Chapter 5: The Hunt Begins
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Every time she closed her eyes, the same image returned.
A burning palace.
A woman with a silver crown.
A crying baby.
And a voice that sounded so much like her own.
One day, they will find you.
She woke before sunrise and immediately reached for the pendant around her neck.
Her fingers stopped.
The pendant was gone.
Elara sat upright.
She searched the sheets, the bedside table, even the floor beneath the bed.
Nothing.
Panic tightened her chest.
The pendant had belonged to her mother. It was the only thing she had left from the life she couldn't remember.
She couldn't lose it.
Elara rushed from the room.
She found Lucien in the library, standing beside the enormous window with a book open in his hands.
"Where is it?"
He looked up.
"What?"
"My pendant."
Lucien's expression changed.
"The silver one?"
"Yes."
"You had it when you arrived."
"I know."
He closed the book.
"You're certain you didn't leave it in your room?"
"I searched everywhere."
Lucien studied her face for a moment.
"Come with me."
He led her back to the bedroom.
Elara searched again while Lucien remained near the doorway.
Then she noticed something.
The window was slightly open.
She walked toward it.
"I didn't leave this open."
Lucien examined the frame.
There were faint scratches along the stone.
Someone had been here.
His expression darkened.
"Stay behind me."
Elara stepped back.
Lucien crouched near the window.
A tiny piece of black fabric was caught against the stone.
He picked it up.
"This wasn't done by a guard."
"Then who?"
Before Lucien could answer, a soft voice came from the doorway.
"Perhaps I can."
They turned.
Lady Miriam stood there, her face unusually pale.
She held something in her hand.
The silver pendant.
Elara's breath caught.
"Where did you find it?"
Miriam walked toward her.
"It was outside the eastern garden."
She placed it in Elara's palm.
"I think someone wanted you to find it."
Elara stared at the pendant.
A strange warmth spread through her fingers.
Then the silver crescent on its surface began to glow.
Lucien immediately stepped closer.
"Don't open it."
Elara looked at him.
"Open what?"
He pointed toward the center of the pendant.
A thin line had appeared along its edge.
"It's not only a pendant."
Elara pressed her thumb against it.
A small click sounded.
The pendant opened.
Inside was a tiny piece of folded parchment.
Her hands trembled as she removed it.
There were only a few words.
My daughter, if you are reading this, then I failed to protect you.
Elara stopped breathing.
Her vision blurred.
"My daughter..."
She whispered the words as though saying them aloud would make them disappear.
Lucien remained silent.
Elara unfolded the parchment further.
Your name is Elara, but Ashwood is not your true family name.
Her fingers began shaking.
You are the last child of the Moon bloodline.
Tears slipped down her cheeks.
"Why didn't she tell me?"
Lucien answered quietly.
"She may have been trying to keep you alive."
Elara continued reading.
Do not trust the elders.
Her heart stopped.
The words reminded her of Magnus.
Of the maps.
Of Kael's accusation.
Could there be a connection?
She read the final line.
When the silver moon appears above the ruined palace, return to where you were born. The truth about your father will be waiting beneath the throne.
The parchment ended there.
Elara looked up.
"Where is the ruined palace?"
Lucien's face had gone still.
"The old Moon Palace."
"Where is it?"
"Beyond the western mountains."
"Then that's where we're going."
Lucien shook his head.
"Not yet."
"Why?"
"Because the palace has been abandoned for twenty years."
"That doesn't matter."
"It does if the Blood Moon Order is watching it."
Elara clenched the parchment.
"I can't stay here while everyone else decides my future."
Lucien studied her.
"You've been running from people your entire life."
"I know."
"Perhaps it's time you learned how to face them."
Elara looked directly into his crimson eyes.
"Will you help me?"
Lucien didn't answer immediately.
Then he nodded.
"Yes."
A strange warmth settled between them.
For the first time, Elara wasn't facing the unknown alone.
Far away, in the Silver Fang Pack, Alpha Kael stood before the council.
He hadn't slept since Elara's banishment.
He kept telling himself that he had done the right thing.
The evidence had been convincing.
The council had supported him.
His duty was to protect his pack.
Yet something wouldn't leave him alone.
Elara's final words.
You haven't even asked me what happened.
Kael looked toward Elder Magnus.
"Where did you get those patrol maps?"
Magnus's expression remained calm.
"From her room."
"Who found them?"
"A member of the guard."
"Which member?"
Magnus hesitated.
Only for a second.
But Kael noticed.
"I asked you a question."
The elder's face hardened.
"Why are you questioning the council now?"
"Because something doesn't feel right."
"Your mate betrayed the pack."
"She isn't my mate anymore."
The words sounded bitter even to Kael.
Magnus stepped closer.
"You made the correct decision."
Kael stared at him.
"Did I?"
Before Magnus could answer, a messenger rushed into the chamber.
"Alpha!"
Kael turned.
"What is it?"
"We received word from the northern border."
"Speak."
"The Shadow Kingdom has taken in a woman matching Elara's description."
Kael's heart stopped.
"Are you certain?"
"Yes."
The room fell silent.
Magnus's expression changed for the first time.
Fear.
Kael noticed it.
"Why does that frighten you?"
"It doesn't."
"You're lying."
Magnus stepped backward.
"Alpha, we should focus on the threat."
Kael's eyes narrowed.
"No."
He suddenly understood something.
If Elara had survived the Forbidden Forest, then the evidence against her deserved another look.
And if the Shadow Kingdom was protecting her...
There had to be a reason.
Kael turned toward the guards.
"Prepare my horse."
Magnus's voice sharpened.
"Where are you going?"
"To find the truth."
That evening, Elara stood on the castle balcony.
The western mountains were visible beneath the rising moon.
Somewhere beyond them was the ruined palace.
The place where she had been born.
The place where her mother had died.
And perhaps the place where the truth about her father had been hidden for twenty-one years.
Lucien joined her.
"We leave at dawn."
Elara nodded.
"Thank you."
He leaned against the stone railing.
"Are you afraid?"
"Yes."
She looked toward the mountains.
"But I'm more afraid of living the rest of my life without knowing who I am."
Lucien studied her quietly.
"You'll find your answers."
"How can you be so sure?"
"Because I've spent years searching for mine."
Their eyes met.
For a moment, neither looked away.
Then a howl echoed from the distant mountains.
Lucien immediately straightened.
"What is it?"
He listened.
Another howl answered.
Then another.
Elara's expression tightened.
"Are those wolves?"
Lucien's eyes turned crimson.
"Not wolves."
"What, then?"
He looked toward the dark mountain pass.
"Lycans."
A guard came running toward them.
"My King!"
Lucien turned.
"Speak."
"We found tracks along the western road."
"How many?"
The guard swallowed.
"At least thirty."
Lucien's expression became grim.
"They're following us."
Elara looked at the mountains.
The journey to the ruined palace had not even begun.
Yet someone already knew where they were going.
And whoever it was had no intention of allowing Elara to discover the truth about her past.
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