Chapter 22 INSTINCTS AWAKENED.

Chapter 22 INSTINCTS AWAKENED.
LUCIAN'S POV:

It’s been… how long now? Days? Weeks? Maybe months.

I’ve lost count.

Too long since I last set foot in this academy. Too long since I convinced myself that staying away was the best thing for both of us.

And now here I am again—returning to the same place I swore I needed to get away from. Ironic, isn't it? But what would you have me do when every instinct in me screams her name?

It’s been a day and some hours since I last heard from Mira.

Normally, she sends updates—short, concise, nothing out of place. But this time, silence. And silence, especially from Mira, is never a good sign.

The last time she reported, she said Storm’s been acting… off.
 Fidgety. Jumpy. Like she’s walking around with something eating her alive. Mira said she didn’t know why, but I do.

I remember that day in the cafeteria. Storm sitting alone, reading that note. The moment her expression shifted; fear flickering across her face before she masked it.

I didn’t need words to know something was wrong. Storm has a way of pretending she’s fine, but her eyes always give her away.

Ever since then, Mira said she’s been distant. Restless. And now, even Mira can’t get answers out of her.

That was the moment I decided to come back.

Not because I wanted to—I’d already deleted that thought from my mind. But because my feelings… my inner wolf… refused to listen to reason.

For days now, my wolf has been restless, growling at the edges of my thoughts, pacing, snarling for me to move.

The blood seal mark—the one that always throbs whenever something’s wrong with Storm—has gone completely silent. No pulse, no ache, nothing. It’s like it vanished. And that scares me more than anything.

Because if I can’t feel her, I can’t protect her.

And if I can’t protect her, then what the hell am I doing staying away?

I drag a hand through my hair, jaw tightening as I think of what Mira said last—about some boy. Cole.

She said he’s been getting close to Storm. Too close.

I’d nearly shattered something when I heard that.

The thought of another man standing too near her, talking to her, touching her—it sent my wolf into a frenzy.

So yeah, that’s why I’m back.

Because if there’s one thing I can’t stomach, it’s another man thinking he can have her.

The moon’s high when I reach the academy gates. The place is quiet—too quiet. Students must’ve already returned to their dorms by now.

My boots echoed loudly against the stone as I walked through the courtyard, every muscle in my body tight, every sense tuned for her scent.

Storm should be in her dorm right now.
 And if she’s not—then something’s very, very wrong.

The air around the dormitory wing feels… wrong. Too still. Too quiet. Even the usual hum of chatter behind closed doors is gone. I stop in front of Storm’s room, my pulse hammering in my ears.

Locked.

From the outside.

My brows knit together instantly. That doesn’t make sense—Storm never locks from the outside.

My fingers brush against the cold metal handle, tugging at it harder, hoping maybe I’m wrong. But the door doesn’t budge.

A low growl rumbles in my throat.

She’s not here.

And that can only mean one thing—something’s happened.

I step back, scanning the hallway, my mind running through every possibility. Maybe she’s at training.

No, too late for that. Maybe Mira took her somewhere—but Mira would have told me.

Damn it.

I clench my fists, nails digging into my palms as frustration surges through me. I should’ve brought my spare key.

I should’ve known. But I didn’t expect this. I didn’t expect her to disappear.

I turn sharply, already moving to search elsewhere when a deep voice cuts through the silence.

“Hold it right there!”

The guards.

I stop mid-step and exhale through my nose, suppressing the urge to rip someone apart. Their boots thudding against the ground as they approach, their flashlights slicing through the darkness.

When the light hits my face, one of them freezes. His eyes widened in recognition.

“Oh—Lucian Vale,” he says, his voice pitching slightly higher, fake relief lacing his tone. “It’s you. It’s… been a while since we last saw you around here.”

I roll my eyes, jaw tightening. Of course. It's him. The same guard who threw Storm into Room 100 the night she almost died. The memory flashes—her blood, her trembling body, her gasping for air—and for a split second, my vision darkens.

Every muscle in me coils, begging for violence.

He tries to stand taller, puffing his chest like some pathetic show of authority, but I can smell the fear rolling off him. It’s almost amusing—how fast they remember who the real predator is.

If it were any other student wandering past curfew, he’d have already dragged them to detention. But me? No. He knows better. They all do.

Still, I don’t have time for this bullshit.

“Where is he?” I snap. My voice comes out low, sharp, enough to make him flinch.

“W-where is who?”

“Don’t play dumb with me,” I growl, stepping closer until the beam of his flashlight trembles slightly in his grip.   “Andrew. You’ve seen him?”

He hesitates—too long. My patience thins.

“Oh, of course, you wouldn’t know, seeing as you’ve been away for a while,” he starts, trying to sound conversational.

I grit my teeth so hard it aches. “Get to the point.”

He swallows. “Actually… I haven’t seen much of Andrew lately. But the last time I did, earlier today—” he pauses, scratching the back of his neck nervously.

“.... he collapsed out of nowhere. They said he was rushed to the infirmary.”

Everything inside of me stills.

My heart dropped.

“What did you just say?” I ask, voice barely above a whisper but edged with danger.

He shifts uneasily. “I said—uh—he collapsed, Lucian. He lost consciousness. Cole was the one who took him down to the infirmary.”

The mention of that name sends a spark of heat through my veins.

Cole.

The same boy Mira said had been too close.

I can practically feel my wolf rise, claws dragging across the inside of my skin. My vision tunnels. I want to hit something. Break something. But I force myself to breathe—to focus.

Not now. Not here.

“Which infirmary?” I bite out.

The guard blinks. “Uh… I don’t know exactly. He was taken to the external one—outside the academy walls.”

“The external infirmary?” My eyes narrow. “Since when the hell do they move students there?”

He shrugs helplessly. “Orders from above, I guess. They say it’s for privacy and better treatment.”

Privacy, my ass.

Something’s off. Storm collapsing? Transferred outside the academy? And Cole—of all people—being the one to take her?

I don’t wait for him to keep talking. My boots hit the ground hard as I turn and stalk away, my strides long and sharp.

Every step feels like a war drum pounding in my chest.

I don’t care if it’s midnight. I don’t care if I’m breaking curfew or rules or whatever bullshit the Head Council put in place.

Storms in that infirmary. And I’m going to find her.

Even if I have to burn through every wall between us.