Chapter 37: WHEN KINGS ARRIVES

The forest did not fall silent.

It tightened.

That was the only way Ciara could describe it.

The night sounds did not fade—they pulled inward, like breath held in a chest that refused to exhale. Even the fire between the hunters seemed to shrink, its flames lowering as though bowing to something unseen approaching through the trees.

Ciara was already on her feet.

She did not remember deciding to stand.

Her body had moved before her mind caught up.

Eryx rose beside her, his posture calm but alert. The other hunters formed a loose line without needing instruction.

No one spoke.

They all felt it now.

A presence that did not belong to the forest.

Heavy.

Commanding.

Familiar.

Ciara’s heart pounded, but not with panic. Her wolf pressed forward eagerly, claws scraping against the inside of her ribs.

He’s here.

A dark shape appeared between the trees.

Then another.

Warriors.

Moving fast. Silent. Disciplined.

And then—

Levion stepped into the clearing.

He did not look like a man who had traveled far.

He looked like a storm that had arrived exactly where it intended to be.

His eyes found Ciara instantly.

Not the hunters.

Not Eryx.

Her.

And for a long moment, neither of them moved.

The bond between them snapped tight like a drawn wire.

Ciara felt it slam into her chest so hard she had to force herself not to stagger.

Levion’s gaze darkened.

He felt it too.

The difference.

She saw the exact moment he realized something about her had changed.

His eyes swept over her slowly, assessing, measuring.

Not with dismissal.

With caution.

“Ciara,” he said.

Her name sounded different on his tongue now.

Less like an inconvenience.

More like a question.

She swallowed but kept her shoulders straight. “Your Majesty.”

His jaw ticked faintly at the formality.

Behind him, his warriors spread out, hands resting near their weapons, eyes sharp on the hunters. The tension in the air was thick enough to taste.

Eryx stepped slightly forward, placing himself just at Ciara’s side.

Levion’s gaze flicked to him.

Cold.

“Hunter,” he said flatly.

Eryx inclined his head politely. “King.”

Ciara felt the power shift subtly between the two men.

But this time—

She was in the center of it.

Levion took a step closer.

The ground seemed to respond to his weight.

But it did not bend.

Not like it once would have.

“You left my territory without permission,” he said, his voice low and controlled.

Ciara met his eyes steadily. “You never gave me a reason to stay.”

A faint murmur moved through his warriors.

Levion ignored them.

“You are my mate.”

The words hung between them.

Ciara did not look away. “And you made it very clear what that meant to you.”

Something flickered across his face. Regret? Annoyance? She couldn’t tell.

His gaze sharpened. “What happened here?”

Ciara hesitated.

She could lie.

She could pretend nothing had changed.

But the earth still hummed faintly beneath her feet, and her wolf refused to shrink back into silence.

“Something you were never meant to know,” she said quietly.

Levion’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“You think I cannot feel it?”

She didn’t answer.

Because she knew he could.

The bond between them was louder now, not softer.

Not fragile.

Awake.

Levion took another step forward, stopping only a few feet away from her.

Up close, she could see the exhaustion lining his eyes. The faint tension in his shoulders.

He had come in a hurry.

For her.

The realization stirred something uncomfortable in her chest.

“You are not the same,” he said.

Ciara tilted her head slightly. “Neither are you.”

A long silence passed between them.

Eryx broke it.

“She cannot return with you.”

Every head turned.

Levion’s gaze snapped to him, dangerously calm. “You presume to decide that?”

Eryx did not flinch. “She is not safe in your castle.”

Ciara saw Levion’s fingers curl slowly into fists.

“That is not for you to judge.”

Eryx’s voice remained level. “Your own maids tried to drown her.”

The words hit like a thrown blade.

Levion went completely still.

Ciara watched the information settle in his mind.

Saw the way his eyes darkened—not with confusion.

With fury.

He turned back to her. “Is this true?”

She nodded once.

His jaw clenched so tightly she thought his teeth might crack.

“Who?” he asked.

Ciara hesitated.

“Sofia’s girls.”

The temperature in the clearing seemed to drop.

Levion looked past her, into nothing, as though seeing the castle in his mind.

Seeing the people inside it.

When he spoke again, his voice was no longer controlled.

It was lethal.

“They will beg for death.”

Ciara believed him.

But strangely—

It did not satisfy her the way she thought it would.

Because this was no longer just about revenge.

This was about something bigger than palace cruelty.

Levion’s gaze returned to her slowly.

“You are coming back with me.”

It wasn’t a request.

Ciara shook her head gently.

“No.”

A ripple of shock passed through his warriors.

No one refused a lycan king.

But she did.

Levion stared at her like he hadn’t heard correctly. “You don’t understand the danger you are in out here.”

Ciara’s eyes did not waver. “You don’t understand who I am out here.”

The words landed between them like a challenge.

And for the first time—

Levion did not have an answer ready.