Chapter OpeHanded Seventy Sen
Chapter One Hundred Seventy Seven
“Run.”
Lucian’s command thundered through the mind he shared with his wolf.
“Run faster.”
Claire
The great silver wolf pushed harder, his powerful legs tearing across the forest floor. Trees blurred around him. Branches snapped beneath his weight, and fallen leaves scattered behind him as he raced through the darkness. Nothing mattered except the bond pulling him forward. Nothing mattered except Agatha.
“Mate is waiting for us,” Lucian said.
His voice was filled with desperation, fury, and determination.
“Our pup is waiting.”
His wolf growled in agreement.
“They are waiting for us to save them.”
The bond between Lucian and Agatha had been faint for months.
At first, it had been so weak that Lucian feared Gideon had somehow severed it. There were nights when he sat alone in the Alpha office, eyes closed, searching desperately for even the smallest trace of Agatha’s presence. Sometimes he felt nothing. Only emptiness. Those were the nights when madness came closest to claiming him. He would imagine every possible horror. Was Agatha injured? Was she being tortured? Was their pup still alive? Had Gideon forced her into a binding? Had he harmed her because she refused him? The questions nearly destroyed Lucian.
He had almost abandoned every plan and rushed into witch territory alone more times than he could count. But whenever his control began to break, the bond would pulse again. Weak. Distant. But alive. Agatha was still there. His mate was alive. Their pup was alive.
The bond carried her love, her strength, and her refusal to surrender. It was the only thing that had kept Lucian sane.
For months, he had used that faint connection as his guide.
Every time Agatha felt fear, Lucian sensed it. Every time she protected their pup, warmth and determination traveled through the bond. Every night when she silently called for him, Lucian felt the ache in his chest.
She was waiting. Believing in him. Trusting him to come. And Lucian would not fail her. Not again.
It had taken longer than he expected to build the army following him now. Too long. Every day spent gathering warriors felt like a betrayal of his mate. Every challenge against another Alpha cost him precious time. Every negotiation, every battle, and every argument forced him to remain away while Agatha stayed trapped with Gideon.
But Lucian had understood one painful truth. Love alone would not break through an ancient coven protected by powerful witches.
13
Chapter Ope died Seventy Spe
Clam
Strength alone would not be enough. He needed numbers. He needed warriors. He needed every wolf pack standing together under one command. His command.
So Lucian had done what no Alpha before him had managed to accomplish. He united the wolves. Some packs joined willingly.
Others submitted after their Alphas lost challenges against him. A few resisted until Lucian took their territories by force.
By the end of brutal months, every pack in the region answered to the Silver Wolf. To the ruling Alpha. To Lucian.
The wolves following him were no longer divided by old rivalries and territorial pride. Tonight, they moved as one army. Thousands of paws pounded against the earth behind him. The sound rolled through the forest like distant thunder. Warriors from packs that had once fought each other now ran side by side.
Alphas followed Lucian’s orders. Betas coordinated different divisions. Gammas guarded the rear and watched for magical ambushes. Healers traveled farther behind the main force, protected by trained warriors.
Every wolf knew the mission. Find the coven. Destroy anyone who stood between Lucian and his Luna. Bring Agatha and the unborn pup home.
Lucian had shared only part of the truth with most of the warriors. He told them a witch had taken his mate. He told them his Luna was being held against her will. He told them she carried the heir of the Silver Wolf. That alone was enough.
A Luna being taken was an act of war. A pregnant Luna being threatened was unforgivable. But only Lucian knew the full truth.
Agatha was not merely his Luna. She was a witch. The very being many of the wolves had been taught to hate since birth.
Some Alphas knew. His Beta knew. The warriors closest to him knew. And still, they followed. Because Lucian had defeated every challenge placed before him. Because the pack bond recognized Agatha as his mate. Because their future heir grew inside her.
And because no wolf could deny the power of a mate fighting to recover the one the Goddess had given
him.
Lucian ran faster. His lungs burned. His paws struck the ground hard enough to leave deep prints in the soil. But he did not slow. He had been running since before sunset.
The army behind him maintained the pace, though none could match the speed of the Silver Wolf. Lucian had to force himself not to leave them too far behind. Every instinct demanded that he reach Agatha immediately. But Gideon was powerful. Agatha had warned him through the bond before.
The witch who had once been her childhood friend was no longer the same man. Darkness had consumed him. His power had grown. The coven feared him.
Lucian might be the strongest wolf alive, but he refused to underestimate an enemy who had already managed to steal Agatha once.
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Chapter Operandied Seventy Saren
He had made that mistake before. He had believed the peaceful village was far enough from both their kinds. He had believed Gideon would eventually accept Agatha’s choice. He had believed their hidden
cottage was safe,
That arrogance had cost him nearly two months without his mate and pup. He would not repeat it.
This time, Lucian brought enough strength to tear the entire coven apart if necessary.
“Faster,” his wolf demanded.
“We are going as fast as the army can follow.”
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