The alphas runt

Found

Kael heard her heartbeat before he saw her.

Weak.

Too weak.

But there.

Alive.

The sound nearly brought him to his knees.

The abandoned mining tunnels stretched endlessly beneath the mountains, damp stone walls illuminated only by torchlight and the glowing silver eyes of the wolves moving through the darkness.

Warriors surrounded the tunnels now.

Ronan’s pack blocked every exit.

Silver Fang wolves searched room by room with lethal precision.

And Kael—

Kael followed the bond.

Mine.

Faint now.

Fragile.

But guiding him forward through the underground maze.

The deeper he went, the harder it became to breathe.

Fear tightened around his throat with every step.

What if he was too late?

What if Magnus had hurt her worse than they realized?

What if—

The bond suddenly pulsed weakly.

Closer.

Kael stopped instantly outside a rusted iron door.

Behind it—

Her heartbeat.

Silver eyes widened violently.

“Lyra.”

No answer.

Panic surged instantly.

Kael ripped the door from its hinges so hard the metal screamed against stone.

The room beyond came into view.

And the alpha shattered.

Lyra sat curled against the far wall beneath thin blankets, pale white hair hanging tangled around a body so painfully thin Kael almost didn’t recognize her.

She looked breakable.

Her cheeks hollowed from hunger. Wrists bruised from restraints. Pale skin covered in exhaustion and fever.

And beneath the blankets—

A tiny swell curved gently against her stomach.

His pup.

Their pup.

Kael stopped breathing.

“…Lyra.”

Her eyes slowly lifted toward him.

Crystal blue.

Tired.

Disbelieving.

For one horrible second, she looked like she thought she was hallucinating again.

Then tears filled her eyes.

“Kael?”

The broken sound of his name destroyed him completely.

Kael crossed the room instantly.

A second later he dropped to his knees in front of her, hands trembling as they touched her face carefully.

Too cold.

Gods, she was freezing.

“You found me,” she whispered weakly.

The tears in her voice nearly killed him.

Kael pulled her into his arms immediately.

Carefully.

Terrified of hurting her.

Mine.

The bond exploded violently back to life the moment he touched her fully again.

Relief.

Love.

Desperation.

Lyra broke apart against his chest instantly, sobbing weakly while clinging to the front of his jacket with trembling fingers.

Kael buried his face against her hair.

“I’m here,” he whispered hoarsely. “I’m here now.”

His voice cracked.

Actually cracked.

Because seeing her like this—

Small.

Starving.

Broken—

Filled him with so much rage and grief he could barely breathe through it.

Lyra trembled violently against him.

“I tried to stay awake.”

Emotion ripped straight through him.

“You did so well.”

Her tiny hand moved shakily toward her stomach.

“The baby…”

Kael immediately covered her hand with his larger one.

Protective instinct roaring through him.

“I can hear the heartbeat.”

Relief flooded her face so suddenly she nearly cried again.

Kael kissed her forehead desperately.

“You protected our pup.”

Always thinking of others.

Even now.

The alpha carefully lifted her into his arms.

And gods—

She weighed almost nothing.

Rage surged again.

Magnus would die for this.

Slowly.

Painfully.

But not today.

Today mattered only for her.

Lyra curled weakly against his chest while Kael carried her from the prison.

Safe.

Finally safe.

And for the first time in weeks—

The mating bond no longer felt like it was dying.

—

The entire pack felt the moment their luna returned home.

The atmosphere inside Silver Fang territory shifted almost instantly.

Warmth returned.

Calmness spread quietly through the estate.

Even the endless storms finally weakened.

Wolves smiled more within hours of her return without fully understanding why.

But Kael noticed none of it.

Because for the next several days—

His entire world narrowed down to one room.

One bed.

One fragile tiny wolf slowly recovering in his arms.

Lyra barely left the bedroom the first week.

Mira ordered strict rest after examining her condition, and Kael nearly threatened every servant in the estate into silence trying to protect her recovery.

No loud visitors.

No stress.

No council.

Nothing.

Only rest.

The alpha practically lived beside the bed now.

He fed her himself when she felt too weak to hold utensils steadily.

Brushed tangled white hair gently from her face during nightmares.

Held her through fevers.

Stayed awake listening to her breathing when fear convinced him she might disappear again.

The k********g had changed him.

Everyone saw it.

Kael had always been protective.

Now he was something else entirely.

Terrified.

Because for the first time in his life—

He knew what it felt like to almost lose everything.

Lyra noticed it too.

The way his hands lingered against her longer now.

How he woke instantly anytime she shifted in bed.

How his silver eyes constantly searched her face like reassuring himself she was truly there.

One evening nearly a week after her rescue, Lyra sat propped carefully against soft pillows while Kael spooned warm soup toward her from beside the bed.

“You’re staring again,” she murmured weakly.

Kael looked entirely unapologetic.

“You almost died.”

Her chest tightened painfully.

“I’m still here.”

“Barely.”

The roughness in his voice silenced her immediately.

Because underneath his calmness—

She felt it.

Fear.

Deep endless fear he still hadn’t escaped.

Kael set the bowl aside before moving closer onto the bed beside her.

Large warm hands settled gently against her waist.

“You scared me.”

The quiet honesty hurt worse than anger ever could.

Lyra reached carefully toward his face.

The alpha leaned into her touch instantly.

Exhausted.

She could see it now.

The past weeks damaged him too.

“I’m sorry.”

Kael closed his eyes briefly.

“Don’t apologize for surviving.”

Emotion tightened painfully in her throat.

The room fell quiet afterward.

Only the crackling fireplace filled the silence while snow drifted softly outside the windows.

Kael’s hand eventually slid slowly down toward the small swell beneath her nightgown.

His expression softened instantly.

“Our pup is getting stronger.”

Lyra smiled faintly.

“So am I.”

That finally earned the first real smile she’d seen from him in weeks.

Small.

Tired.

But real.

Beautiful enough to make her chest ache.

Another week passed slowly after that.

And little by little—

Lyra returned.

Color slowly returned to pale cheeks.

Her strength improved enough to walk short distances around the suite.

The terrible hollowness faded from her body while the tiny curve of pregnancy became more noticeable beneath soft dresses.

Kael watched every change like witnessing miracles.

Every bite she finished.

Every smile.

Every laugh.

Every ounce of weight returning to her body eased something broken inside him.

One snowy evening, Lyra sat curled beside Kael near the fireplace beneath thick blankets while reading softly from one of the books he’d brought her.

Or trying to.

Because suddenly—

She froze.

Kael immediately looked up from the reports in his lap.

“What?”

Lyra blinked.

Then slowly grabbed his wrist.

“Wait.”

Concern flashed through the bond instantly.

“Lyra?”

Her eyes widened softly.

“I think…”

She carefully guided his large hand toward the small curve of her stomach beneath the blankets.

Kael went completely still.

The room fell silent.

Then—

Tiny movement.

Soft.

Gentle.

A small kick pressed lightly against Kael’s palm.

The alpha froze like the world had stopped turning.

Another tiny movement followed.

And Kael’s expression completely shattered.

Wonder flooded his face so openly it nearly made Lyra cry.

“Our pup,” he whispered.

His voice sounded wrecked.

Emotional.

Disbelieving.

Another tiny kick pressed against his hand.

Kael laughed softly.

Then actually looked close to tears himself.

“She kicked me.”

Lyra smiled through tears of her own now.

“I think the baby likes your voice.”

The alpha immediately leaned closer toward her stomach.

“It better.”

Another kick answered instantly.

Kael looked genuinely offended.

“You listen to her already?”

Lyra burst into soft laughter for the first time in weeks.

The sound filled the room warmly.

And Kael—

Kael looked happier than she had ever seen him before.

Not powerful.

Not dominant.

Just happy.

Purely devastatingly happy.

His forehead rested gently against hers while one hand remained protectively over their pup.

Mine.

Family.

Home.

The bond wrapped tightly around all three of them now.

And for the first time since the nightmare began—

Everything truly felt okay again.