The Wolf They Buried Alive

Chapter 2

Lyra

The world tilted. Theo was alive. Theo was standing right there, healthy and whole, while I'd spent three years being tortured for his murder.

"Get in the car." Kael's voice was ice.

But I couldn't move. Couldn't breathe. Theo took a step toward me, and that's when I saw it—the mating mark on his neck. Fresh. Recent. Not mine.

"Lyra, please—"

"You're mated." The words came out broken. "You're mated to someone else."

"It's not what you think—"

"The car. Now." Kael's hand wrapped around my arm, but his touch was gentle. "Unless you want to have this reunion with an audience."

I looked back. Magnus, Jace, and Freya had followed us out. Magnus looked murderous. Freya looked terrified. And Jace... Jace was smiling.

I let Kael guide me into the car. The leather seats were soft, and the tinted windows immediately blocked out the nightmare I'd been living. But I could still see Theo through the windshield, could see him arguing with Magnus.

"Drive," Kael ordered his driver.

As we pulled away, I caught Theo's lips moving: "I'm sorry."

Sorry. Three years of torture, and he was sorry.

"You're in shock." Kael's voice was softer now. "Take deep breaths."

"You knew." I turned to him, anger finally breaking through. "You knew he was alive."

"I suspected." He studied me with those impossible eyes. "Dead mates leave a mark on the soul. You don't have one."

"Then why—" My voice cracked. "Why did they do this to me?"

"That's what we're going to find out." He pulled out his phone, typing something quickly. "But first, we're getting you somewhere safe."

Safe. I'd forgotten what that word meant.

The drive took two hours. Two hours of silence except for my occasional gasps when memories hit. Theo rejecting me. The blood—so much blood. Waking up in chains while Magnus told me I'd killed my mate in a fit of rage. My wolf going silent, then disappearing entirely.

The Crimson Pack's territory was nothing like mine. Where the Evermoon Pack had maybe fifty members, here I saw hundreds. The packhouse wasn't a house—it was a mansion. No, a fortress. Black stone and glass that seemed to pierce the sky.

"Welcome to your new home," Kael said as we pulled up.

Home. Another foreign word.

The moment I stepped out, I felt them. Hundreds of eyes watching from windows, from training grounds, from everywhere. The power here was suffocating.

"Alpha." A massive man approached, bowing his head slightly. "We weren't expecting—" His eyes landed on me and widened. "A guest."

"This is Lyra. She'll be staying in my wing." Kael's tone brooked no argument. "Have Dr. Serena meet us there in twenty minutes."

"Your wing?" The man—who had to be the Beta—looked shocked. "But—"

"Problem, Damian?"

"No, Alpha."

Kael led me through corridors that seemed endless. Pack members parted like water, all of them staring at me. Some with curiosity. Some with suspicion. None with the disgust I was used to.

His wing was an entire floor. The elevator required his handprint to access. When the doors opened, I stepped into luxury I'd only dreamed of. Floor-to-ceiling windows overlooked a forest. Art that looked expensive covered the walls. And everything smelled like him—pine and smoke and something wild.

"Bathroom's through there." He pointed to a door. "Take a shower. There are clothes in the closet that might fit."

"Why are you doing this?"

He turned to me, and for a moment, his mask slipped. I saw something raw in his eyes. "Because someone needs to."

I wanted to argue, to demand real answers, but exhaustion hit me like a truck. When was the last time I'd slept? Really slept?

The bathroom was bigger than my entire basement room had been. The shower had multiple heads and buttons I didn't understand. I turned on what I hoped was just water and nearly cried when hot water hit my skin. Real hot water. Not the ice-cold spray I was allowed once a week.

I don't know how long I stood there, watching three years of dirt and blood swirl down the drain. When I finally got out, I found clothes laid out on the bed—soft leggings and an oversized sweater. They smelled like fabric softener, not mold.

A knock interrupted my wonder. "Dr. Serena's here," Kael called.

The doctor was beautiful—long red hair and kind brown eyes. She smiled at me warmly. "Hello, Lyra. I'm going to check you over, okay?"

I nodded, sitting on the edge of the bed.

She was gentle as she examined me, but I saw her expression darken with each discovery. Malnutrition. Broken ribs that hadn't healed properly. Scars from silver. Burns from wolfsbane. Internal damage from... she didn't say, but I knew.

"How long?" she asked quietly.

"Three years."

She closed her eyes, taking a breath. When she opened them, they glowed amber. "Alpha, may I speak with you privately?"

"No." I surprised myself by speaking. "No more secrets. Please."

Kael nodded. "Tell us both."

"The binding on her wolf—it's not normal. It's not just blocking her shift. It's killing her slowly. Without her wolf's healing, her body can't recover from the abuse. Another few months..." She didn't finish.

Another few months and I'd be dead. Part of me felt relieved.

"Can you break it?" Kael asked.

"I can try, but it's complicated. Whoever did this used a combination of magic and herbs. It'll take time."

"Then start now."

"Alpha," Damian's voice came through the door. "We have a problem."

Kael growled—a sound that made my bones vibrate. "What?"

"Magnus Evermoon is here. With an army. He wants the girl back."

My blood froze. No. I couldn't go back. I'd rather die.

Kael must have seen my panic because he moved closer, his presence oddly calming. "You're not going anywhere." To Damian, he said, "Tell Magnus he can wait. I'll deal with him when I'm ready."

"He's threatening war."

"Let him."

Dr. Serena cleared her throat. "I need specific herbs to start breaking the binding. They're rare."

"Make a list. Damian will get them." Kael's eyes never left mine. "Whatever it takes."

After they left, we were alone. The silence stretched until I couldn't take it.

"Why do you care what happens to me?"

He was quiet for so long I thought he wouldn't answer. Then: "Do you know what a Fate Mark is?"

I shook my head.

"It's a mark that appears when you meet your fated mate. Not chosen, not forced—fated. Decided by the Moon Goddess herself." He pulled down his collar, showing me his neck. There, just beginning to form, was a silver mark in the shape of a crescent moon. "It appeared the moment I saw you in that office."

The room spun. "But I already had a mate."

"No, you had someone chosen for you. There's a difference." He moved closer. "I don't know why they lied about his death. I don't know why they bound your wolf. But I promise you, I'll find out."

"And if you don't like what you find?"

"Then I'll burn the whole world down to make it right."

The intensity in his voice should have scared me. Instead, I felt something I hadn't felt in three years. Safe.

A commotion outside broke the moment. Shouting. Growling. Then Magnus's voice, magically amplified: "Kael Draven! Return what you stole, or face the consequences!"

Kael stood, power rolling off him in waves. "Stay here."

"Wait—" But he was already gone.

I ran to the window, looking down at the scene below. Magnus had brought at least thirty wolves. But Kael walked out alone, looking bored.

"You want her back?" Kael's voice carried even to my window. "Then tell everyone the truth. Tell them Theo's alive."

The crowd gasped. Even Magnus's own wolves looked shocked.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Really?" Kael pulled out his phone, projecting an image onto the side of the building. It was Theo. From today. Very much alive. "Then who's this?"

Chaos erupted. Magnus's wolves were shouting, demanding answers. But my eyes were drawn to movement in the trees. More wolves. Hundreds of them. All showing glowing eyes.

That's when I realized—Kael hadn't come alone. His pack had been there the whole time, waiting.

"Here's what's going to happen," Kael said, his voice deadly calm. "You're going to leave. You're going to forget Lyra exists. And if you ever come near her again, I'll expose everything. The fake death. The illegal binding. All of it."

"You can't prove anything!"

"Can't I?" Kael smiled, and it was terrifying. "Theo's already agreed to testify. In exchange for protection, of course."

Magnus went white. "You're lying."

"Am I?"

A figure stepped out from the crowd. Theo. But not the Theo I remembered. This one looked harder, scarred. He walked straight to Kael and knelt.

"Alpha Draven, I request sanctuary."

"Granted."

Magnus roared, shifting into his wolf form—a massive gray beast. He lunged at Kael.

Kael didn't even shift. He caught Magnus by the throat mid-leap, slamming him into the ground so hard it cracked. "Wrong move."

Magnus shifted back, gasping. Blood poured from his nose.

"Here's the new deal," Kael said. "You have one hour to get off my territory. Come back, and I'll consider it a declaration of war. And Magnus?" He leaned down. "The next time you touch something that's mine, I'll rip your throat out with my teeth."

Mine. He'd called me his.

Magnus struggled to his feet, his wolves helping him. As they retreated, he looked up at my window. The hate in his eyes promised this wasn't over.

When Kael returned, he found me standing exactly where he'd left me.

"You okay?"

"Theo's here?"

"In the cells. He has information we need."

"I don't want to see him."

"You don't have to." He moved closer. "You don't have to do anything you don't want to. Not anymore."

"What if what I want is revenge?"

Something dark and approving flashed in his eyes. "Then I'll help you get it."

"Why? Because of some mark?"

"No." He reached out, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. "Because they tried to break you. And anyone who tries to break what's mine learns why I'm really feared."

His phone rang before I could respond. He answered, his expression darkening.

"What do you mean she's missing?" He paused, listening. "Find her. Now."

He hung up, turning to me. "We have a problem."

"What?"

"Freya's gone. And she left a note."

He handed me his phone. In Freya's handwriting:

"The truth about that night will destroy us all. But if you want to know what really happened to Lyra's wolf, ask her what she saw in the basement. Ask her about the ritual. Ask her why Theo had to die."

My hands shook. The basement. The ritual.

Memories I'd buried came flooding back. Blood circles. Chanting. Theo standing in the center while someone held me down. While someone forced something down my throat that burned like acid.

"Lyra?" Kael's voice seemed far away. "What ritual?"

But I couldn't answer because suddenly, for the first time in three years, I felt her.

My wolf.

Screaming.