human form as he emerged from the forest. He surveyed the village, a place that mirrored his own heart—both had lost their vitality.
He averted his gaze from his pack, focusing instead on Kai, who tossed him a pair of pants. “Anything happen while I was out?” Dominic asked immediately.
“No, everything is quiet, just like it has been for the last month,” Kai replied, walking alongside his alpha toward the pack house.
Dominic sighed, observing his pack members going about their daily tasks. But he couldn’t ignore the tension that had been hanging in the air since Kiara’s departure.
They missed her, and the pack hadn’t been the same since she left. It was as if she had ripped a hole in the pack that couldn’t heal without her.
Months had passed, and Dominic had only just realized how much of a luna she had become to them. This realization only deepened the ache in his chest. “Anything from border patrol?” he asked, swallowing the lump in his throat and focusing on Kai.
“No, nothing,” Kai answered grimly. Dominic nodded, understanding the situation as they ascended the porch of the pack house. He looked at his gamma, noticing for the first time how worn Kai appeared.
Kai was not doing well, and there was only one reason for that. “How’s Lia doing?” Dominic asked.
Kai swallowed hard, looking down. “She isn’t talking. She’s still blaming herself for the fact that Kiara left with Blake,” Kai answered, his voice choked with emotion.
“I worry for her, Alpha.” He looked up at Dominic. “She’s not speaking, not eating, and every night she cries herself to sleep. I’m not allowed to comfort her, and I fear that if she continues like this our pup—”
Dominic cut him off, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder as he noticed a tear rolling down Kai’s cheek. “Lia is not to blame for Kiara’s decision. It’s not her fault that Kiara ran into the woods.” And it truly wasn’t.
If anyone was to blame, it was Dominic. He was the one who had pushed her away, unable to handle his own emotions.
The headaches had been constant, and he feared that if he got too close to her, he would lose control again. He had let her down, and he would never forgive himself for that. Everything had become so messed up.
“Get Doc to see her. Maybe there is something that she can do for her,” Dominic suggested.
Kai nodded, bowing his head before disappearing into the pack house.
Dominic ran his hands over his face, leaning on the railing of the porch. His beta and gamma were both struggling. Kai was consumed with worry for Lia, which was understandable, while Kyle was broken because of his mate, who had left with Blake and Kiara.
Even though they hadn’t mated or marked, their bond had been initiated, and he felt the pull toward her, even if he didn’t want to. He didn’t know what to do, and it was tearing him apart from the inside.
Dominic hung his head low, sighing and closing his eyes. He heard the pack house door open, and a familiar scent filled his nostrils as footsteps approached him.
“It’s been a month, Portheus,” Dominic said, opening his eyes and looking straight ahead as Portheus came to stand next to him. “Where the hell is she?”
Portheus looked at Dominic, clenching his jaw. “I don’t know. Even Alekos can’t find her, and I can feel him getting more and more irritated about it.”
Dominic thought about his wolf, Alekos. It worried him that even the Pure Lycans couldn’t find her, and he didn’t want to think about what Blake was doing with Kiara. All he wanted was to have her back, but first, he needed to find her.
Initially, they had tried to use his mate bond connection with her, but even that had come up empty. It was as if she had vanished into thin air, yet he could still feel her presence inside him, telling him that she was very much alive.
He had even tried to listen to her thoughts, but all he got from her were dull feelings of nausea, sadness, heartache, and despair. He didn’t know what to make of it, and he hated feeling so helpless. He didn’t understand why she had left with Blake.
The words she had sent to him through their mind-link echoed in his head like a mantra, and he couldn’t stop hearing them. He feared that they weren’t her words at all, but that Blake had done something to her.
Dominic clenched his fists, forcing the thoughts from his mind. It didn’t matter as long as they couldn’t find a single trace of them.
“It’s no use to get ourselves worked up,” Dominic said for the umpteenth time that month. He had to remind himself, even though it didn’t ease anything. He needed her back, and he was damn well getting himself worked up about it.
In her absence, he had quickly learned how to control his blood and stop it from trying to change or even kill him. But as long as he couldn’t find her, it felt like it had been all for nothing.
These last few months felt like they had been for nothing, and he hated it. Mostly because he was at fault. He was the reason why everything had gone to shit, and he deserved everything he was feeling right now.
He deserved to feel like this now that Kiara had left, and he couldn’t find her. In all honesty, he deserved a whole lot more for holding her, himself, and everything back. But as selfish as he was, he would fight against it, because this was not what those around him deserved.
The last month had been hell, and Kai, Lia, Kyle, Portheus, and every Pure Lycan bore the marks of it just as he did. If Kiara didn’t show up somewhere soon, he feared that this whole series of events would be the downfall of them all.
“Why is that the only thing that we’re doing then?” Portheus asked, pulling him out of his thoughts.
Dominic sighed as he straightened up. “Because we’re still beings of flesh and blood.”
Portheus looked back at him. “She’ll come back when she finds whatever she is looking for, Nic.”
Dominic clenched his jaw as he looked at Portheus.
“Until then there is something else that needs your attention,” Portheus added, standing up straight and turning completely toward Dominic.
“What is it?” Dominic asked, crossing his arms over his chest.
“Corethon found something,” Portheus began. “He thinks that there is a way to break the protection of Zeus over Alaric and the others.”
Dominic looked at him, surprised. “Wasn’t Kiara the one who was supposed to be able to do that?”
“Yes, we thought that she was the only one to be able to do that, but that was before everything happened.”
“What are you saying?”
“You share her soul and have a part of her power, and besides that, you are a Fireblood wolf. We think that if you are able to command the power you got from Kyriaki and combine it with your own strength, you are able to break the protection Zeus has bestowed on them.”
Dominic looked at him, stunned. “Are you sure?”
“It’s our best shot.”
It wasn’t a confirmation, but he took it anyway.
If Portheus was telling the truth, he could finally kill Alaric for everything he had done. It would finally be over. His mother and the others would finally get the justice they deserved. If there was even a small chance, they had to try.
Dominic looked at Portheus with a determined look in his eyes. “What do I have to do?”
“Follow me.” Portheus turned and walked back into the pack house, with Dominic following closely behind. He truly hoped that they were right.
As they entered the pack house, they headed straight for the library where most of the Pure Lycans spent their days when they weren’t searching for their niece. They had been trying to find the answers they needed. Not only the answer on how to stop their father and Zeus, but also the answer to finding her.
Acontes was certain that she was hidden by magic. He had told the others that he had come across a patch of land not too far from here that had felt like magic, but when he tried to find it, it was lost on him.
If she indeed was hidden by magic, it would explain a lot. But extracting her from a barrier of power wouldn’t be easy. They needed to know how, and then they needed to find her for it to work.
An ache ran through his chest as he thought about her. He had searched for miles, but he had never found a trace of her. Yet, he wasn’t giving up. None of them were.
Only one good thing had come from this though. Her not being here meant that he couldn’t get her pregnant, and the vision would be averted for a little longer that way. It was the one thing that brought him relief. It meant they still had time and they weren’t running out. They had wasted enough of it in the last few months as it was.
“King Dominic,” Linus greeted as Dominic and Portheus walked in, bowing his head.
Dominic couldn’t help but roll his eyes at Linus, letting out a snort. “Seriously, Linus—” he began, but was cut off by Linus’s chuckle and a playful wink.
Ever since Linus arrived with Acontes and the others, he and Dominic had formed a bond. It was as if Linus understood Dominic in a way no one else did, always there to pick up the pieces when Dominic’s despair led him to wreak havoc.
Linus was the one who kept Dominic grounded, distracting him from the chaos that surrounded them. There was a time when Dominic had lashed out at Linus, questioning why he cared so much. Linus had simply replied that he understood Dominic’s pain and refused to stand by while he spiraled into a pit of rage and despair.
In his past life, Linus had loved a human woman who loved him in return. Their love was forbidden by Lycaon, but they defied the King of Arcadia time and again. They thought they had managed to keep their love a secret, but they were tragically mistaken.
Lycaon had his men kidnap Linus’s love. Linus was driven to madness with fear and despair as he searched for her, but he never found her. Not until he was on his deathbed, and he saw her appear before him just as he was dying, and his brother took his place.
Even in death, Lycaon had a way of manipulating those he desired, including Kiara and Emma. It was a testament to his power that he could still influence minds from beyond the grave.
From that moment, Dominic accepted Linus’s help and their friendship grew. It was a friendship that often involved them getting on each other’s nerves. Linus knew Dominic hated being called king, which was exactly why he did it.
“What?” Linus asked, feigning innocence.
Choosing not to respond, Dominic shot Linus a look before crossing his arms and turning to Corethon. “What have you got?” he asked.
Corethon, the Pure Lycan, stepped forward with an open book and handed it to Dominic. Dominic scanned the pages, filled with a language he didn’t understand.
“I can’t read this,” he admitted, looking back up at Corethon.
Bucolion stepped forward. “Try,” he urged.
Dominic sighed, looking back at the page. He scanned the words again, and after a moment, the letters began to form words in his mind. He suddenly understood what he was reading.
“The power of the Pure Lycan is not limited to the lycan once the mate bond is completed with their destined soulmate,” he read aloud. He looked up at Corethon, who appeared relieved. “How can I read this?”
“It’s Greek,” Helix answered from his place at the desk. “The answer is in the sentence you just read. You share her power because the two of you completed the bond. Kyriaki understands Greek, and she gave that ability to you.”
Dominic looked back at the text and continued reading.
The text was a prophecy about Portheus fathering a pup. It explained how the bond would work between him and his mate, which would be the same for all Pure Lycans as they are all the same breed. Dominic understood every word.
“Everything that has been happening since Alaric’s attack were changes that neither you nor Kyriaki accepted or understood,” Helix said.
Dominic looked at him but didn’t argue. The Pure Lycan was right.
“We’ve all been hanging by a thread, being pulled along but unable to do anything about what’s happening. Months have passed, and yet Kyriaki still isn’t merged with Kiara. We’re no closer to stopping Zeus and Lycaon.
“Everything that’s happened has been half measures that explained nothing and had no value to what we were supposed to be doing. We were disoriented, and it seems like Kyriaki turning back to human and running away with a Rogue Alpha was the only thing that put everything in perspective and made us realize how fucking useless we’ve been,” Helix added, frustration evident in his voice.
“Yet, things have happened. Important things that we’ve overlooked,” Leon interjected, meeting Dominic’s gaze. “You mastering your Fireblood wolf is a huge step in the right direction. You training the Menai these past few weeks is even more significant. You sharing Kyriaki’s power is something we’ve overlooked, but now it’s time to use it.”
“And break that fucking protection on those assholes,” Titanas added.
Everyone turned to look at Titanas, surprised. He had always been the quiet one, and no one had heard him speak like this before.
“Don’t look at me like that,” he snapped, rolling his eyes.
“Then don’t start acting like Ancyor,” Linus retorted, earning a growl from Ancyor himself before he slapped the back of his baby brother’s head.
“What the fuck was that for!? You’re the only bitter fucker here, so don’t say it’s not true,” Titanas shot back at Ancyor, glaring at him.
“True,” Ancyor simply said.
Linus immediately slapped the back of his head as well.
Ancyor growled viciously, glaring at Linus who pointed a finger at him. “Don’t growl, you deserved it, asshole.”
“Please go back to being dead, Linus,” Ancyor retorted.
“Only if you do too, Ancyor,” Linus shot back.
“Oh, knock it off,” a voice called from the entrance.
Everyone turned to see Acontes walking into the library. “At this rate, Dad will come back sooner just to kick both of your asses,” he said.
Portheus snorted, looking at Ancyor’s irritated face before greeting Acontes, who looked like he hadn’t slept in days. His eyes were surrounded by dark circles, his hair was a mess, and he was only wearing sweats. Dominic knew he had been searching for her again. By the look on his face, he knew he hadn’t succeeded.
“Anything new?” Portheus asked.
“As a matter of fact, yes,” Acontes replied. Dominic’s heart stopped as he waited, for what felt like an eternity, to hear what Acontes had to say.
“Artemis paid me a little visit this morning,” Acontes said.
