FOUND HIM

THORNE

We got back, and everyone poured out of the car, except him.

I turned to find Cael asleep, peaceful at last. Guilt prickled at me. I didn’t want to wake him. Carefully, I lifted him like fragile porcelain, holding him close but making sure not to disturb his rest.

He twisted and shifted, searching for a more comfortable position, and drifted back to sleep.

“My Lord, let me take him inside for you,” Fabien offered.

“And wake him up? No! let him rest. He’s had a traumatic morning.

“Should I prepare the guest room for him?”

“No. He’ll be in my room.” I didn’t know why, but for the first time in years, Ralph was calm.

I carried the young omega into my bedroom, gently laying him on the bed and removing his shoes.

I retreated to the bathroom for a cold shower, hoping to calm the… reaction that always came when I looked at him. How could I be lusting after someone who wasn’t my mate? I tried to think of the ugliest things I could imagine.

Then, as if on cue, Ralph stirred. Something had woken Cael.

“Go check on him now,” I heard.

“What’s wrong, Ralph?”

I dashed out, my bed was empty. Heart hammering, I rushed for the door. That’s when I saw it: the plant Mum had cared for so long, now blooming. And the rain… pouring down in torrents.

Rain. After twenty years of drought, rain. Could it be?

The prophecy: “Flowers will bloom, the rain will fall at the wake of the chosen. The earth will be fertilized…”

Lyra wasn’t my mate, ruling her out. The only person who had entered the palace after her… Cael. And he was missing.

“Beta Fabien! Delta Damien!” I roared. “Assemble a search party for Cael! Gather the elders in the throne room immediately!”

I tore through the palace, my mind frantic. Where could he have gone? Goddess, let me find him, not for the kingdom, at least for my sanity. I shifted, letting Ralph take the lead, searching in and out of every corner. Hours passed, and I was on the brink of losing my mind.

Then, by the riverbank, I found him, slumped against the ground.

I ran to him, drenched in sweat and rain. It didn’t matter how I appeared. It didn’t matter who saw me. Shifting, I scooped him into my arms. Ralph relaxed at the sight of our mate, and Fabien approached with fresh clothes for both of us. Lyra panted nearby, bracing herself.

“Dad, let me check him, please,” Lyra said, her voice steady despite her concern.

I nodded. She was the only one I trusted around him.

“What’s wrong, Lyra?”

“He’s having a fever. This is his first heat cycle. Do you have any heat suppressant for unmated omegas? From his rejection yesterday, if we don’t manage this, it could last a long time.”

“Fabien will provide everything,” I said. “For now, I have to take him inside.”

I carried Cael to the safety of my room, changed his clothes, and tucked him under the duvet. Then I went to check the flower pot. The bloom remained, and the rain had persisted throughout the search, over three hours.

I turned back to the bed. Something had to be done. I couldn’t feel his pheromones yet, but he was clearly suffering from being rejected. I was both angry and relieved: angry that someone had hurt him, angry that he nearly slipped from my hands, but relieved that he was mine.

“Dad, can I come in?”

“Yes, you can. I’ll leave him under your care. Take care of him. I have a meeting with the elders. I’ll return soon.”

“Is he the one, Dad?”

“If my guess is correct, he is, but I won’t rush things.”

“I understand.”

I took one last look at my mate before leaving for the throne room.

With every step I took, the hall grew still. People shivered, lowering their heads in submission not daring to celebrate the rain, not daring to ask if I had found my mate. I entered the throne room, already packed with elders, lords, and ladies, but two seats remained empty: the seer’s and my uncle, Lord Malric of the Northern Region.

“Be seated, gentlemen and ladies,” I commanded.

“My king, long may you reign,” one elder began, voice steady despite the tension. “With the rain falling today, according to the prophecy, it means you have found our lunar, and she is within the kingdom. Is she willing to fulfill the prophecy?”

“Elders, your guesses mirror mine,” I replied. “Yes, I brought someone into the palace. He is an omega, but we cannot know for certain until the seer arrives.”

“I am here, my king,” a voice rang out.

“What does the prophecy say again?” I asked

“When scentless wind meets dying flame,

The forest weeps and calls his name.

Bound by blood but born of sky,

The lowest shall rise, the Alpha shall bow,

And Lunavara shall burn or bloom.” she chanted.

“And how does that relate to the omega I brought home?”

“He is indeed the one chosen,” the seer said, voice calm, “but his powers are yet to awaken.”

“Why was he mated to another, then? That was never mentioned in the prophecy,” I pressed.

“His path crossed with those who sought to harm him,” the seer explained. “Had you not intervened, their bond would have been sealed.”

I felt the weight of near disaster. I had almost lost my mate, and with him, the fate of my kingdom might have collapsed.

“You are all dismissed,” I commanded. “I need to tend to my mate. Siora, come with me.”

“Yes, Alpha,” she replied.

I returned to my bedroom to find Cael in torment, mumbling incoherent words, shivering, twisting uncomfortably beneath the duvet. Instinct took over. I ran to the bed, cradling him as Ralph whimpered softly by my side.

“Siora, what do we do to help him?” I asked, desperate.

“Nothing, my king. It will be over soon,” she replied calmly.

“Nothing? He’s in pain!”

“You can’t mark him while he’s awakening,” she said. “He has no pheromones yet. Just let him rest. He will survive this.”

I watched helplessly as the two left my room, unable to endure my aura. I held Cael closer, careful not to disturb him further.

His body burned. I fetched a wet towel from the bathroom and placed it on his forehead, wiping sweat from his face and hands. His murmuring continued, evidence of the torment within him.

Ralph whimpered again, pressed against him protectively. I had never felt so useless. How could I help my mate when he had no wolf, no defense against this suffering?

Hours later, he finally stirred, waking from his nightmare. Unlike before, he seemed peaceful. I held his palm tightly, not willing to let go, what if he tried to run again? What if he changed his mind about staying?

“My king, his mother is here,” Fabien said.

I braced myself, keeping my pheromones in check. Though Cael’s mother was mated, she couldn’t withstand my full alpha presence.

“Let her in,” I said.

The door creaked open. A woman in her late forties entered, bowing politely. I halted her.

“You don’t have to bow to me, Ma’am,” I said.

“I’m sorry for the trouble, my king,” she said softly. “I just wanted him to have a peaceful life here, on his own.”

I studied her closely, noting the resemblance between mother and son. A small smile tugged at my lips.

“It’s no trouble. Thanks to his arrival, I’ve discovered he is my mate. I should be grateful to you, and to the goddess, for keeping him safe.”

“But he was mated to someone else as of yesterday,” she said, hesitant.

“Well, the goddess knows best,” I replied. “You are proof of that. I wish we had met under better circumstances, and I apologize for any stress this caused.”

I stood, leaving her and my mate in privacy. Her presence would be far more meaningful when Cael awoke fully. I left the room and made my way to my study, mind racing with the realization: my mate was truly here, and now, the next stage of his awakening, and mine, was about to begin.