Chapter 198 198
Damien POV
“Got it,” I say as my phone vibrates with the incoming message. I open the location and my chest tightens—it’s only an hour’s drive from here.
“I’m going” I start, already preparing to end the call.
“Wait. I’ll come”
“Fine. Head in this direction,” I cut in. “I’ll keep you updated on whether you meet me there or stay here. If they’re not there, you need to prepare for battle, Théo. I’m talking warriors, weapons, armour.”
The next words tear at me, but I force them out. I have to. For her. To make sure her people are ready.
“The Darkvale pack is facing the very real possibility that both your Alpha and Beta are down. You need to raise the alarm across the alliance. Have packs and their warriors on standby. As of now, you’re in charge, Théo. Don’t make me regret trusting you.”
I hear his breathing through the phone as I turn to Lucas, who’s already frowning, tension etched into his face.
“Understood, Alpha,” Théo replies, his voice firm, steady exactly what’s expected of him.
I end the call.
We roll out immediately. I order my men to gear up for battle and give them full access to the armoury. Silver royal swords are a given non-negotiable.
Lucas offers to drive, but the only way I can keep my wolf under control is to take the wheel myself and lead the convoy. He’s clawing beneath my skin, desperate to shift, to hunt, furious at the delay while our warriors arm themselves.
An hour into the drive, the directions pull us off the main highway.
It makes no sense.
Why would they leave a busy road, fully covered by CCTV? I’d told them not to stop for anything. So why the hell did they come off here?
We take several turns, winding deeper, and just as I start to think we’re chasing ghosts, my heart stutters then stops.
I slam on the brakes. Every car behind me screeches to a halt.
Ahead of us is something I refuse to accept. A car burned down to a crisp, nothing left but its blackened shell.
I hear Lucas calling my name beside me, but the blood is roaring in my ears, drowning him out with a relentless, violent thud.
I step out of the car, my movements stiff, mechanical. The morning sun hits my face, warm and bright wrong. Confusing. The kind of light that belongs to a good day.
Today is not a good day. Not for me.
“Alpha,” Lucas says quietly, “it’s the warrior car. No sign of survivors, I’m afraid. But look. Tyre tracks. They lead that way.”
I nod once and motion for everyone back into the vehicles. We’ll return later, remove the wreck, erase every trace of what happened here in the night.
I drive us down another road, my foot pressing harder on the accelerator when I spot something in the distance.
A car. Upside down.
The moment we reach it, I know. This is the one they left in.
I’m out of the vehicle in seconds, rushing forward, stupidly shouting their names as if they might answer, as if they could have crawled away and hidden nearby.
“Damien…” Lucas breathes, using my name instead of my title. There’s a softness in his voice, a warning trying to brace me for what’s coming.
No.
Blood is smeared across the front passenger window. Aurélie’s seat. The car is crushed, flipped, the damage to her side catastrophic. The force of it would’ve felt like an oncoming train, not another vehicle.
The blood trails into the driver’s seat. They must have dragged her out after taking Fabrice.
The children’s car seats are still intact.
The sight punches a fragile thread of hope through my chest. The kids… they might still be okay.
At first glance, there’s nothing else no obvious evidence of where they were taken. But my men are the best. They’ll find something. They’ll comb the area, hack local CCTV, pull from government satellites whatever it takes to trace their path.
I will get them back. Even if it’s the last thing I do.
I crouch beside the car and press my fingers into Aurélie’s blood, my jaw locking as fury coils tight and lethal inside me. The bastards who did this have already signed their death certificates.
Something catches my eye in the back seat.
I reach in and pull it free, my grip gentler than I expect. It looks small. Sad. I run my hand over its worn softness, then lift it to my face, breathing in its scent.
Delphine’s bunny.
She’ll be terrified without it.
I close my eyes, gripping it tighter. I promise you, Delphine, I swear silently. I will tear down every building, every property that man owns. I will burn his world to the ground until I find you all.