Tous les chapitres de : Chapitre 31 - Chapitre 40

Three days of driving through remote mountain roads. No towns. Just wilderness.The baby's power grew stronger each day. Affecting the mate bond. Changing it."How are you feeling?" Kade asked."Tired. Worried." I checked the map. "We should be close."An hour later, we found the stone raven marker. Turned onto a barely visible path.A cottage appeared in a clearing. Small. Ancient.The door opened before we could knock.A woman stood there. Old but not frail. Silver hair. Eyes like storm clouds."You're late," she said. "I expected you two days ago.""How did you—""I'm a witch. I know things." She stepped aside. "Come in."The cottage was larger inside than outside. Magic.Shelves lined the walls. Herbs. Crystals. Books."Sit," she commanded.We sat.She studied us. "Iris sent you. Magical pregnancy problem.""Yes," I said. "I'm—""A bond-breaker. Obviously." She looked at Kade. "And you're her mate. Alpha wolf." Back to me. "Your child's power is already manifesting.""How do you k

Pain ripped through me. But not just physical pain.Every bond in the territory lit up. Pack bonds. Mate bonds. All of them pulsing in sync with my contractions."Kade!" I gasped."What's happening?" His eyes were wild. "The pack—everyone's feeling your pain—""The baby," I managed. "She's doing it. Even now. Connecting everyone."Another contraction hit. Throughout the compound, wolves howled in sympathetic agony."Get Iris!" Kade shouted. "Now!"The healer arrived running. "Everyone in the pack is collapsing. Whatever the baby's doing—""She's broadcasting Sera's pain through the bonds," Mara said, appearing in the doorway. Her face was pale. "We all feel it.""Can you stop it?" Kade demanded."I don't know how!" I screamed as another contraction hit.The windows shattered. Every single one. Glass exploding outward."Her power," Iris breathed. "It's manifesting through you. Creating a shockwave through the bond network.""Make it stop!" I begged."I can't. Not until she's born." Iri

The warning screamed through every bond. Urgent. Terrified."Get Lyra inside," Kade commanded. "Now."But I couldn't move. Because through the bond-sight, I saw what was coming.Darkness. Not shadows. Pure absence. Like reality was being erased. And it was heading straight for us."Sera!" Kade grabbed my arm. "Move!""I can't. If I move, I lose sight of it. And we need to know what we're fighting.""I don't care. You and Lyra need to be safe.""We're not safe anywhere if that reaches us."Through the mate bond, I felt his terror. Not for himself. For us. For his family."Then we face it together," he said, pulling me close. One arm around me. The other ready to fight.The darkness materialized at the edge of our territory. Not one being. Dozens. Twisted. Wrong. They looked almost human but moved like insects. Jerky. Unnatural."What are they?" Mara breathed."Void Walkers," Marcus said, his voice tight. "I've only heard stories. Creatures from the space between realities. They feed on

Something was wrong.I couldn't name it. Couldn't point to a specific moment or sign. Just a feeling. Deep in my gut. The way a mother knows her child even in the dark.Lyra felt different.Not sick. Not hurt. Just... different.She slept peacefully in the small bed Kade had set up beside ours. Dark lashes fanning her cheeks. Tiny fists curled. The picture of innocence.But through the bond-sight, I watched her threads. Studied them.They were still there. Still reaching. Still glowing silver.Except one. A single thread I hadn't seen before. So thin it was barely visible. Tucked behind the others.Dark. Quiet. Still.Like it was waiting."Kade," I whispered.He was awake instantly. "What?""Look at her. With your eyes. Does she seem different to you?"He studied our daughter. "She seems fine. Sleeping.""Through the bond. Through our connection. Does she feel different?"He was quiet for a long moment. Then: "Maybe. Slightly. I thought it was just exhaustion. Ours and hers.""It's no

Marcus hadn't spoken in three hours.He sat in the passenger seat. Staring at darkness rolling past. His hands perfectly still. The kind of stillness that came from iron control.Not peace. Suppression."You don't have to come," I said quietly."Yes I do." His voice was flat. "If Draven sees you without me, he'll know you're negotiating from weakness. He respects strength. He respects that I survived him.""Or he sees it as betrayal.""He sees everything as betrayal." Marcus finally turned from the window. His red eyes were haunted. "The whole world betrayed him once. Three thousand years ago. And he's never forgiven any of it.""What happened to him?" Kade asked."The First destroyed his coven. His family. She needed power. She took it from everything he loved." Marcus looked at his hands. "He swore vengeance. Spent centuries hunting her. Then she was banished and he had nothing left to hunt.""So he locked himself away," I said."And waited." He was quiet for a moment. "I spent fort