Marked By The Vengeful Lycan

Chapter Six

Caden

***

He didn't look back as he walked away. His steps were quick, increasing the distance between him and the dying girl.

The silver-tinted arrow had done him a favor. Caden had waited fifteen years to see Garrick’s bloodline end, and now the man’s oldest daughter was twitching in the dirt, her veins turning a deadly black.

This was justice. This was all he'd dreamt of so many nights when he'd lie in the same building as them. He'd thought of how easy it would be to slip into one of their rooms and slaughter them.

But he'd held back.

And now this was it—it was perfect. The kind of death even he couldn't have planned. Garrick’s daughter would die in the forest, unloved and alone. And she'd die, struck by an arrow meant for him.

Caden’s lips twitched in cruel pleasure.

“Let the crows finish off what remains of her flesh,” he said, his voice a cold whisper.

He passed the bodies of their attackers and some of his men. He stopped at the fallen carriage, and his eyes met the body of the dead archer.

Caden felt something snap in his chest, his heart was racing against his ribs so suddenly, it made him nauseous. It wasn't guilt; there was no single nerve in his body capable of feeling guilt or pity towards Garrick and his offspring. No, this was a sign that called out to him that something was wrong.

He bent down and searched the dead man, patting him down until he finally brought out a dagger that'd been tucked inside his trousers.

Caden felt his breath hitch when he saw the seal on the dagger.

It was a personal seal of Alpha Garrick’s elite warriors.

“Bastard,” Caden hissed, his voice a low, dangerous growl.

The realization hit him—someone from Garrick’s pack had sent an assassin to finish off both him and Rhea. Caden didn't know if it was Garrick himself or someone from his pack, but it was obvious that someone was after them.

Someone powerful enough to access the Elite warriors and get them to attack.

Regardless of who it was, Caden knew this was a dangerous situation.

He stared longer at the dead archer, wondering who'd sent them.

And immediately, a thought formed in him. If this had all been a grand plan to have them assassinated, he couldn't return without Rhea.

“No!” he spat and shot up. Without allowing himself to think longer about the situation, he forced his way forward.

But his wolf was alive now, roaring and scratching at his walls. His wolf only did that when he could detect danger.

“Stop it! She is the enemy. Let her die for all I care!” he roared at the winds, but his wolf didn't stop pounding, urging him to do something.

He gripped the dagger in his hand so tightly that the hilt broke. Caden didn't even notice

He was too enraged.

He snarled, spinning around to return. His steps were full of regrets, yet he knew in the back of his mind that he was doing the right thing.

But he hated it so much. He wanted to bury the dagger in his chest first before he saved the life of the daughter of his enemy.

After Garrick had slaughtered his family and left their Estate aflame, Caden had collapsed on his mother’s body, crying and begging her to come back to life.

Fifteen years later, he had been patiently waiting for the day he would pay the man back. But today was not the day.

He came to a halt where Rhea was curled on her side, her breathing shallow. Her skin was dangerously pale, and the black rot of the silver poison had reached her neck.

From where he stood, she looked small and fragile. And yet, all he wanted to do was to wrap his hands around her neck and finish the job.

Caden dropped to his knees beside her.

She was the dark-haired girl. Garrick’s daughter, who had looked at him, who'd seen him hiding and said nothing. But that little act didn't mean a thing to Caden.

Maybe she should've said something and spared him the torture of living.

“I wish you'd die,” he whispered. “I wish I could kill you myself.”

He grabbed the dagger and, with a single movement, slashed open his palm. Blood gushed out from it immediately.

One thing no one knew about him was that Caden was no ordinary wolf.

Lycans were believed to be extinct, and that made Caden the last living Lycan. A known fact about Lycans was that their blood was immune to silver.

If the archer’s shot had hit its mark, nothing would've happened to Caden.

He looked at the dying woman on the floor, and wicked humor flashed in his eyes. If she died, her death would've been for nothing. She wouldn't have died saving him because he didn't need ‘saving’

Not only would Rhea’s death have been foolish, but it’d also have been very funny.

He grabbed the arrow that was still on her shoulder and yanked it out. Her only reaction was a jerk, and nothing else.

Caden could tell she was on the verge of death.

He placed his hand just slightly above her wound and let the blood trickle down until it fell into drops, sliding inside her open wound. The moment it touched, the air ruptured.

Shockwave ripped through the forest and knocked the breath from Caden’s lungs. Deep within the darkest corner of his soul, he felt his wolf rise; it began pounding inside Caden as it let out a guttural roar that shook his very bones.

“Mate,” his wolf howled.

Caden felt his entire world go up in flames.

“No!” he gasped, his eyes widening in pure, unadulterated horror.

His wolf was still roaring the word ‘mate’ and it felt like his brain was being scorched. Caden tried to pull his hand away to rip the bond and break contact, but his body refused to move.

“Let me go!” Caden snarled, his veins bulging as he fought against the invisible force.

But the bond was just beginning. He watched as the sharp red of their blood began to darken, swirling in her wound until it transformed into a deep shade of black.

Caden’s heart skipped a beat. Cold sweat formed on his forehead when he realized what the black blood between him and his mate meant.

“Death mate,” he whispered, his voice trembling.

The bond was an ancient mate bond that was rare. A bond so strong it tied mates together for eternity, forcing them to share one single life source.

If Rhea were to take her last breath now, Caden would drop dead beside her.