h4Chapter 288: She Is Targeting Werewolf Royalty/h4

    "I didn’t tell Kyllian because I didn’t want him to worry," Ravena added suddenly, surprising them both. Her lips pressed tight, guilt flickering across her regal features. "But the same happened to me." She rubbed her arm unconsciously.

    "She is targeting werewolf royalty," Damien said grimly.

    "Again, Damien—Magnus isn’t a werewolf," Luna argued. Her son’s wails vibrated against her ribs. She hugged him tighter, as if her body alone could shield him from unseen chains.

    "But you are," Damien countered, stepping closer. "And you are his mother." It was the second time he’d said it, as though hammering it into stone.

    "Oh, hell no!" Luna spat, her anger shing. She twisted around, storming down the corridor, Magnus still howling in her.

    She tore into the woman’s room, flinging the door open. "What have you done to my son?" she roared. Her eyes glowed.

    But then—silence.

    Magnus’s wailing cut off, reced by a sudden, eerie quiet. His tiny fists unclenched, his sobs dissolved into soft hups, and his head tucked beneath Luna’s chin.

    The fury that had propelled her now burned awkwardly in her veins.

    "I’m sorry." The woman was sitting up now, her pale fingers clutching the nket. "I don’t know what you are talking about. I didn’t touch your son."

    "Don’t you dare act coy with me—" Luna snarled, her grip on Magnus tightening protectively as her body leaned forward, every inch of her vibrating with the need to sink ws into flesh.

    "Hey! Hey! Hey!" Kyllian burst into the room, striding forward. He caught Luna by the shoulders, pinning her with enough force to remind her who he was. "It’s okay. Let me handle this."

    Ravena and Damien swept in behind him.

    "She did something to my son, to all of us!" Luna thundered. "Who the hell is she?!"

    "I swear, I haven’t done anything." Her trembling hands pressed to her temples. "Goddess, I can’t... I can’t take this anymore."

    "It’s alright. Just stay calm." Kyllian’s voice softened. He crouched slightly, bringing himself closer to her level. "First things first, who are you and where are you from?" His eyes bore into hers, searching for lies.

    "My name is Mabel," she whispered. She swallowed. "Ie from the Golden Race Pack."

    Mabel’s eyes zed over as she continued. "I don’t know what happened. A few weeks ago, one minute I was at a pack gathering. The next—there was some kind of eclipse. The moon swallowed the sun, and the light... it shone directly on me. And suddenly, I was public enemy number one. Everyone began to attack me, screaming that I’d brought down a curse, that I’d... I’d broken something sacred. I didn’t even know what they meant. I was dragged away, locked up like an animal, tortured until my skin burned from silver and my veins felt like they’d been turned inside out. I found a way to escape," Mabel finished. "I was on my way here, to see the Alpha King. To beg for protection. To ask for sanctuary. I swear on the Goddess herself, I didn’t do anything wrong."

    Luna turned to Damien in that instant. Their eyes met, locked in that wordlessnguage only mates could share and both whispered the same name at once. "Morvakar." If anyone could untangle this knot of curses and eclipses, it was him.

    "You say the moon shone directly at you," Luna pressed.

    "Yes." Mabel’s eyes shimmered with remembered terror. "If I moved, the light moved. It followed me everywhere, even when I got locked up. It was like being hunted by the heavens themselves." Her shoulders shuddered, the memory still raw. "But then the next day, it disappeared. Gone as suddenly as it came. I feel cursed." She bit her lip.

    Kyllian straightened then, broad chest rising as he pulled his full authority about him. "I am the Alpha King. You are safe here. No harm will touch you while you are under my roof. But we need to figure something out. Luna, could you please step out with... with the baby, please." He stumbled on the child’s name, the sybles catching in his throat. He still couldn’t bring himself to say it—Magnus.

    Luna’s jaw tightened, but she obeyed, sweeping from the room with her son held close. The door closed with a soft thunk, and almost immediately, Magnus’s thin wail pierced through the walls. Luna bounced him in her arms, whispering soothing words, but the crying only deepened.

    The door opened again with a creak. Damien filled the frame. He gestured for her to step back in. The moment Luna crossed the threshold into the chamber, Magnus fell quiet, his cries snuffed out.

    "What are we going to do?" Luna whispered fiercely, frustration coating her voice. She shifted Magnus against her shoulder, her eyes burning into Damien’s. "We cannot live here forever. This isn’t normal, Damien."

    Damien moved closer, the lines of his face shadowed with thought. "I’ll go get Morvakar," he said finally. His hand brushed her arm. "Only he knows what is going on."

    Mabel in the meantime had tears streaming silently down her cheeks. She didn’t understand anything either.

    Kyllian nced down at Luna, "How about you stay here with the baby until Morvakar arrives?"

    Luna gave a short, sharp nod. She moved toward the sofa and sat with Magnus curled into her arms. Every part of her body screamed with the need to protect.

    "We cannot catch a break!" Damien’s voice rumbled low and rough as he exhaled sharply, spinning on his heel and striding toward the door. He motioned for Kyllian, already halfway out, and together they stalked through the hallways until the cool sting of the outside air hit them. The weight of another crisis pressed hard against his shoulders.

    "Dude! You just caught one!" Kyllian snapped back, striding alongside him with his usual irritated swagger.

    Damien nced sideways at him, one brow arching. "Jealous much?"

    "That doesn’t even sound anything close to a thank you," Kyllian shot back, rolling his eyes dramatically as they approached the vehicle.