Chapter 101 A Desperate Soul

Chapter 101 A Desperate Soul
Lulu
"Have you ever actually been there, Dorian?"
"Can't say I have."
Dorian’s blunt answer completely threw me. How on earth was I supposed to head off to those deadly southern swamps when the mere thought of leaving Elijah at the pack house scared me ragged?
Elijah was still so tiny, so completely innocent, and as an earth element hybrid, he was currently top of the hit list for those traitors and Dark Sorcerers.
Just picturing myself stepping past the pack borders, leaving my baby behind in his cot, had my maternal instincts screaming bloody murder. 
The sheer terror that the enemy might strike while I wasn't around completely short-circuited my brain.
I couldn't leave Elijah. I just couldn't bear to be away from him.
With my breath catching in my throat from the soaring anxiety, I stared at Dorian, who was sitting right across from me, looking completely unbothered and mysterious.
"Dorian, I don't think I can do this," I said, my voice cracking. "Could you not just go to the southern swamps for me? I can't leave Elijah here. I'm terrified something will happen to him while I'm away."
Dorian stopped drumming his fingers against the wooden table. He looked at me, his eyes carrying that exact same flicker of doubt, before he gave a slow, firm shake of his head.
"I'm going to pass on that, Lulu. And honestly, even if I didn't, I’d never be able to find that mud in the southern swamps anyway," Dorian replied, his tone totally flat and emotionless.
"Why not?" I pressed, frustration starting to bubble up in my chest. "You're a sorcerer. Surely you’ve got a spell or a tracking charm to find it." 
Dorian let out a heavy sigh, leaning back in his chair and looking me dead in the eye. "Iqxe Mud isn’t your average magical substance that you can just sniff out with magic or a wolf’s sharp senses. The place is protected by something ancient." 
Dorian went on to explain that the mud would stay completely hidden if the person looking for it didn't actually need it on a deeply personal level. The Iqxe Mud would only show itself to a soul carrying a desperate, urgent need—a soul directly bound by blood to the creature it was meant to protect. 
“To me, that mud is absolutely useless. If I go alone, the southern swamps will just play tricks on my eyes, showing me nothing but toxic, ordinary sludge."
Hearing him lay it out like that completely broke me. Tears of anxiety started welling up in my eyes. I had to go, but I couldn't leave my baby. The worst-case scenarios kept looping through my head like a waking nightmare.
Suddenly, the sound of the pavilion door clicking open cut right through my despair. I didn't even need to look up to know who it was. The mate bond in my chest flared instantly, reacting to his very presence.
Caspian stepped right into Dorian’s study. His tall, powerful frame and sheer alpha dominance instantly broke the heavy tension between Dorian and me. 
His ridiculously handsome, chiselled face looked perfectly calm, but the golden glint in his eyes carried the fierce authority of Sapphire Water's supreme leader. 
Caspian walked straight over to me. Without a second thought, he wrapped a strong arm around my shoulders, tucking me into his broad chest. His warm touch and that familiar, masculine scent of his instantly soothed the panic tearing through me.
"Calm down, Lulu," Caspian murmured, his voice sounding completely absolute in my ear. He pressed a soft kiss to my temple, sending a wave of reassurance straight through our mate bond. "Don't let your fears blind you to your duty. Go and find that mud. Do what needs to be done for Elijah." 
"But Caspian... what about the security here? What about Elijah if I—"
"The Alpha of Sapphire Water guarantees Elijah’s safety the entire time you're away from the pack house," Caspian cut in, his tone leaving absolutely no room for argument.
He looked me straight in the eye, locking my gaze with absolute certainty. "I’ve tightened security across all our borders tenfold. Not a single rat from the Dark Sorcerers is getting through." 
"You always keep your word, Alpha, but..."
"A hybrid Alpha wolf and a Siphora sorcerer will be more than enough to turn Elijah's room into an absolute fortress." 
I frowned, staring at my husband in total confusion. For a second, his words made my brain stall.
I didn't have a clue what Caspian was on about. The hybrid Alpha he meant was obviously himself, but Siphora? Siphora was Niobe. 
Before I could ask any of the questions buzzing in my head or demand a proper explanation, Caspian had already looked away from me. He turned his sharp, commanding gaze onto Dorian, who was still sitting behind his desk. 
"You won't let that swamp play tricks on you, Dorian, because you're not about to let your daughter wander into dangerous territory alone," Caspian said firmly.
His command sounded like a proper royal decree. He made it crystal clear that I had to go with Dorian to find the mud.
Hearing that final decision from my mate, the massive weight of terror in my chest suddenly vanished, replaced by an incredible rush of relief and happiness. I was absolutely thrilled.
With Caspian guaranteeing Elijah’s safety, and the fact that Dorian—a man I looked up to as my own dad—was going to be right by my side, a journey that felt like a suicide mission suddenly felt like a massive ray of hope. 
Dorian, who’d been watching the whole thing in silence, let out a dry chuckle. A smirk played on his charismatic, older face. He looked at Caspian with an amused, mocking glint in his eye.
"Well, blimey. Look at that—a miracle from the Caspian Sea," Dorian jeered, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "The great, arrogant Alpha Hybrid finally admitting I'm actually useful to Lulu. And here I thought you’d just keep treating me like some evil dark sorcerer, Caspian."
Caspian didn't flinch at the jibe. His face stayed deadpan, filled with that classic, pure-blood Alpha arrogance that absolutely hated being questioned by anyone—especially someone outside his own kind.
He straightened up, looking down his nose at Dorian with pure disdain.
"Don't flatter yourself, Sorcerer," Caspian shot back smoothly.
Even so, Caspian used the excuse that Dorian’s role as Lulu’s surrogate father meant he was obligated to keep her safe out there. 
"I’m just using the assets at my disposal. You claim to care about Lulu, so prove it by protecting her in the southern swamps with your life. If she gets so much as a scratch because you weren't paying attention, the entire force of the Sapphire Water pack will make sure you rot six feet under." 
Watching the two of them go at it, I could only shake my head and let out a massive sigh. But deep down, I was just glad they weren't physically tearing chunks out of each other like cat and dog.
Even though they were both being completely hypocritical, hiding their actual concern behind petty remarks and mountain-sized egos, at least they could drop the act enough to keep the peace for my sake and Elijah's. This fake alliance was the best I was going to get right now.
"Right, that’s enough from both of you," I interrupted before their egos set the room on fire again. "I'm going back to my room to pack."
I turned on my heel and marched straight out of Dorian’s pavilion, making a swift exit back to the main pack house master bedroom. The huge, grand bedroom felt incredibly quiet as I started throwing a few essentials into a small leather bag. 
I packed some flexible, waterproof hunting gear for the swamp terrain, a few bottles of anti-venom potions, and a cloak from Elaria.
I’d be leaving first thing tomorrow morning. According to Dorian’s estimates, the trek would take three days because there was no way a car could handle the terrain over there.
Before heading out into the great unknown, I wanted to spend every single second of the night with Elijah. I wanted to hold his tiny body close, breathe in that comforting baby scent of his, and whisper a promise into his ear that his mum was going to come back with the ultimate protection for his future.