Chapter 1: The name that should have stayed buried

𝐋𝐎𝐔𝐕𝐄'𝐒 𝐏𝐎𝐕

Some names are not meant to be spoken. Not allowed. Not in whispers. Not even in memory.

Yet his name had a way of finding me, slipping past every wall I had built, settling deep beneath my skin like a scar that refused to fade away.

Lynx.

I stiffened, my grip tightening around the silver dagger in my hand.

"Focus." I muttered to myself.

The training ground stretched before me, quiet under the pale morning light. As the rays of the sun touched my skin, the scent of earth and steel lingered in the air. I moved again, swift and precise, striking the wooden post in front of me. The blade sank in with a dull thud.

Again and again. I made each strike sharper than the last.

Pain was easier to deal with than memory. It was clean. Simple. Controlled.

Unlike the past. I thought to myself as I threw the dagger to the ground with a sharp force. The memory still haunted me. Not in fragments nor in pieces, but as a whole. The way he looked at me that night. The way his presence wrapped around me like a storm I could not escape. 

And those eyes always felt intense, commanding, and impossible to forget.

I shut my eyes tightly, forcing the memory away.

"Not now," I muttered under my breath.

I didn't have time to dwell on the past. Not today. 

I went back into my building as I headed towards my room. Moving quickly, I grabbed my bag from the edge of my bed, checking its contents out of habit. Everything was in place. Good. I slung it over my shoulder, ready to leave, and then my phone suddenly rang.

I glanced at the screen and saw that the caller was Mother.

I exhaled sharply before answering. "Yes, Mother."

"Why did it take you so long to pick up?" Her sharp voice came through immediately. "We need you here. Now. If you can bend time, then do it."

Same tone. Same authority.

Nothing ever changed.

"I understand," I replied calmly.

"Good." She answered back.

The call ended. I slipped my phone into my pocket and headed out without another thought.

The road stretched endlessly ahead as I drove, the hum of the engine the only thing filling the silence. Something about today felt off; I couldn't explain it, but the feeling clung to me stubbornly.

Halfway through the journey, my fuel light blinked.

"Great," I muttered, feeling a bit disappointed.

I pulled into a nearby gas station, stepping out to refuel. The air felt colder than usual, the atmosphere strangely quiet. Then out of nowhere I heard a scream. It was faint-but clear enough.

I froze.

My senses sharpened instantly. The sound came from a nearby street.

Without hesitation, I stepped away from my car and followed it, my instincts already on high alert. As I turned into a narrow path, I spotted an alley ahead.

And that's when I saw them.

Three men and a girl.

Rage surged through me instantly.

They had her cornered.

She was struggling, terrified, trying to fight them off.

"Hey, back off," I commanded.

"I hate people like you," I said coldly.

Before they could even react, I moved so fast.

I grabbed the nearest one and slammed him against the wall with enough force to knock the breath out of him. The other two lunged at me, but they were nothing compared to what I was.

I took them down quickly-so efficiently and controlled.

I didn't kill them. Not worth it.

The alley fell back to its silent state.

My gaze shifted to the girl.

She was shaking, her arms wrapped tightly around herself, fear evident in her eyes as she stared at me.

I softened slightly.

"Hey... it's okay," I said, lowering my voice. "You're safe now."

No response.

I understood clearly, so I tried not to say anything that might traumatize or scare her off.

"Umm, see, I'm sorry, okay? You're going to be alright. It's okay; they are bad guys, but they won't dare to touch or hurt you anymore, I promise. I have to get you out of here immediately," I said softly to her.

Slowly, I crouched down to her level, careful not to startle her. "Can you stand?" I asked her gently.

She hesitated... then gave a small nod.

"Good," I said.

"Come on," I said gently, helping her up.

We walked back to the gas station in silence. I finished fueling my car and opened the passenger door for her.

"Get in." I told her.

She obeyed quietly.

The drive to the mansion was longer than usual.

Or maybe it just felt that way.

Moments later, I arrived at the mansion, waiting for the huge black gates to be opened. The atmosphere felt warm but so quiet, with foggy weather and the sounds of birds chirping from a distance.

I checked the time; I knew I was already late. Mom had called earlier, I recalled. The gate was finally opened after confirmation. "Buckle up, girl," I told her as she stared at me. As I drove in, I saw Elina; she is the house mistress. She was standing by the doorstep, waiting for my arrival. I parked the car and stepped out. I went towards the boot, opened it, and brought out a silver briefcase.

Before entering the mansion, I had told the girl who was inside my car not to step out if she wanted to get back home.

"Hmp, yes," she replied. I smiled back at her; eventually, she spoke.

Walking towards Elina, I read her facial expression. It looked like there was some tension inside.

"You are late. The journey takes an hour; it's been over 3 hours now, supposedly," she said, looking a bit concerned.

"It doesn't count as long as I'm not on the headline for killing," I replied sarcastically, forcing a smile on my face. Elina has always been there for me since I was little. She is a lycan, but I haven't gotten over what she did 10 years ago. I still respect her nonetheless.

As I stepped in, I saw everyone's eyes darting towards me, as if they had been expecting me to come in late, as usual. Mother was at the dining table, snapping her fingers.

A voice echoed above, "What took you so long?" Alexander, my elder brother who is an Alpha wolf, walked down the stairs, caressing the knife he held in his hand.

"I was ......" Just as I was about to speak, Odin cut in. "Oh brother, she must have forgotten that we have a meeting on the timeline; she's always the busy one, right?" he said as he scoffed.

"Hey, can you shut the fuck up? I shouted at him.

The room became silent, but not for long, as Mom broke the silence. "The briefcase, did you bring it along?" she asked.

"Yes, Mother," I replied as I handed her the briefcase.

With a satisfied look on her face, she said, "It's complete."

"Will someone tell me what is going on here?" I asked, becoming impatient.

"He is back," Alexander spoke in a firm tone.

"Who? Who is back?" I asked, as I was confused.

Jayden angrily threw a glass cup on the floor. "I can't believe that after all these years, he had the guts to come back," he said in an angry tone.

"Who the hell is here? Who is it? "I yelled out.

"Lynx," Alexander said to me while looking straight into my face, telling me one more time. "Lynx is in the city; he is back."

My eyes widened, and I startled backward, as I could not grasp what I had just heard. I felt like I was in deep shock. I tried to control my emotions, as I didn't want my family to observe my reaction.

"Lynx," I whispered to myself. I came back to my senses when Maia, my sister, who was busy baking some cookies in the kitchen, eyed me, waiting for the question she had asked. "Did you bring anyone with you, Louve?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, there's someone in the car," I responded.

"It's a child," Elina told everyone.

Odin looked at me with a curious expression on his face.

Maia placed the cookies on the dining table. 

"You should have known better," Maia said with a glare. "Where is the child?" 

"In the car," I replied.

"What's she doing here in the first place, and what do you do about her?" Alexander asked as he was cutting an apple.

"I saved her from being exploited sexually. I was on my way here, but that was necessary; that's why I arrived late. I have no information about her; she is in a bit of shock and hasn't really said a word yet."

"So what are you intending to do about her? She can't live here, not with Mom," Maia asked while eating some of the cookies.

"The orphanage," Mom suggested.

Odin stood up from the chair, grabbed a cigarette from the cabinet, and lit it. "You saved her," he said with a smirk on his face. "A human for that cause? Do you have any idea what you have done, Louve? Do you think humans care about us? They don't give a damn or show humanity if we live," he said as he frowned.

"It doesn't matter; she needed to be saved. What do you think? "That I'd leave her in the hands of those monsters." 

"Did you transform to save her?" His eyes were red.

Everyone was literally staring at me, including Elina, as they waited for an answer.

"No, no, I didn't. " They all let out a sigh of relief.

"She will be taken to the orphanage if we are unable to discover anything about her, and also nothing happened. Is that clear?" Mother declared reassuringly.

I could not stop thinking about what I heard: Lynx is in town. My mate and the one whom I had always loved and still do. "Why is he back?" I began to question myself. "I need to see him," I said to myself.

Alexander got a phone call from his wife, Selene. He went home as he was missing his family, and he also had other important things to do. Odin, on the other hand, has gone to see the rest of the pack to discuss the latest news. Maia stayed back with Mother at the mansion.

I went outside to get the girl out of the car. I couldn't take her to my house; I needed to keep her safe, so I handed the girl over to Elina. She would inform me when she got any information about her. I got into my car as I drove out of the mansion.

The gates closed behind me with a heavy clang as I drove out of the mansion. For a moment, I just sat there.

My hands are gripping the steering wheel. As I was breathing unevenly.

"Lynx is back," I spoke in a silent tone.

The words echoed in my head like a curse I couldn’t shake off.

"After all these years, why now?" I thought to myself.

I pressed my foot on the accelerator, the engine roaring to life as I sped down the empty road. The air was cold, brushing against my skin through the slightly open window, but it did nothing to calm the storm building inside me.

I hated this feeling.

The uncertainty. The tension. And most of all, my heart reacted to his name.

I tightened my grip.

“Get a hold of yourself,” I muttered.

But it wasn’t that simple.

Nothing about Lynx had ever been simple.

Minutes later, I slowed the car to a stop by the roadside.

I didn’t even realize when I got there. My mind had been somewhere else entirely.

The city stretched out before me—quiet, dimly lit, but alive in its own way. Streetlights flickered faintly, and distant voices echoed from unknown corners.

He was here.

Somewhere in this same city.

Breathing the same air.

The thought alone sent a strange sensation through me.

I leaned back in my seat, closing my eyes briefly.

"Don’t go looking for him." My mind whispers to me.

That would be the smart thing to do, I assume.

The logical thing.

But when had I ever listened to logic when it came to him?

I let out a dry laugh.

“Pathetic.”

Still…

I started the engine again. I didn’t know where I was going.

Not exactly.

But something in me—something instinctive...pulled me forward.

Street after street passed.

Turn after turn.

After a moment, I felt it. 

"If he is back, then I have to meet him. There is no way around that." A frank expression on my face as I drove along the road.