Chapter 76 CHAPTER 76

Chapter 76 CHAPTER 76
ΚΑΙ

Alina was gone for a few hours and I was growing more anxious by the second. She had left without a word of where she was going and the longer I searched, the more desperate I became. I took a team of guards with me, scouring the pack and the outskirts of the pack's border.

I had to find her. I couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right, that something was terribly wrong. The feeling had been there for a while. I knew people wanted to kill her. A lot of them, and the longer she was out the more chances there are that someone that hated her saw her and hurt her. I couldn't handle the sinking feeling at my stomach.

A while after we had searched all the possible places, I decided to go out of the pack with a few guards. I knew it was a death sentence. I was putting my guards and myself in danger, but I needed to find her. I hated that she was the reason I had to do all of this. I hated that she put me in a spot like this, to fight and put myself in impossible situations, but there was nothing I could do. She was my mate and I had to find her.

On my way there, the guard that was by my side halter. He raised a hand, signaling me to stop. "Alpha," he called, his voice low but urgent, "we found tracks. They are a woman's own, and they look fresh."

Relief surged through me, though I was not even sure that it was Alina's. I jumped off my horse and motioned for the others to follow. The guards led the way, tracing the footprints in the dirt with precise care, while I remained on high alert, scanning the surroundings. The woods were dense and dark, the air heavy with the scent of damp earth and moss. The deeper we went, the more uneasy I became.

Suddenly, a screech echoed through the trees. My heart skipped a beat. I knew that sound. I'd heard it before.

"Skin walkers," one of the guards whispered, his face turning pale.

They were here, surrounding us.

I unsheathed my sword and signaled for the others to ready themselves. The tension was thick, and for a brief moment, all we could hear was the sound of our breathing. Then suddenly, they appeared. Dozens of skin walkers emerged from the woods, their twisted body moving with unnatural speed as they screeched all around us.

"We're surrounded." One of the guards yelled as the creatures began closing in on us.

Without hesitation, I lunged at the nearest one, swinging my sword with all the strength I had. The blade sliced through the creature's bony body, and it screeched, collapsing to the ground. But there were more-too many. For every one I struck down, two more would appear, their shrieks growing louder as they attacked.

"Hold your ground!" I shouted, trying to keep the guards from panicking. But deep down, fear gripped me as well. There were just too many of them.

I fought harder, my body moving on instinct, but exhaustion was setting in. I slashed through too many of them, but I felt like it was about to be the end. My vision blurred, and my arms ached from the weight of the sword. I knew we couldn't hold out much longer.

Then, through the chaos, I heard a voice. Two voices. A shout coming from the edge of the clearing. The skin walkers screeched in unison, their movements becoming erratic as they started to drop, one after the other. They shook unnaturally as they started to fall to the ground, dying.

I turned my head, searching for the source of the disturbance, and my heart nearly stopped when I saw her. Alina.

She was standing at the edge of the clearing, her hands raised, red magic swirling around her hands and around her body. Next to her was another woman, one I didn't recognize, but it was clear she was powerful. They were using their witchcraft to bring down the skin walkers, each blast of energy sending the creatures crumbling to the ground.

My mouth went dry. I could barely comprehend what I was seeing.

"Alina!" I shouted, running toward her.

She looked at me, her eyes filled with relief, and the moment I reached her, I pulled her into my arms, holding her tight. She hugged me back, her body trembling, and for a brief moment, the world around us disappeared. I kissed her, feeling the warmth of her lips against mine, and everything felt right again—just for that second.

"I was so worried," I whispered, pulling back just enough to look at her face. "Where did you go?"

She smiled faintly, though there was a nervous energy in her eyes. "I went to get my mother."

I blinked, not sure if I had heard her correctly. "Your mother?" I repeated slowly, trying to make sense of her words. "Alina... I thought your mother was dead."

Her smile widened, and she let out a soft laugh. "She was, but I brought her back." She turned, gesturing to the woman who had been with her.

I followed her gaze, and my stomach dropped when I realized who the woman was. Alina's mother. How the hell was she here? Someone that was dead so many years ago. The realization struck me and my just dropped, realizing what was going on.

My throat tightened as I looked back at Alina, my heart racing. "You used magic to bring her back?"

Alina nodded, her eyes filled with an innocent kind of excitement, like she couldn't wait to tell me the details. But my mind was

spinning.

"No," I said sharply, stepping back from her. "Alina, you can't just... You can't play with life and death like that."

Her smile faded, and her brow furrowed in confusion. "But Kai, she's my mother. The fairy mother helped. She's alive now because she was never truly dead. This was meant to be."

I glanced at her mother, who stood there silently, her presence eerie despite the calm expression on her face. The air around her felt different, heavier.

"This isn't right," I muttered, running a hand through my hair. "You can't just bring people back to life. It goes against nature."

Alina's mother stepped forward, her voice gentle yet firm. “Kai, this was always meant to happen. I was never fully gone. The fairy

mother granted me passage back to this world. Alina only did what was necessary."

Her words did little to ease the unease I felt. I looked at Alina, and I could see how happy she was, how much this meant to her. But something inside me still resisted. Bringing people back from the dead... it wasn't natural.

But then I saw the joy in Alina's eyes, the relief that she had finally been reunited with her mother. Could I really deny her this happiness? Could I really take this away from her?

I sighed, my shoulders slumping in defeat. "Fine," I said quietly. "If this is what you want, then... I'll allow it. But Alina, you need to understand the risks." And she also cannot live with me, I wanted to say but I decided to hold it back until it was appropriate.

She smiled, tears of gratitude in her eyes as she threw her arms around me again. "Thank you, Kai. I promise, everything will be okay."

I wanted to believe her, but as I glanced back at the fallen skin walkers and the unnatural presence of her mother.

"Let's go back," I said, pulling away from her embrace. "We need to get out of here before more of those things show up."

We mounted our horses, and I took one last look at the carnage behind us the bodies of the skin walkers littering the ground, their grotesque forms a reminder of the darkness we were facing. I could only hope that by bringing Alina's mother back, we hadn't opened the door to something even darker.

We already had enough of that amongst us. The witches were the ones created the skin walkers. Now that there was an interference with magic system, it did not take a genius to suspect that something was going to happen to compensate for all of this. I could only wish that it wasn't something drastic.

As we rode back toward the pack, I couldn't shake the feeling that this was far from over. I had Alina back, and for now, that was enough. But I couldn't ignore the warning in the back of my mind: magic always comes with a price.

I only hoped we wouldn't have to pay it too soon. Hopefully.