287 Morning After the Battle

    287 Morning After the Battle

    Mara

    I woke to sunlight stabbing through the window, sharp and blinding. My eyes squinted against it as I

    reached across the bed-empty.

    Lucian was gone.

    8 Points)

    I sat up slowly, the sheets rustling against my bare skin. Naked, of course. No surprise there. But my oversized t-shirt was nowhere in sight, and I hadn’t brought a single change of clothes to Neev. How could

    I have? We’d rolled in armed and ready for war, notfort.

    Lucian’s bag was still in the room, thank the goddess. I slipped out of bed, wrapping a corner of the sheet around me, and started rummaging through his things, hoping to find something-anything-I could wear.

    As I moved, the night before hit me in waves. shes of the fight. Blood. Roars. Chaos. And that one terrifying moment when I thought I’d lost him.

    When I arrived, it looked like the enemy had won. The battleground was soaked in fury and death. I’d panicked. My heart stopped. I thought they had killed my husband. That’s when I snapped-firing at the

    wolves without thinking, grief drowning reason.

    But then I saw him.

    Lucian, in his wolf form, standing-alive. That single glimpse steadied me. I swore right then: I’d walk out

    of that hellhole with my family intact or not at all.

    ric didn’t stand a chance. Alpha Lawless and Alpha Vander tore into him like wolves possessed. He got

    what he deserved. Maybe even less.

    I exhaled slowly, grounding myself in the quiet.

    In the bathroom, I let hot water rinse the battlefield off my skin. I took my time, letting the steam ease the soreness out of my body. When I came out, I pulled on Lucian’s T-shirt-massive on me-and his boxers. It

    would have to do.

    Hopefully, the oversized shirts they passed out to the women would be enough for now. None of us

    brought spare clothes. We were too busy chasing vengeance to think about what we’d wear after we

    shifted back.

    The aftermath had finally begun.

    The moment I stepped out of the bathroom, there he was-Lucian, standing in the middle of the room, that familiar grin stretched wide across his face. His eyes met mine, and in them I saw everything: love, relief, and a depth of gratitude that cracked something open inside me.

    He was alive.

    287 Moming After the Battle

    + Points

    A sob caught in my throat before I could stop it. The tears came, uninvited but unstoppable. I blinked, tried to push them back, but the dam had broken. I had spent the entire battle bracing for the worst. Now, all that fear was bleeding out of me.

    Lucian crossed the room in two long strides and wrapped me in his arms. He pressed my face to his

    chest, and I breathed him in-warm, real, mine.

    “Don’t ever die on me, Lucian,” I whispered, voice trembling.

    His arms tightened around me. “I’m d you came, Mara. For the first time… I’m d you disobeyed me.”

    He exhaled into my hair, holding me even closer. “You broke every promise I made to keep you safe. And thank the goddess you did.” He kissed the top of my head, voice raw. “Thank you. Thank you so damn

    much.”

    I clung to him like the earth was falling away. The weight of everything we’d survived-the fear, the blood, the chaos-crashed over me. It wasn’t just relief. It was survival. It was love sharpened by war.

    He pulled back slightly and looked into my eyes, his gaze steady even as it shimmered with unshed tears.

    “No moremands, Mara. No more orders. You’re free to do whatever you choose… as long as it doesn’t put you or anyone else in danger.”

    I nodded, lips trembling, and he smiled through the emotion threatening to break him too.

    Then I said it-what we’d both been holding in our hearts since the battlefield.

    “We finally got him, Lucian. We caught the bastard.”

    His smile widened, slow and satisfied.

    “Yes, darling,” he said, brushing a tear from my cheek. “We got the bastard.”

    His gaze flicked down, and a yful glint lit up his face as he took in the sight of me wearing nothing but

    his shirt.

    “I’d show you just how grateful I am right now,” Lucian said with a grin, eyes dark with heat, “but we’ve got a helicopter to catch.”

    Iughed, still wrapped in the warmth of his arms,

    “There are transports waiting,” he added. “Everyone’s being flown back to Mooncrest.”

    I nodded, then asked, “So what now?”

    “What needs to be done,” he replied, his tone shifting to business. “Rowan and Darian went ahead of us. I’ve issued arrest warrants for all the Alphas who backed ric and pulled their military support. They’ll be

    sentenced this evening-in front of everyone, in the sentencing hall.”

    He ced a firm hand on my shoulder. His eyes met mine.

    “It’s time to take back the ind, Mara.”

     287 Morning After the Battle

    I smiled, not just from pride-but from the knowing that we’d survived the fire together.

    “I want to be part of the decision-making,” I said, not asking. Dering.

    Lucian didn’t hesitate. “You and Martha have earned a seat on the council.”

    My heart swelled. “What about the women?”

    “They’re free to enlist. Military trials start next week. They’ll have a fair shot at the ranks.”

    +8 Points

    A deep joy settled over me. Some of those women-some who had been overlooked, underestimated, discarded-would finally get their shot. Their futures would begin now.

    Lucian and I stood there, staring at each other for a quiet moment. Breathing the same air. Grateful. Alive.

    “I love you, Lucian,” I said softly. It wasn’t for effect. It wasn’t forfort. It was the truth, in and

    burning.

    “I love you too, Mara,” he said, voice thick with emotion. “More than my life. And that won’t change-not

    until myst breath.”

    Then he kissed me-slow and deep-like a promise sealed in fire.

    We left the hotel room and headed straight to the helicopter pad. The morning air was crisp, but the tension from the night before still lingered in the air like smoke that hadn’t fully cleared.

    Alpha Sam Lawless was already on board, deep in conversation with Olivia. She was smiling, fully engaged, and I couldn’t help but smirk. The man had a bold im-mark on his neck, clearly taken-but Olivia had never been one to care for limits. Still, maybe in another life.

    Martha and Vander sat nearby. He held her close, arm wrapped protectively around her waist as she leaned into him, eyes closed, content. No more running. No more hiding. Now that she was officially his mate, there were no more barriers between them. I just hoped she would stay-that she wouldn’t

    disappear.

    I nced at the mark on Vander’s neck, wondering-was it Martha’s? Natasha’s? Or both? It sat on one

    side only, leaving the answer tangled in questions I didn’t dare ask. Not now.

    “Mara,” Martha said, catching my eye. She was smiling-calm, grounded in a way I hadn’t seen her in a

    long time. “We did it. We got there in time.”

    I reached forward and took her hand. She touched mine back. No words were needed. Something had

    shifted between us-a quiet understanding, a bond forged not by blood, but by battle. We hadn’t set out to be allies. But we were now, in every sense.

    We slid on our headphones as the rotors kicked up. I leaned into Lucian’s side, letting his warmth anchor me as the helicopter lifted off, cutting through the sky and carrying us home.

    Back to Mooncrest.

    Back to the reckoning.