Page 53 of Lycan Prince's Secret Baby

As I released Leah, she prepared to leave for the witch. A thought struck me, and I added, “Please, say thank you to Lyvia for me, too.”

“I will,” Leah replied, her soft smile lingering. She presumed I meant only for looking after Lina. But the gratitude I felt for the witch ran much deeper. Her sage advice had given me the push I needed to reconcile with Leah. I reminded myself that there would be plenty of time to honor the steadfast loyalty and love of our friends once this monumental undertaking lay behind us. As Leah and our daughter left, my heart ached to see Lina gone, butif there was anyone I knew she was safe with, it was Lyvia, herKilaaka—her godmother.

Soon, Leah, Roman, and I, accompanied by the Blood Moon warriors, were ready. Our party of ten included myself, Leah, Roman, and the loyal warriors who had escaped with Roman: Kade, Todd, Shona, Sarah, Derick, Josh, and Hannah. Bernadette had remained behind to look after Sarah’s and her child. Our group was small but full of dedicated warriors, most of whose skills I had witnessed first-hand in the cavern ring. During my journey here, I had paused for rest in burrows beneath the earth, but now there was no time for rest or stopping. We kept to the dense woods and the brooding valleys, running tirelessly, both day and night.

As the second night stretched on, we found ourselves on the borders separating the Blood Moon and Moonlight lands. The sight of distant hills in the silvery light sent a jolting wave of disbelief through me. We were finally nearing home. A surreal mix of relief and anxiety washed over me, heightened by the presence of Leah at my side. How many months had I spent mourning her absence here over the last year, longing for her to be at my side as she was now?

Our journey had left us weary, but there was no time for rest. Leah's red wolf brushed against me in solidarity, and I could sense her alertness prickling through her, as well as the heat of tiredness radiating from her flanks. Together, we crested the hill, eyes scanning the familiar landscape. In milder months, these rolling slopes flourished with vibrant colors, brimming with flowers and herbs. Now, however, they lay cold and bare, stripped by winter’s grip.

We slunk down the hillside, hearts pounding in rhythm with each stealthy movement toward the Blood Moon quarters. The scent of decaying leaves hung heavy in the air, and shadows flickered in the pale glow of a half-moon. Just as we came to the foot of the hill, the peaceful silence of the forest was shattered as gray wolves erupted from the shadows and the surrounding trees. They swirled around us, creating a formidable ring that glinted in the moonlight like polished steel. The chilling sound of low growls rippled through the air, a warning that sent a shiver coursing down my spine.

My heart thudded erratically, adrenaline surging through my veins like fire. Each breath I took felt charged, my heartbeat thundering in my ears. They’d been lying in wait, I realized, plotting our ambush. The thick scent of pine and something more primal—an undercurrent of fear—saturated the air around us, heightening everything.

The wolves’ keen eyes glowed, intent and unyielding. Time seemed to stretch, every heartbeat morphing into an eternity as the stillness settled around us, thick and suffocating. Igaluk’s half-moon gazed down as sole witness to the confrontation rapidly approaching.

Reginald’s massive wolf emerged from the shadows ahead of me. His distinctive size and the silver streaks in his gray coat were instantly distinguishable among the other Moonlight beasts. He was regal yet monstrous. His gray fur began to melt into the darkness, and his formidable human figure materialized. The air thickened with aggression, a palpable tension ringing between us.

With a surge of determination, I shed my gray wolf, allowing my human self to emerge, too. I felt the solidarity of the redwolves around me. Each transformed and stood bare and proud beneath the piercing gaze of the moon, our skins exposed and vulnerable yet bolstered by the strength of our unity. Leah stood beside me. Her fair skin was almost luminescent in the moonlight. I forced myself to resist the urge to gaze at her—my beautiful mate. My focus had to remain on the hostile Moonlight warriors encircling us.

No one looked as forbidding as my father, who stood perhaps thirty feet from me, cloaked in menace. Even in the dim light, my heightened senses discerned each white scar on his body, glimmering like badges of ruthless honor. Each one spoke of battles fought, dominion secured, and hinted at the lengths he’d go to maintain his Alpha status.

Around us, the other Moonlight warriors shifted from their beasts’ forms to manly ones. I noticed the absence of females around us. So, the females of my pack had been robbed of their right to fight. I worried about what had happened to the more forthright females like Maria. My heart clenched as I hoped that we weren’t too late and that they were still in the cells, silenced, but not forever.

The familiar faces of the elders surrounded me in the circle. Sam, with silver-streaked hair, his weathered face, lined with disdain as it focused on me. There were only two females in the circle, Emily, Sam’s daughter, her sharp features and spiteful eyes focused on Leah beside me, as well as Emily’s friend.

I counted ten Moonlight warriors surrounding us. We were evenly matched. Luck surged through me as I realized that my father had underestimated us. Yet, I hadn’t anticipated being surrounded by the Moonlight warriors so soon. Disbelief sliced through me at how quickly this confrontation had come. ButI swallowed it down, forcing my stance to remain confident. I knew I had to maintain my composure and steady resolve. I had to be the Alpha the Blood Moon warriors and those loyal to me needed me to be.

“You ordered me to find the Blood Moon fugitives, and so I have,” I declared to my father, my voice slicing through the tension. “But, tonight, I stand here proudly as one of them. The blood oath I have sworn to them and everything within me compels me to stand against you, Reginald.”

My father let out a mocking laugh, and my heart clenched. “You think you stand here of your own free will? All I had to do was revoke some of those precious reforms you value so much, and you came running like a dog.”

So, he’d expected me to come back when I’d heard about the reforms for the Blood Moons and the Moonlight females’ rights being revoked. That’s why they’d been lying in wait for us.

Yet, despite not having the element of surprise, I took consolation in the fact that he’d brought so few Moonlights with him. Clearly, Reginald feared what I might say and the effect it would have on the more open-minded within our pack.

A protective instinct bristled across my skin, igniting a fierce desire to shield Leah from the malicious gazes that raked her. I felt the fury boiling beneath the surface, one I’d stifled ever since discovering that Reginald was behind my mother’s cold-blooded murder. The intensity coiled within me, reminding me of the overwhelming emotion that had surged when I’d confessed my love to Leah. But this force was one of bitterness, oppressive and ready to be unleashed.

My bitterness churned like ink, oozing out into my voice. I’d heard tell of the stagnant wastelands of the Black Moon Pack, from where the killer that my father had hired came from. It felt as if those boglands and marshes lay in my every word as my hate for the man poured forth.

“Not only have you wronged the Blood Moons by seizing their lands and enslaving them, but I know that you murdered my mother, Tamara. Something that Roman, the Alpha of the Blood Moon Pack, standing here, can attest to. He witnessed her killing firsthand, executed by a Black Moon wolf you hired.”

Gasps rippled through the gathered crowd of Moonlights. But only a few faces were slack with shock, while others registered a chilling sense of complicity, their eyes narrowing as the weight of my words fell over the assembly.

A couple of elders, John and Oliver, retreated a step, their expressions shifting from defiance to dismay. In that fleeting moment, I sensed a crack in the resolve of my father’s followers—a hint that perhaps not all of them were prepared to follow him down the dark path he’d chosen. My heart raced with the prospect that Reginald’s small force might dwindle further. But it was the five traditionalist elders who remained unmoved—including Sam—who fueled my next words. “You feared Tamara’s influence over the pack,” I declared, my voice ringing through the night, “and you hated that she went behind your back, seeking peace with the Blood Moon Pack.”

My gaze swung to my father. “So, like a coward, you hired a killer to dispose of her. Then you framed the Blood Moons for her murder, justifying your cold-blooded killings of the Blood Moon Pack—their Alpha and Beta,” I said, feeling the anger radiatingfrom both Roman and Leah beside me, their losses burning like fire in my chest.

“You seized control of lands that were never yours and enslaved innocent shifters. I possess evidence—letters exchanged between the Elder Sam and you, Reginald—documenting these vicious crimes, along with my mother’s journal, which exposes the depth of your greed.”

I’d thought about alluding to the fact that Mark could testify to Reginald’s crimes, anticipating that he would be imprisoned with those Moonlights like Maria, who were faithful to me. But, like the seasoned spy he was, I’d already spotted him within the circle of Moonlights. A thrill shot through me as I thought of how skilled he’d been at keeping his cover. It was as if he had the traits of the Shadow Moon Pack, blessed by the moon goddess herself in his subterfuge.

Reginald’s fury ignited, my words acting as a match to his explosive rage. “You think you can undermine my authority?” he spat, his body vibrating with tension.

“You’ve forced silence upon us long enough,” I shot back, my spirit bristling and my voice hoarse. “The time to pay for your crimes is here.”

The tension escalated in the night, building momentum like a storm brewing on the horizon. I steadied myself, the thundering of my heart heralding in the battle.

“I’ve never regretted killing your mother,” Reginald sneered. “Perhaps the real tragedy is that you weren’t with her during those peace negotiations she was so hell-bent on pursuing. Then, the weakness that she fostered in your veins might have been spilled, too.”

---