CHAPTER FOUR
1067 Words
THE ESCAPE PLAN
Cian Drevan
I never believed the prophecy.
Never feared it.
Never thought for one second that it could be real until tonight.
Now I’ve seen it.
The Power. The glow. The storm that came out of my son, like the Moon herself, breathed through his blood.
And I know one thing.
They will come for him.
The Council. The Elders. The ones who fear change more than death.
I don’t have time to think. Only to act.
---
The castle is already waking. I hear footsteps in the east corridor. Armor clinking. Orders whispered too softly.
Someone tipped them off.
This wasn’t just an assassination attempt, it was a test.
They wanted to see what Luka could do. Now they know.
And now they’ll burn everything to stop what he might become.
I pushed open the door to Mira’s chamber. She’s on the bed, holding Luka close. Her eyes shoot at mine, filled with fear and fury.
“What’s happening?” she asks.
“Trouble. We leave now.”
She doesn’t argue. Just nods and pulls the blanket tighter around Luka’s body. He stirs in her arms but doesn’t wake.
I see her hands shaking. But her voice stays steady.
“Where are we going?”
“There’s a tunnel under the armory. It leads out past the forest wall.”
“A tunnel? Since when do Alphas sneak out of their own castles?”
I caught her eyes. “Since they became fathers.”
She stiffens slightly. But her grip on Luka tightens.
And for once… she doesn’t pull away.
The tunnel smells like rust and dust. The stone walls are wet with old moss, untouched for years.
Mira walks beside me, quiet but alert. Her every step screams tension. Not just from fear but from memory.
This is the first time we’ve been alone since the bond started flickering again. Since I saw our son. Since I realized the Moon had chosen her all along, and I was too blind to see it.
“I should’ve marked you,” I say suddenly.
She doesn’t look at me. “You didn’t.”
“Mira, I was young. Pressured. Afraid of doing something without the Council’s blessing.”
“You were Alpha,” she says softly. “You didn’t need their blessings. You needed a spine.”
Her words hit hard. Because they’re true.
“I’m sorry,” I say. “I would give anything to go back.”
Now she looks at me. Eyes sharp. “Then don’t waste what’s left.”
We reach the lower level of the tunnel. It's narrow now, the ceiling dropping, the cold tightening around our lungs.
Luka stirs. A faint moan leaves his lips. Mira kneels quickly, checking his temperature.
“He’s warm,” she whispers. “Too warm again.”
“He used too much power.”
“Can that hurt him?”
I pause. “If he’s untrained, yes.”
She presses her forehead towards Luka’s. “Then we find someone who can help. Whatever it takes.”
We're near the exit when I smell something that freezes my blood.
Smoke.
Faint. New.
I raised my arm. “Stop.”
Mira goes still behind me. “What is it?”
I motion for silence, inching forward.
And then out of the darkness he steps into view.
Black robe. Masked face.
Sword drawn.
His voice is cold. Too familiar.
“You should’ve left her in exile, Cian.”
Mira whispers, “Who…?”
I already know.
“General Alric,” I say through clenched teeth. “I thought I buried you.”
He removes his mask slowly. His face is scarred now, one eye missing. “You did. But some things don't stay dead.”
“You were one of us. You trained me.”
“And then you chose weakness. You rejected your real mate for a healer? And now you protect the Moon’s mistake?”
My anger boils over.
“He’s not a mistake,” I growl. “He’s my son.”
Alric sneers. “Exactly. That’s why he can’t be allowed to live.”
He lunges.
The fight was brutal. Steel clashes in the narrow tunnel, sparks flying off the stone. He’s faster than I remember, stronger, too.
But I’ve changed.
I don’t fight for power anymore. I fight for them.
Behind me, Mira shields Luka. Her eyes never leave me.
I landed the first hit, cutting his side.
Alric hisses, swinging wide.
I duck. Slam my shoulder into his gut. We both crash into the wall.
He grabs my throat. “The prophecy ends with his death!”
“Then you’ll die trying.”
I shoved my dagger deep into his chest.
He gasps. Eyes wide.
Blood spills over his armor.
Then he drops.
Dead.
I panted, catching my breath. Blood on my hands. Pain in my ribs. But we’re still alive.
Mira stares at the body. “That was one of your own.”
“He was. A long time ago.”
She doesn’t press me.
She just stands and says, “Let’s go.”
We finally reach the tunnel’s end.
I push open the iron hatch, and cool forest air hits our faces like freedom.
Sunlight filters through the trees. The wind carries no scent of blood yet.
We made it out.
But not alone.
Because standing ten feet away… a crossbow slung over his shoulder. A scar over one brow. Smirk on his lips.
Is Torren Vale.
The rogue Alpha.
The man Mira once fled to.
The one who raised Luka in his early days.
The one she trusted when I didn’t deserve her.
He steps forward, eyes locked on the child in her arms.
“Well, well,” he says. “Looks like the Moon left me a little surprise after all.”
Mira gasps softly. “Torren…”
His eyes flick towards mine. Cold. Calculating. “I’ve got a safehouse nearby. If you want to keep him breathing, follow me. But be warned…” His voice drops. “I’m not here to play nice with an Alpha who broke her.”
I stepped in front of Mira. “This isn’t your child.”
Torren raises a brow. “Isn’t it?”
Mira doesn’t speak.
She’s frozen. Torn between two men.
One who left her.
One who caught her.
And now, her choice may decide all our fates.
- Writer
