Chapter 74

Elara

The silver light filled every corner of the cavern, lighting it up as bright as day. But it wasn’t the sunlight, or the light of the lanterns swinging overhead.

It was me.

I could feel the light in my veins burning like a thousand suns, and yet all I could think about was Alaric—Alaric slumped against the stone floor, his body going still, his breathing going shallow. Paralyzed from a tiny cut between his ribs.

Something snapped in me then.

I tore at the chains, not with my hands but with something deeper inside of me, something primal that hummed just beneath my skin. Maybe it had always been there, dormant, waiting. But it didn’t matter. The chains snapped apart like nothing more than twigs, clattering to the ground at my feet. I didn’t hesitate.

“Alaric—”

I stumbled forward, almost falling to my knees beside him. His skin was clammy beneath my hands, his eyes half-lidded as he tried to lift his head. The faint rise and fall of his chest was the only thing keeping the panic from swallowing me whole.

“Alaric, stay with me,” I whispered, brushing the hair from his forehead as I pressed my lips to the edge of his jaw, his temple, anywhere I could reach. “Don’t you dare leave me.”

I barely noticed Sarah until her voice sliced through the silence.

“Do you really think you’ll be able to stop me?” Her tone was as light and casual as ever, as if she hadn’t just tried to carve me open in front of my mate. Her heels clicked softly against the stone as she stepped closer. “You’re just a weak, pathetic Omega. Even with moonwolf blood running in your veins, you’ll always be nothing. Useless.”

My hand tightened over Alaric’s shoulder, feeling the slow drum of his pulse against my palm. I didn’t look at her. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from him.

“The only useful thing about you is your blood,” Sarah continued, her voice dipping lower. “And that’s going to be spilled all over the floor in just a few moments. Along with your baby.”

Alaric’s body stiffened.

His head lifted slightly, his eyes locking onto Sarah even as his muscles trembled beneath the weight of the paralytic poison coursing through his veins.

“Baby?” His voice rasped, the single word barely audible despite the quietness of the room. But I felt the way his chest rose faster beneath my hand, his breath quickening as he turned his gaze to me. “Elara…” His fingers found mine, weak but urgent. “Is it true?”

I swallowed hard, unsure of what to say. But now wasn’t the time.

“I’ll explain everything,” I whispered, my voice trembling. “But first, you need to stay awake.”

Sarah’s laugh echoed softly around the cavern.

“She didn’t tell you, did she?” she cooed. “How sad. I remember how excited Alaric was to find out that I was pregnant—it’s a shame you won’t ever get to see that same joy on his face.”

“Shut up, Sarah,” I hissed, still refusing to look at her. “Whatever you’re trying to do, it’s not worth it. You’ll never have control of Alaric or all the packs. You’re just delusional.”

“Maybe I am,” she replied coolly as she took another step closer. “But the fact of the matter is this: that baby is getting in the way of everything. You’re getting in the way of everything. So I think I’ll start by cutting it out of you, just to be thorough.”

I felt Alaric’s hand jerk against mine, but his body betrayed him, refusing to respond. His head slumped forward, and panic twisted through my stomach.

“Don’t touch her,” he growled, but the strength in his voice was fading fast as the poison took hold of him. Within mere moments, he was going to be powerless as Sarah cut me. And no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t seem to summon that strange silver light again—whatever it was.

Sarah smiled. “I wasn’t asking for permission.”

I barely registered what happened next.

Her hand flicked forward, the knife catching the faint light as it arced toward me. I moved without thinking—lifting my hand between us, my fingers splayed as if that would somehow stop her.

And somehow, it did.

The silver light surged forward, spilling out from my palm in a bright, searing wave. It caught Sarah mid-stride, slamming into her chest and sending her flying backwards. She hit the far wall hard enough to shake the iron bars in their frames, the knife tumbling from her hand and skittering across the floor.

I didn’t lower my hand. I didn’t dare move, even as the light began to recede, retreating back into me like it had never existed at all.

“Alaric,” I whispered, shifting closer to him, cradling his face between my hands. His lashes fluttered, his breathing shallow as his body sagged against mine. “I’ve got you. I’m here.”

His hand lifted—slow and heavy—and found the curve of my stomach. His palm lingered there, trembling slightly as he pressed against me.

“Is it true?” he asked again, his voice little more than a breath. “Elara… are we—?”

I nodded, feeling the warmth of his hand through the thin fabric of my dress. Tears pricked at the corners of my eyes, but I swallowed them down.

“Yes,” I whispered. “It’s true.”

His lips parted, as if he wanted to say more, but before he could, a low groan echoed from across the cavern.

Sarah.

I stiffened, lifting my head just in time to see her shift beneath the rubble. She dragged herself upright, her body trembling as she struggled to push to her feet. Blood dripped from the corner of her mouth, and for the first time since she returned, I saw something in her eyes that wasn’t amusement.

It was fear.

But it wasn’t me who she was afraid of. It was something else. Something behind me.

The sound of chains rattling made me pause. At first, I thought it was just my imagination—until I realized that it was coming from the cells.

One by one, the moonwolves stepped forward, their iron shackles lying in broken heaps at their feet. Their eyes gleamed in the dim light, cold and filled with fury as they converged at the edge of the cell block.

Sarah turned slowly, the color draining from her face as the first wolf stepped forward. My mother.

“No,” she breathed, backing away. “Stay back.”

But they didn’t stop.

They moved as one, closing in around her, their bare feet padding silently against the stone. I could see the terror in Sarah’s face, the tremor in her legs as she staggered backwards, unarmed and alone.

She turned, her gaze flicking to me—just for a moment. And I thought I saw something there, something buried beneath the malice and rage: desperation.

“Alaric,” she whispered, her eyes pleading as they flicked to him. “Please. Please help me. I-I love you.”

But Alaric didn’t move. He couldn’t, of course, due to the paralytic poison that had now fully taken hold of his limbs. But something told me that even if he had been able to move, he wouldn’t have protected Sarah.

“No,” he said softly. “I think it’s time you face justice for everything you’ve done.”

Sarah’s lips parted, but no words came. She took another step back—

And the moonwolves descended on her.

Her scream tore through the cavern as the wolves dragged her to the ground. I didn’t look away. I couldn’t. It wasn’t until I heard Alaric’s soft voice that I finally looked down to see him laying in my lap, his eyes fixed on mine.

“Don’t look,” he murmured, his voice alone pulling me closer. “Just look at me. Just look at me.”

And I did.

I buried my face in his neck and held him close as Sarah’s screams intensified, echoed through the cavern, and then eventually…

Went silent.