The Lost Alpha

Chapter 4

Harper’s POV

The Blood Moon always brought trouble.

It was meant to be a night of unity, when Alphas gathered their packs to honor the Moon Goddess, to renew bonds, to celebrate survival. But over the years, it had turned into a display of dominance a chance for rivals to measure strength, to test loyalties, to sniff out weakness.

This year, the stakes were higher than ever.

Because Lucas Blackwell was alive.

The news had spread through Crescent Moon like wildfire. Some wolves wept with joy, some muttered doubts, others whispered warnings. And now, under the glow of the swollen red moon, I stood at the center of the stone circle with my pack, trying to look composed while my heart thundered in my chest.

Lucas was beside me.

Even scarred, weakened, and still healing, he carried himself like the Alpha he’d always been shoulders squared, golden eyes steady, jaw set. He didn’t need to say a word; his presence alone silenced the murmurs.

But not everyone bowed to silence.

“Blackwell,” a voice rang out across the circle, dripping with disdain.

Marcus Kane stepped forward, tall and broad, his black hair slicked back, his mouth curved in that arrogant smirk I hated. He was Alpha of the Ironfang Pack, a predator in designer suits, the kind of man who hid claws behind charm until it was too late.

And for years, he’d circled Crescent Moon like a vulture, waiting for us to fall.

“Rumors of your death have been greatly exaggerated, it seems,” Marcus drawled, his eyes glinting as they flicked between Lucas and me. “But five years in the wilderness… that changes a man. Or breaks him.”

The crowd stirred uneasily. Wolves from visiting packs leaned forward, eager for spectacle.

Lucas didn’t flinch. “Say what you came to say, Kane.”

Marcus’s smile widened. “Gladly. I challenge you.”

The words dropped like a blade.

Gasps rippled through the circle. My breath hitched, but I kept my face blank. A public challenge under the Blood Moon was sacred law. It couldn’t be ignored.

“You can’t be serious,” I snapped before I could stop myself. “Lucas is still recovering”

Marcus’s gaze slid to me, his smirk sharpening. “Ah, the Luna that never was. Still speaking for him, I see. But this is Alpha business.”

Rage flared in my chest. Before I could unleash it, Lucas’ hand brushed mine lightly, steadying me.

“I accept,” he said.

My head whipped toward him. “Lucas”

But it was too late. The circle parted, and the challenge ground was cleared.

The fight was brutal from the first strike.

Marcus was strong too strong. He fought like a man who’d been preparing for this moment for years, every movement calculated to prove Lucas unworthy. His claws raked flesh, his blows landed heavy.

But Lucas… Lucas fought like a wolf possessed.

Every scar, every ounce of pain, every year of exile burned in his strikes. His golden eyes glowed feral under the Blood Moon, his growls deep and savage. For every hit Marcus landed, Lucas returned it twice as hard.

The crowd roared. Blood spattered the stone floor. My heart pounded so hard it hurt.

“Finish him!” voices shouted. “Show us the true Alpha!”

And then Lucas shifted.

The shift was violent, bones snapping, fur ripping through torn clothes. His wolf erupted into the circle, enormous and terrifying, darker than I remembered, his teeth bared in a snarl that rattled the ground.

Gasps of fear swept through the packs. Even Marcus faltered, eyes widening.

Lucas lunged.

The fight ended in seconds. Marcus was slammed to the ground, Lucas’ massive jaws at his throat. One bite, and the Ironfang Alpha would be gone.

The circle was silent. All eyes were fixed on the beast hovering between victory and s*******r.

“Lucas,” I whispered, stepping forward, my voice shaking but firm. “Don’t.”

For a moment, nothing. His golden eyes blazed, feral, almost unrecognizable.

Then, slowly, he released Marcus, stepping back. The rival Alpha scrambled away, bloodied and humiliated, but alive.

The crowd erupted into chaos cheers, fear, and disbelief.

But I barely heard them. My gaze was locked on Lucas.

Because when he shifted back, panting and bloodied, his eyes weren’t just golden. They flickered with something darker, something that didn’t belong.

Something that chilled me to the bone.

He met my gaze, and his voice was low, ragged, filled with a truth that made my heart stop.

“I made a bargain to survive,” he said. “And now… I think it’s coming to collect.”

Lucas reveals that something dark followed him back from exile, something bound to him by a bargain and the pack begins to fear their Alpha as much as they need him.