Chapter Forty-Four

Chapter Forty-Four

~Author Pov~

The branches clawed at his arms as Elias stumbled deeper into the woods, panting, blood thudding loudly in his ears. His feet sank into the thick underbrush, each step more disoriented than the last. It was supposed to be a quick walk. Just a short trip into the forest to fetch some dry clothes, that’s all she said. Just a moment alone, she had told him—it was safe. 

But it wasn’t. 

The growl had made him freeze. Then came the shadows—dark, quick, and hungry. They moved with a kind of speed that wasn’t human, with teeth that gleamed and glowed with the madness of starvation. 

“Stay away from me!” Elias cried, scrambling backward as one of the rogues lunged, claws grazing his arm.

Pain sliced through him. His skin tore, and blood spilled. 

They surrounded him like wolves in the dark. 

“Please,” he whispered, his voice barely escaping his throat as fear surged through every nerve in his body. “Don’t…”

Another rogue charged. He ran. 

Branches whipped across his face, leaves tangled in his hair. He didn’t know where he was going anymore, he just had to get away, get anywhere, scream—“

“Luci—en!” The name tore from his lips in a desperate cry, his voice cracking with pure terror. 

“Lucien….please help me…”

A rogue tackled him to the ground. 

Elias hit the dirt hard, vision swimming. He screamed again as claws sank into his side, shredding his shirt, and slicing skin. 

Then, like a crack in the sky—everything changed. 

A brutal, ear-splitting roar echoed through the woods. 

They all froze. Elias blinked up through his tears and saw it. 

Lucien. 

Not the polished king. Not the calm, regal presence that held the room captive. 

This was something else. 

His face twisted in rage, fangs bared, eyes blood-red and glowing. Shadows pulsed around him, thick and heavy like smoke. Veins bulged beneath his skin, and his breath came in feral hisses. 

He didn’t even glance at Elias. 

He tore into the first rogue with bare hands, ripping its throat open with a sickening sound. Blood sprayed the trees. 

“Lucien!” Elias shouted, trembling. “Stop—!”

But Lucien didn’t hear him. 

He smashed one rogue’s skull against a rock, again and again, until the creature went limp. Another tried to flee, but Lucien caught him mid-air and slammed him down with such force the ground cracked beneath him. 

Elias couldn’t breathe. 

Then screams. The bones breaking. The way Lucien’s hands were soaked in red, his body shaking with bloodlust. He didn’t stop until every rogue was in pieces, their remains splattered across the forest floor. 

And then—

“Lucien…” Elias’s voice was barely audible now. 

Lucien turned. 

The rage in his eyes faded slowly like smoke lifting after the fire. His chest heaved, blood dripping from his fingers, his face, his clothes. 

“Elias,” he whispered, stepping forward. 

Elias didn’t move. He was still kneeling in the dirt, his arms wrapped around himself, face pale, and eyes wide. 

Lucien dropped to his knees and pulled him into a tight hug, his arms wrapping fiercely around him like he could shield him from everything—even from himself. 

“I’m sorry,” Lucien whispered, his voice raw. “I was late. You are safe now, Eli.”

Elias shook his head, trying to find his voice. His brain felt like static. He had never seen something so violent. So real. 

He was still shaking. 

His heart was pounding. 

All that he just saw was too much for him. 

Lucien didn’t just kill them—he did it brutally. 

He saw how their heads splashed into two. 

“Eli….” Lucien shook his shoulder gently. 

No response. 

“Elias!”

His eyes finally snapped into focus. The first thing on his mind was to step away from him. He looked like devil but his instinct took over. “Are you—are you okay?”

He asked breathlessly, voice cracked. “Your eyes—-Lucien…..Are you—“ he looked down at the blood on Lucien and flinched. “Lucien…”

Lucien held his face in both hands, kissing his forehead. 
“Shh…I’m okay. You are okay. That’s all that matters.”

Elias flew his arms around his neck all of a sudden, his heart pounding wildly. 

“I was…scared.”

Lucien hugged him back, holding him tightly against his frame. “I know.”

His mind was disorganized. There were a lot of things he wanted to ask Elias but seeing him so fragile broke his heart into pieces. It felt like someone was slashing his heart with a dagger but even that pain couldn’t be measured with what he was initially feeling. As he got out of the event, he had a hard time finding where Elias was. But—there was something so confusing to him. 

The way he could effortlessly pick up Elias's scent. 

Elias was human. 

The way he could feel uneasy in his heart even though he had not marked him. 

There was a lot he wanted answers to. 

But for now, he would protect Elias with his life. Even though he had no idea how he became obsessed, all he knew was that Elias was the one for him.

He didn’t know what he was feeling anymore. 

“Lucien…” Elias called out, not leaving his grasp. “What of Anastasia?”

Lucien frowned. Anastasia definitely has a lot of explanations to do. 

“Don’t worry about her, she will be fine.” He responded, kissing his cheeks. 

“Let’s get you home.”

Lucien lifted him carefully into his arms and took him back home in silence. He hated the fact that he had to act like everything was okay. Even though he had killed the rogues, he wasn’t satisfied yet but he had to keep it in because of Elias. 

He had been scared enough. 

When they arrived at the room, Lucien gently set Elias down on the bed. But he turned to leave almost immediately. He needed to please his anger and get a doctor for Elias. 

“Don’t go,” Elias said, his voice still small. 

Lucien paused, his back still turned. His fists clenched. 

“I just…. I need to clean up,” he said softly. 

Elias reached for his hands but Lucien stepped back. Elias squinted his eyes and forcefully took his hands, ignoring his protest. 

“You are shaking….” Elias’s voice trembling. “Are you okay?”

Lucien flinched, then turned slowly, avoiding Elias’s gaze. 

“Yeah..”

Elias lowered his eyes. He could feel it—something was off. Lucien wasn’t looking at him. He wasn’t saying much and his usual warmth was replaced with coldness. 

“Trust me, I didn’t wander on my own,” Elias mumbled, biting his bottom lip. “Maybe I missed my way—“

“No,” Lucien snapped quickly, turning toward him. “Don’t blame yourself.”

Elias watched him as he fetched a warm towel and first aid. He returned, sitting at the edge of the bed, finally forcing himself to meet Elias’s eyes. 

Lucien’s hands trembled as he dabbed gently at the blood gashes. 

Elias winced. “Sorry….”

Lucien’s jaw tightened. “Don’t apologize. I should have gotten there sooner.”

“I thought you were angry….” Elias’s voice cracked. 

Lucien looked up, stricken. “What?”

Elias’s eyes filled with tears again. “You weren’t looking at me. You looked….disgusted.”

Lucien’s heart shattered. 

He didn’t understand how Elias thinks sometimes. 

His mouth opened slightly. 

He sighed, dropped the towel, and pulled Elias tightly against him. 

“No. Never. Elias, I was scared. I saw blood on you and I—“ his voice broke. “I lost it. I should have comforted you first. I was just so angry.”

Elias nodded against his chest. “I thought I did something wrong.”

“No,” Lucien said fiercely. “You are the only thing right in my world.”

They stayed like that, tangled in each other, breath synced, hearts beating loudly. 

After a long silence, Elias sniffed. “Lucien….”

“Hm?”

“Promise me you are done killing for today.”

Lucien stilled. 

“I know they were monsters,” Elias said quickly. “I know you were protecting me but…it scared me. The way you killed them….”

Lucien slowly pulled back, looking into his eyes. “I can’t make promises I can’t keep, Elias.”

“Please,” Elias whispered. “Even for me? Just try.”

Lucien hesitated. His mind flashed back to the rogues, Elias’s screams, his blood. 

He closed his eyes. 

“….I promise I will try,” he finally said, his voice low. “For you.”

He lied. 

He knew he lied. 

He wouldn’t rest until he killed the remaining of the rogues. 

Elias smiled faintly and kissed his cheek. “Thank you.”

Later that night, Elias still couldn’t sleep. 

Lucien lay beside him, watching him toss and turn. 

“Close your eyes,” he whispered, brushing Elisa’s hair back from his forehead.

“I can’t.”

Lucien leaned in, his voice suddenly deep, hypnotic. 
“Sleep.”

Elias blinked once. 

Then again. 

And just like that—his body went still. 

Lucien held him closer and kissed the side of his face. 

“Eli,” he whispered. “I don’t know what I’m feeling for you….”