Chapter 167 CHAPTER 167

Chapter 167 CHAPTER 167
Rodrick's POV

When I left the council building, all I could think about was the fact that it was finally the day I would officially ask Lucy to be my mate.

Even though we both knew we were destined to be together, hearing her say yes and making our bond official meant everything to me. I had imagined that moment countless times—how I would look into her eyes, how she would smile, and how, once she accepted me, the restless part of my wolf would finally settle.

But when I arrived home, Lucy wasn't there.

Her mother was waiting at the door, and the moment she saw me, I noticed the concern written across her face. She stepped aside to let me in, but there was something in her expression that made the instincts at the back of my mind stir.

I stepped into the house and glanced around.

"Where's Lucy?"

Her mother hesitated.

"She's not back yet."

My brows drew together. I looked toward the staircase, then back at her, as though I couldn't quite believe what she'd said.

"What do you mean she's not back?" I asked.

"I don't know, Rodrick." Her voice trembled slightly. "I've been trying to reach her all evening, and I'm worried sick. I was about to go over to Seraphine's place to check for her before you arrived."

A cold uneasiness settled in my chest.

Lucy wasn't the type to disappear without telling anyone. And if she had gone somewhere with Seraphine, one of them would have answered their phones.

Something wasn't right.

"We'll go there," I said.

Her mother nodded quickly.

We drove together to Seraphine's place. The entire journey, I kept checking my phone, hoping to see Lucy's name appear on the screen. Each time it remained silent, the tension in my shoulders tightened.

My wolf was restless.

It wasn't the usual impatience I felt when I was waiting for my mate. This was different. Something about her absence felt wrong, though I couldn't explain why.

When we arrived at Seraphine's house, the place was completely empty.

I stepped out of the car and stood still for a moment, allowing my senses to stretch beyond what my human hearing could normally pick up. The night air carried the familiar scents of the neighborhood, but there was no trace of Lucy nearby.

I walked toward the entrance and tried the door again. It was locked. No lights were visible through the windows. No movement. No voices. Nothing.

"She's not here," I said quietly.

Her mother came up beside me, her hands clasped anxiously in front of her.

"Maybe they went somewhere together."

Before I could respond, we received the news from a neighbor that Seraphine had gone to Alpha Kaleb's birthday ball.

Lucy's mother stared at me.

"Do you think Lucy also went to the ball?"

I didn't know.

I wanted to tell her no. I wanted to believe Lucy would have told me if she were going anywhere, especially tonight. But there was no other explanation that made sense.

I looked down at my phone again, my thumb hovering over Lucy's name. I could already feel my wolf pacing beneath my skin, urging me to find her.

"I don't know," I finally admitted. "But it might be the only explanation for why we can't reach either of them."

The words left my mouth, but they did little to ease the uneasiness twisting inside me.

If Lucy was at the ball, why hadn't she answered? And why did every instinct in me keep insisting that something was terribly wrong?

More importantly, I was worried because if Alpha Kaleb had set his eyes on Lucy, he could claim her as his mate. Lucy possessed an extremely rare kind of beauty—the sort that could capture the heart of a king without her even trying. But her beauty was only one part of what made her desirable. She was powerful, too, and that combination made her exactly the kind of woman any ambitious alpha would want at his side as Luna.

The thought of Kaleb discovering her made something inside me tighten.

I knew how powerful an alpha's claim could be, especially when it involved a destined mate. If Kaleb's wolf recognized Lucy before I had the chance to make our relationship official, there was no guarantee that I would be able to stop what followed.

"I'm going to look for her in the mansion," I said.

Lucy’s mother looked at me anxiously but nodded.

I drove her back to her house and waited until she was safely inside before turning the car around. Then I headed straight for the mansion.

The closer I got, the more unsettled I became. My hands tightened around the steering wheel as my thoughts raced through every possibility. I tried to convince myself that Lucy was fine, that she had simply attended the ball with Seraphine and somehow hadn't been able to answer her phone.

But my instincts refused to accept that explanation.

When I arrived at the mansion, I was surprised to find that the birthday celebration wasn't taking place anymore. The music had stopped, and the usual bustle of guests was nowhere to be seen.

I was led through the mansion and eventually taken to Alpha Kaleb's room. At least my guess had been right. Lucy was here. The relief I felt lasted only a moment.

As I approached the door, someone announced my arrival.

"The head of council, Rodrick, has arrived, Alpha."

I stepped inside and froze. Lucy was crouched over a man I didn't recognize.

She was tending to him with an urgency that immediately caught my attention. Her hands moved carefully over him as she tried to determine the extent of his injuries, her entire focus fixed on the stranger lying before her.

I stared at the scene, unable to make sense of what I was seeing.

Who was this man? And why was Lucy here with him?

The questions came one after another, but beneath them was something stronger—a sudden, irrational tension that tightened my chest as I watched her.

Lucy finally looked up. Our eyes met. I felt an overpowering surge of anger and jealousy as I watched her tending to this man.

It wasn't rational. I knew that. But seeing Lucy kneeling beside another man, touching him with such care, stirred something deep inside me. My wolf bristled beneath the surface, reacting to a threat that might not even exist.

I walked over to her and reached for her hand, pulling her gently but firmly to her feet.

"It's time to go, Lucy."

She immediately tried to yank her hand free of my hold.

"Rodrick—"

Before she could say anything more, Alpha Kaleb stepped forward.

"Lucy saved my friend's life," he said, smiling brightly. "If not for her, we would have had a disaster on our hands."

I glanced briefly at the injured man before looking back at him.

"That is good to hear," I replied. "But it's time for her to leave. I hope he can make a full recovery from here."

"Yes, certainly."

Kaleb turned his attention to Lucy.

"Thank you so much."

Lucy gave him a brief nod, but I didn't wait for the conversation to continue. I guided her toward the door, ignoring the resistance in her steps as she tried to slow me down.

She refused to speak to me throughout the ride. She sat beside me with her arms crossed tightly over her chest, her lips pressed into an angry line and her gaze fixed stubbornly out the window. Every few minutes, I glanced at her, waiting for her to say something.

She didn't. I wasn't particularly bothered. As long as she wasn't within the perimeter of Alpha Kaleb's mansion, I was satisfied.

Still, I couldn't shake the image of her kneeling beside that man. I flexed my fingers against the steering wheel, trying to release some of the tension that had settled into my hands.

Perhaps I had overreacted.

But tonight was supposed to be about Lucy and me. I had spent the entire day thinking about it. I was going to ask her to be my mate tonight, and if everything went the way I hoped, I intended to claim her that same night.

The thought alone sent a quiet thrill through me. Our bond had always felt inevitable. I had simply been waiting for the right moment to make it official. And tonight, I was certain, would be that moment.

When she said no to me, I assumed she was simply angry, and I couldn't help but chuckle.

"I'm sorry I dragged you out of there. You know I only did that to protect you, not because I don't trust you."

"I don't want you to protect me, Rodrick," she replied.

Her voice was calm, but there was a firmness in it that made me pause.

"I'm not a kid anymore, and I've realized that I don't want to be your mate, Rodrick. I want much more out of my life."

For a while, I just stared at her, speechless. I still believed she was angry. In my mind, her words were the result of frustration from what had happened at Kaleb's mansion. Surely, Lucy didn't actually mean them.

So I made up my mind to let it go for the night and return the following day.

But her mother wasn't having it.

"You cannot let Lucy go, Rodrick," she said, her voice heavy with urgency. "Remember the prophecy that was spoken about her. It is real, and it seems as though she is already stepping toward that path."

I looked at her.

"What are you saying?"

"Even if it means forcing her to be mated to you, she must be mated to you."

The words unsettled me. I didn't want to force Lucy into anything. The idea of binding her against her will went against everything I had imagined for us. I wanted her to choose me.

"I understand," I finally said. "Lucy will come around."

I left the house believing my confidence would prove justified.

I was wrong.

The following morning, I went to Seraphine's house, expecting to find Lucy there. Instead, Seraphine opened the door alone. She smelt of alcohol.

"Have you seen Lucy?" I asked.

Her expression changed. "No. I haven't seen her all morning."

My stomach tightened.

"When was the last time you saw her?"

"Yesterday."

I stared at her, the reassurance I had carried with me from the night before beginning to crumble.