Sera's POV
The roar of an engine cut through the shocked silence.
Everyone turned as a sleek black car pulled through the pack gates. It wasn't just any car—it was the kind that screamed power and money. The kind that made wolves instinctively bow their heads.
The door opened, and my heart nearly stopped.
Adrian Blackwood stepped out, and the air itself seemed to shift. He was the Lycan King—the most powerful wolf in our entire region. Tall, dangerous, and currently looking at me like I was the only person in the world.
"Adrian?" I breathed. "What are you doing here?"
He strode toward me with that confident walk that made other wolves scatter. But when he reached me, his expression softened. "Sorry I'm late, darling. Traffic was murder."
Then he did something that made everyone gasp.
He pulled me into his arms and pressed a gentle kiss to my forehead.
"What—" Darius started forward, his wolf flashing in his eyes. "Get your hands off her!"
Adrian didn't even look at him. He kept his arm around my shoulders, protective and possessive. "And you must be Darius. Sera's told me so much about you." His voice was pleasant, but his smile was sharp as knives. "Well, when she bothered to mention you at all."
The pack members whispered frantically. Beta Thomas looked like he might faint. Even Luna Margaret seemed stunned.
"How do you two know each other?" Darius demanded.
I opened my mouth, but Adrian spoke first. "Sera works for me. Has for the past two years." He finally turned to face Darius, and the temperature seemed to drop ten degrees. "She's my Chief Financial Advisor. Brilliant mind for business. Among other talents."
That wasn't technically a lie. After I left Shadowpine, I'd needed money desperately. Maya had connected me with someone who knew someone, and eventually, I'd ended up working for Adrian's company. He'd taken one look at my financial projections and hired me on the spot.
But the way he said it—and the way he touched me—made it sound like we were much more than boss and employee.
"Sera?" Darius looked at me with betrayal written all over his face. "You're with him?"
"I—" I started, but Adrian squeezed my shoulder gently.
"Let's not air personal matters in front of an audience, hmm?" Adrian's eyes swept over the gathered crowd. "Though I must say, this is quite the welcoming committee. Sera mentioned you might need help with a... situation."
"How much did she tell you?" Luna Margaret asked carefully.
"Everything." Adrian's expression hardened. "Including the part where someone kidnapped her son. My godson."
Another collective gasp from the crowd. Adrian was Kai's godfather? I'd never mentioned that to anyone here. Mainly because it wasn't exactly true—but Adrian was clearly playing a game, and I needed to trust he knew what he was doing.
"So here's how this is going to work," Adrian continued, his voice carrying that unmistakable Alpha command that even Darius had to respect. "I'm going to help find the child. I'm going to bring all my resources to bear. And in return..." He looked directly at Darius. "Sera stays under my protection. No mate bond ceremonies. No pack politics. She's mine to guard until this is over."
"Absolutely not!" Darius snarled. "She's my mate! My Luna! You have no right—"
"I have every right." Adrian's power exploded outward, forcing wolves to their knees all around us. Even Darius struggled to stay standing. "You lost your rights when you threw her away three years ago. When you signed a contract to use her like breeding stock. When you chose another woman over your true mate."
Darius's face twisted with shame and rage. "That was a mistake! I was—"
"An idiot? A coward? Both?" Adrian cut him off. "I don't particularly care. What I care about is that Sera is under my protection now. And anyone who tries to hurt her will answer to me personally."
He turned to the crowd, his voice ringing with authority. "That includes anyone here working with Vivian. And yes—I know there's a traitor in your pack. Did you really think I'd come unprepared?" He pulled out his phone and held it up. "I've had my people investigating Shadowpine for weeks. Someone here has been feeding Vivian information. Someone told her where Sera was hiding. Someone helped her plan this entire thing."
The crowd erupted in angry shouts and accusations. Wolves turned on each other, suspicion blooming like poison.
"Who is it?" Darius demanded. "Tell me who the traitor is!"
Adrian smiled coldly. "I will. But first, we need to talk about terms. Your office. Now." He looked at me. "Sera, come with me. The rest of you—stay here and try not to kill each other."
I let him guide me toward the pack house, my mind reeling. Darius followed, looking murderous. Luna Margaret and Beta Thomas hurried after us.
Once we were in Darius's office with the door closed, Adrian finally released me.
"Okay," I said immediately. "What's really going on? You don't actually know who the traitor is, do you?"
"Of course not." Adrian shrugged. "But now they're panicking. Panicking people make mistakes."
"That was a dangerous bluff," Margaret said disapprovingly.
"All warfare is deception." Adrian pulled out his phone and started typing. "But I wasn't lying about having resources. I've got people tracking Vivian's movements, checking every abandoned building within a hundred miles, monitoring all communications—"
His phone buzzed. He looked at the screen and went very still.
"What?" I asked. "What is it?"
He turned the phone to show us. It was a photo. Of Kai. But this one was different from the video.
In this photo, Kai was sleeping peacefully in a bed. And standing beside him, hand on his head like a benediction, was someone I recognized.
Someone from this very pack.
"No," I whispered. "It can't be."
Darius grabbed the phone, stared at the image, then hurled it across the room. "I'll kill her! I'll rip her apart!"
"Who?" I begged. "Who is it?"
Luna Margaret's voice was hollow. "My granddaughter. It's my granddaughter Elena."
Before anyone could respond, an explosion rocked the building.
The windows shattered inward. Alarms blared. Outside, wolves screamed.
Adrian shoved me behind him as the office door burst open. A warrior stumbled in, bleeding and burned.
"Attack!" he gasped. "We're under attack! Rogues everywhere! And there's—there's someone else—"
He collapsed.
I ran to the window and looked out at chaos. At least fifty rogues poured through the gates, fighting our warriors. Buildings burned. People scattered.
And walking calmly through the center of it all, holding my son in her arms, was Vivian.
She looked up at the window. At me.
Then she smiled and mouthed three words:
"Come get him."