Chapter 8 The Girl he cannot Kill
1429 Words
The laughter echoed through Shadow Fang Castle like a curse.
Cold.
Female.
Ancient.
Every warrior in the ruined western tower froze instantly.
Even the storm outside seemed to fall silent.
Lyra Nightbane felt ice crawl down her spine as the sound slithered through the castle walls.
She knew that laugh.
Not from memory.
From somewhere deeper.
Something buried inside her blood.
Kael’s body immediately tensed beside her.
His wolf surfaced violently beneath his skin.
Danger.
Every instinct screamed it.
Damon stepped toward the shattered window, his face pale as he looked toward the castle courtyard below.
“The northern gates are wide open,” he said tightly.
“That’s impossible,” another warrior whispered.
No one opened the northern gates.
Not ever.
The gates had remained sealed for nearly fifty years after the Shadow Wars.
Ancient wolf magic protected them.
Magic only royal blood could break.
Slowly…
Everyone in the room turned toward Lyra.
Fear spread instantly through the survivors.
Because only one person inside the castle carried ancient blood.
Lyra backed away slightly.
“I didn’t do anything.”
No one answered.
Kael stepped in front of her automatically.
Protective.
Possessive.
Mine.
His silver eyes darkened dangerously as he looked toward the others.
“Anyone who accuses her dies.”
Silence swallowed the room immediately.
But fear remained.
Lyra could smell it now.
The rogues feared her.
The council feared her.
And now even Shadow Fang warriors looked terrified.
The realization hurt more than she expected.
Kael turned toward Damon sharply.
“Seal the tower.”
Damon nodded instantly.
“What about the gates?”
Kael’s jaw tightened.
“I’ll handle it.”
Before anyone could argue, Kael grabbed Lyra’s hand and pulled her toward the doorway.
The moment their skin touched—
The silver energy beneath her skin calmed instantly again.
Kael noticed immediately.
Interesting.
Her power responded to him.
Or perhaps…
Trusted him.
The thought unsettled him more than he admitted.
They moved quickly through the dark castle corridors while alarms echoed everywhere.
Warriors rushed past carrying weapons.
Servants hid inside rooms.
Fear consumed the castle.
Lyra struggled to keep up beside Kael.
“What’s happening?”
“The castle is reacting to your blood.”
Her breath caught.
“What does that mean?”
Kael didn’t answer immediately.
Because the truth was dangerous.
And he still didn’t know how much of it he should tell her.
Finally they entered a massive circular room hidden deep beneath the castle.
Ancient bookshelves covered the stone walls from floor to ceiling while moonlight spilled through a glass ceiling overhead.
Dust filled the air.
Old magic lingered everywhere.
Lyra stared around quietly.
“What is this place?”
Kael shut the heavy doors behind them.
“The royal archives.”
Her eyes widened slightly.
The room felt ancient.
Alive.
Like something watched from inside the shadows.
Kael walked toward a massive black bookshelf near the far wall before pulling out an enormous leather-bound book covered in silver symbols.
Dust scattered through the air.
The title burned across the front in ancient lettering.
Moonborn Bloodlines.
Lyra’s stomach tightened instantly.
Kael placed the heavy book onto the stone table.
Then opened it.
The pages looked hundreds of years old.
Drawings covered the parchment.
Ancient wolves.
Battles.
Women with silver eyes standing beneath blood moons.
And every single one carried the same crescent mark.
Lyra stared silently.
Her heartbeat quickened.
Kael flipped through several pages before stopping suddenly.
His expression darkened.
“There.”
Lyra slowly stepped closer.
And froze.
A drawing of a woman filled the page.
Long black hair.
Silver glowing eyes.
A crescent moon mark.
The same woman from Lyra’s vision.
Her mother.
Below the image were ancient words written in black ink.
Selene Vaelaris — The Last Moonborn Queen.
Lyra’s breath caught painfully.
“Queen?”
Kael’s silver eyes remained fixed on the page.
“The Moonborn were not ordinary wolves.”
His voice lowered.
“They ruled before the Alpha Kings existed.”
Fear crept slowly into Lyra’s chest.
“What happened to them?”
Kael turned another page.
And the answer nearly stopped her heart.
Bodies.
Burning kingdoms.
War.
The pages detailed massacres across the werewolf territories centuries ago.
Entire bloodlines destroyed.
Children executed.
Cities burned.
Lyra looked horrified.
“Who did this?”
Kael’s jaw tightened.
“The Alpha Kings.”
Silence filled the archive.
Lyra stared at him in disbelief.
“They slaughtered them?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Kael’s expression darkened.
“Because the Moonborn became too powerful.”
Lightning flashed through the glass ceiling overhead.
The pages illuminated briefly.
And Lyra saw another line written beneath the drawings.
The Moonborn Queen shall return beneath the Blood Moon.
Fear gripped her throat instantly.
Kael closed the book sharply.
“She’s gone.”
Lyra looked at him carefully.
“My mother?”
“Yes.”
But his voice lacked certainty.
Lyra noticed immediately.
“You don’t believe that.”
Kael remained silent.
Because the laugh echoing through the castle sounded very much alive.
Suddenly another sharp pain tore through Lyra’s chest.
She gasped softly.
The crescent mark glowed again beneath her skin.
Kael immediately stepped closer.
“Lyra.”
Her breathing became uneven.
“I hear her again.”
The female voice whispered faintly inside her mind.
Find the throne.
Lyra pressed trembling hands against her head.
“Make it stop.”
Kael grabbed her shoulders carefully.
“Look at me.”
His silver eyes locked onto hers instantly.
Grounding.
Steady.
The mate bond pulsed softly between them.
And slowly…
The voice faded.
Lyra breathed shakily.
“What’s happening to me?”
Kael’s expression became unreadable.
“Your bloodline is awakening.”
Fear flooded her face instantly.
“I don’t want this.”
Kael’s wolf snarled violently inside him.
Mine.
Protect.
But another thought haunted him now.
One he could no longer ignore.
Moonborn queens destroyed kingdoms.
Started wars.
Killed Alphas.
If Lyra truly carried royal hybrid blood…
Then eventually every Alpha in existence would hunt her.
Including him.
Because Shadow Fang law was absolute.
If a threat rose against the territories…
The ruling Alpha had to eliminate it.
Even if the threat was his mate.
Kael stared at her quietly.
Bruised.
Terrified.
Standing beneath moonlight while ancient power glowed beneath her skin.
His wolf refused the very thought.
Mine.
Not threat.
Mate.
Kael clenched his jaw sharply.
Because for the first time in years…
He felt genuinely divided.
Duty.
Or her.
Suddenly—
The archive doors slammed open violently.
Damon stormed inside breathing hard.
“Alpha.”
Kael immediately looked up.
“What happened?”
Damon’s face looked grim.
“The council knows.”
Kael’s expression darkened instantly.
Of course they did.
Fear traveled faster than wildfire inside a castle.
Damon continued carefully.
“They’re demanding immediate action.”
Lyra’s stomach twisted.
“What kind of action?”
Damon hesitated.
Then looked directly at Kael.
“They want her executed.”
Silence exploded across the archive.
Kael’s wolf erupted violently.
KILL THEM.
The candles throughout the room flickered dangerously.
Damon instinctively stepped backward.
Because Kael looked moments away from slaughtering someone.
Lyra’s face drained completely.
Executed.
Of course.
Why would this end differently?
People always feared what they didn’t understand.
Kael slowly turned toward her.
And something inside him broke slightly at the fear in her eyes.
She expected abandonment.
Expected betrayal.
Even now.
Kael stepped toward her carefully.
Then spoke words that shocked even himself.
“No one touches you.”
The possessiveness in his voice sent heat through the mate bond instantly.
Damon frowned slightly.
“Kael…”
“I said no one touches her.”
The room darkened beneath his Alpha aura.
Pure dominance flooded the archive.
Damon lowered his head immediately.
But tension remained.
Because everyone knew the truth now.
If Lyra became too dangerous…
Kael himself might one day have to kill her.
And deep down…
That possibility terrified him more than war ever had.
Suddenly—
A violent explosion shook the castle.
The archive trembled.
Dust fell from the ceiling.
Another scream echoed through the halls.
Then came a terrifying sound.
Howling.
Hundreds of wolves.
Kael’s eyes sharpened instantly.
Damon rushed toward the window.
Then froze.
Fear spread across his face.
“Alpha…”
Kael stepped beside him.
And for the first time in years…
The great Alpha of Shadow Fang looked stunned.
Because surrounding the castle below—
Stood an army of rogues.
And at the front of them…
Beneath the blood-red moon…
Stood a woman with silver glowing eyes smiling directly at Lyra.
- Writer
