The Lunar Queen (Lyric and Mason) novel Chapter 135

Chapter 135

Cole POV

The moment Lyric walks off with Caleb, I instinctively shift into Zeus, who’s visibly agitated.

“Something isn’t right,” he mutters.

His unease bleeds straight into me, sharp and restless, like he’s tracking something just out of reach.

“We can’t focus on that now.”

It takes us ten minutes to handle all the rogues and clear out the throne room.

Too easy. Too fast. Like this was never the real attack.

I turn, searching for Dominic, and I collide directly with Serena.

“Not now, Serena,” I growl.

But she doesn’t flinch; instead, she raises her hand and blows something in my face.

Zeus roars fiercely inside my mind.

I inhale instinctively, tasting the powder.

I turn to Serena, concern etched on my face.

“My love, are you okay?” I ask softly.

The shift is instant-violent-like something just snapped my thoughts into a different place.

She smiles warmly up at me.

“Yes, honey, I’m fine,” she replies, gripping my arm.

We step out of the throne room toward my office.

“I need to find out who breached the borders, love,” I say, my voice tense.

“I’m sorry, my love. I was just so scared,” she admits, pushing me onto the couch.

She leans in, kissing down my neck, and my skin prickles.

The contact feels familiar-but not right in the way it should. It doesn’t settle Zeus.

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Chapter 135

“Are you okay, my love?” she asks gently.

“Yes. Meet me in our room. I’ll make sure everything’s under control before I head upstairs,” I reply.

She smiles brightly. “Okay, love,” she whispers, kissing me softly.

She walks out of the office just as Dominic, Elias, James, Xavier, Mason, and Hunter step inside.

“Where’s Lyric?” Hunter asks at once.

B

My brows furrow. “Who?” I ask.

The name doesn’t land. Doesn’t connect. Like it should mean something-but it doesn’t.

“My sister, the queen, your mate,” Hunter clarifies.

I shake my head. “Serena is my mate.”

Mason and Hunter immediately growl loudly.

Their aggression hits Zeus instantly-territorial, threatening.

I stand sharply. “Who the fuck are you growling at?” I demand.

“What did she do to you?” Dominic presses.

“She didn’t do anything to me. She is my mate,” I reply firmly.

“No, Cole. Lyric is your mate,” Elias corrects. “We just crowned her queen less than twenty minutes ago.”

The words clash in my head-don’t line up-don’t make sense-and it irritates the hell out of me.

“James, get your witch in here,” Dominic commands. “This has to be magic. We need to fix this now. And where the hell is Caleb?”

he adds.

We sit in my office for forty-five minutes as the witch arrives, carrying a bag full of herbs.

“Okay, what’s actually wrong?” she asks.

“He’s saying a woman who isn’t his mate is his mate,” Elias explains.

“She is my mate. You all already know this,” I insist.

The certainty is there-but it feels forced. Like it’s sitting on top of something else.

“Oh, that’s an easy fix,” she says.

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12:47 Thu, Jul 2 – ))

Chapter 135

She pulls out a clear liquid, crushes something into it, and hands it to me.

“Drink this, Alpha.”

“Do it, Cole,” she urges.

I drink the entire contents-

-and suddenly everything is crystal clear.

It slams back into place. The bond. Her scent. Her.

I growl loudly, on the verge of shifting.

“Serena was a distraction. Where is Caleb?” I demand.

Rage hits instantly-hot, violent, uncontrollable.

“Nobody has seen him since everything started,” Dom replies.

“What the fuck do you mean? He was supposed to be taking Lyric somewhere safe,” I snarl.

“Get Julie in here now,” I order, barely holding onto control of Zeus.

“They took our mate,” Zeus growls inside my mind.

The word mate hits like a trigger-mine-ours-taken.

“And Caleb helped them,” I retort.

A knock sounds at the door.

“Enter,” I bark.

“You called me, Alpha,” Julie says, her neck already bared as my aura fills the room.

“Where the fuck is your mate?” I ask, walking closer to her with authority.

“My Alpha, I don’t know. He linked me before everything went south and said he would find me afterward,” she replies.

“Link him NOW,” I order.

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The Lunar Queen