226 The Unseen War
Mara
“I’m here. I’m home,” he whispered as he pulled me close, pressing a kiss to the top of my head.
His arms wrapped around me like a promise, but I could still feel the ghost of every night I spent alone.
“I’m so sorry, Mara. I didn’t mean for this. I didn’t mean to disappear or leave you in the dark that long. It wasn’t supposed to be like that,” he murmured, his voice breaking.
I clung to him, the weight of relief sinking into my bones. The fear, the fury, the ache-I let it all melt away in his embrace. We stood like that, unmoving, until the silence between us felt safe again.
Later, as we dressed after showering together, his eyes landed on my bag and the passport tucked beside it.
“You going somewhere?” he asked, and I didn’t need to answer. The realization hit him before I could speak.
“No way. Mara… you were going to come look for me?”
I couldn’t meet his eyes. He hadn’t lived those nights. He didn’t know what it felt like to lie awake, wondering if he was cold, hurt, or worse-dead. I had started dying in pieces the moment he stopped answering.
“I came home every night counting the hours, praying you’d walk through that door. I called Rowan. I called everyone. Nothing. When your father handed command over to Darian, I saw a window-and I was ready to walk through it.”
His face tightened, and he stepped forward, gathering me into his arms again.
“Don’t ever put your life on the line for me like that. Please, Mara. Promise me.”
“Then don’t ask me to live without you,” I whispered. “Don’t ever do that to me again.”
He didn’t speak-he didn’t have to. I knew he felt it too. I wasn’t being reckless. I was in love with the only man who made life feel full. If he hadn’t come back, I would have gone to find him. Nothing would’ve stopped me.
“What happened out there?” I finally asked.
Lucian sighed heavily and sat at the edge of the bed, eyes distant. Then he told me everything. The ambush. The failed extraction. The nights they slept with one eye open, not knowing if they’d make it to the next dawn. When he told me how close they’d come to dying, my stomach twisted, and I silently thanked the goddess over and over for bringing him back.
“So… we still don’t know where Chase is?” I asked, bracing myself.
He shook his head, and though he didn’t say it outright, I could feel the weight behind that gesture.
My heart sank, but there was a flicker of hope too. At least now we weren’t completely blind. At least Lucian was alive. And we still had fight left in us.
“For starters,” Lucian said, his voice low and tight, “he owns that hotel. He never stayed there. The whole thing was a setup. He wanted me to come looking for him-so they could finish me off. If I’d gone as myself, I’d be dead right now.”
He started pacing, restless energy humming off him.
“And that’s not all. He’s got security all over the island, ready to resist an attack if it ever comes. He made a deal with the Alpha of Mistwood-promised him bitumen in exchange for help. Mistwood’s backing him, Mara. They’re in on his revenge plan.”
Lucian paused, rubbing a hand over his jaw.
“Justin-the pimp-says Chase is preparing for war. We don’t know how or where he’ll strike, but we need to start building
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an army now. Fast. Or we won’t survive what’s coming.”
He pulled out his phone and handed it to me with a sharp grin.
“That’s Chase Nighthorn.”
I stared at the image on the screen. My breath hitched.
He was older-maybe the same age as Alpha Vander-but sharp. Too clean. Too polished. His green eyes were unsettling, gleaming with a kind of calculated malice. Pale skin, clean-shaven, handsome in a way that felt wrong. Too perfect. Too
cold.
“Justin says he wears disguises, but that’s his real face. And he’s not just some rogue. He’s an Alpha with an entire underground pack behind him,” Lucian added.
That sent a chill down my spine.
“Did you learn anything else?” I asked.
Lucian nodded grimly. “He’s here. On Mooncrest Island.”
I wasn’t surprised. If Chase wanted to destroy the Nighthorns, he had to strike from inside. And he already had. Our finances were bleeding. Our military was strained. All that was left was to watch us fall.
“Darian’s in charge now,” I told Lucian quietly. “Your father made me step down. Because of the baby.”
Lucian nodded. “I know. Darian knows I’m back. He’s thrilled.” He smirked, shaking his head. “You know he hates being Alpha.”
I laughed. “He used to complain about it nonstop at the academy. Said it was a cursed title.”
Lucian’s smile faded when I leaned in and asked, “Have you heard about the poisoning of the one of the staff?”
He blinked. “No. Darian didn’t mention it. But he did tell me his sister’s bailed. I don’t blame her, honestly. Her mother
might die, her father’s our enemy. She probably thinks we’ll turn on her.”
“She didn’t have to leave, though,” I said quietly. “As furious as your father is, he loves Darian. He wouldn’t have cast her
out.”
Lucian looked down, thoughtful.
“Did Darian tell you that Martha didn’t write the letters-but she did write the checks?” I asked.
His brow’ furrowed. “No. He didn’t. How do you know?”
“Your father asked for the notes,” I said quietly, “and he recognized right away-it wasn’t Martha’s handwriting. Someone tried to mimic it, but it wasn’t convincing enough to fool him.”
Lucian sat beside me, a crease forming between his brows.
“That’s eerie, Mara… Do you think there’s a chance she didn’t actually try to kill herself?”
I exhaled, torn. “We all suspect it. But… she did say goodbye in a strange way. Subtle. But it was there.”
He nodded slowly. “Yeah. She did.”
“Well,” I said, looking away, “only Martha knows what really happened.”
A silence settled between us until I remembered something else. Something worse.
“There’s more,” I said. “About the poisoning.”
Lucian tensed beside me.
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“Two nights ago, someone was poisoned. The body was found yesterday in the staff quarters, right-wing side. I was called in to identify him. William Asher. Nineteen. Barely even started working here. His death was… brutal. I don’t know who he crossed or what he stumbled into, but someone wanted him silenced.”
Lucian sighed, the weight of it settling over him. I could see the worry in his eyes-not just for William, but for all of us. Living under this roof was starting to feel unsafe. Especially when we weren’t the ones preparing our food.
“We need to make changes,” I said. “Until we understand what’s really going on.”
Lucian nodded. “A lot needs solving. But right now-we need to get ready for war. I need to know the state of our military, our arsenal. Everything. No more waiting.”
“What about Chase?” I asked, and Lucian paused, his hand rubbing across his forehead like he’d almost forgotten something important.
“We have two of his people working with us now. One defected from Mistwood, the other we picked up about an hour ago. They’re helping us map out his underground pack. We’ve been on the defense too long. It’s time to push back. Time to take the fight to him.”
I felt a grim satisfaction stir in my chest. Finally. It was time to stop reacting and start reclaiming control.
Lucian looked down at my belly, and his expression softened. He smiled and placed his hand on the slight curve.
“You’re showing,” he said gently.
I smiled back, the tension between us dissolving into something warm. He leaned in, kissed the side of my neck, then brushed his lips against mine-slow, sure, grounding.
“I’ll never leave you again, Mara. I promise.”
And I believed him. After everything, after all we’d lost and barely survived, I believed him.
That day, I didn’t want meetings. I didn’t want reports. I didn’t want anyone else’s voice but his.
Three weeks apart may not sound long to others. But for us-for souls that had always moved in tandem-it was too
much. We’d make up for every second. And I knew, without a doubt, we weren’t leaving this room again today.
Michelle Ray007
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