Chapter 60 Honeymoon
We left for our honeymoon at midnight. Slipped away from the reception while guests were still celebrating. Cade drove us to a private airfield. No commercial flights. Hidden.
“Where are we going?” I asked. Still in my wedding dress.
“Somewhere they can’t find us. Somewhere off every grid.” Lycian held my hand. “Two weeks. Just us. No phones. No pack business. No Collective.”
The plane was small. Private. Luxurious. We boarded quickly. Took off within minutes.
I watched the city shrink below us. All the danger. Getting smaller.
“I’m sorry,” Lycian said. “Our wedding got crashed by conspiracy terrorists.”
“I married you. That’s all that matters.” I leaned against him. “The rest is just noise.”
“But we’re married. Bonded. Nothing can change that.”
We flew for hours. I dozed against his shoulder. Woke when the plane started descending.
Through the window, I saw the ocean. Endless blue. Small islands. Paradise.
“Greece,” Lycian said. “Private island. Completely secure. No one knows we’re here except my father and Cade.”
The island was small. White sand beaches. Crystal water. Dense vegetation hiding a single villa.
Inside was luxury. Ocean-facing windows. Massive bed. Kitchen stocked with food.
“This is perfect,” I said.
“Been planning it for months,” he said. “Now we’re here. Married. Safe.”
That first night, we made love slowly. Like we had all the time in the world.
The bond sang between us. Married. Mated. Completely united.
After, lying tangled in sheets, I felt peace. Real peace.
“What are you thinking?” Lycian asked.
“That I wish we could stay here forever. Forget about everything else.”
“We could. If you wanted. Walk away from all of it. The pack. The Collective. Everything.”
“You don’t mean that.”
“I do. You’re more important than any title or responsibility.” His hand stilled. “If you asked me to leave it all behind, I would. Without hesitation.”
I turned to face him. “But you’d regret it. Eventually. You’re meant to be Alpha. Meant to lead. I won’t take that from you.”
“Then we go back. Face whatever comes. Together.” He kissed me softly. “But for now, we’re just Lycian and Elowen. No titles. No threats. Just us.”
The next two weeks were perfect. We swam in the ocean. Cooked meals together. Watched sunsets from the porch. Made love under the stars.
No phones. No news. No reminders of the world waiting for us.
We talked about everything. Our childhoods. Our dreams. The future we wanted to build.
“I want kids someday,” Lycian said. “Not right away. But eventually.”
“Little versions of you,” I said. “Teaching them to be overprotective and bossy.”
“I prefer being devoted and confident.”
“How many?”
“Three? Four? However many you want.”
“That’s a lot of pregnancies.”
“Then we start with one.” He pulled me onto his lap. “But not yet. I want you to myself for a while.”
“I’m okay with that.”
“What do we do when we go back?” I asked.
“We dismantle it. From the inside. Using your access.” His voice was steady. “We’re patient. Strategic. We play the long game.”
He kissed my forehead. “But that’s future us. Present us is on vacation. Enjoying our honeymoon.”
“Right. No conspiracy talk. Just romance and beaches.”
“Exactly.”
The last few days felt bittersweet. Knowing we had to go back. Knowing reality waited.
On our final morning, I woke early. Walked the beach alone. Watched the sunrise. Tried to memorize every detail.
Lycian found me standing in the surf. Barefoot. Wearing his shirt.
“Couldn’t sleep?” He wrapped his arms around me from behind.
“Didn’t want to. Didn’t want to waste our last hours sleeping.” I leaned back against him. “I don’t want to go back. I want to stay here. Where it’s simple. Safe.”
“Me too. But we have responsibilities. People are counting on us.” His grip tightened. “And we have each other. That makes anything bearable.”
“Promise me something. No matter how bad it gets. No matter what the Collective does. We don’t lose this. Us. What we have right now.”
“I promise. Nothing will ever come between us. Not conspiracies. Not danger. Not anything.” He turned me around. “You’re my wife. My mate. My everything. That doesn’t change. Ever.”
We kissed as the sun rose. Golden light is painting everything beautifully. Perfect. Right.
That afternoon, we flew home. Back to reality. Back to the fight.
Cade met us at the airport. One look at his face told me something was wrong.
“What happened?” Lycian asked immediately.
“Richard Marsh is dead. Murdered three days ago. Shot in his home. No suspects. No witnesses.” Cade’s expression was grim. “But there’s more. He left something for Elowen. A package. With instructions to open it only if he died.”
My stomach dropped. “Where is it?”
“Your office. Waiting.”
At the estate, the package sat on my desk. Brown paper. My name is written in shaky handwriting. Sealed with wax.
I opened it with trembling hands.
Inside was a flash drive. And a letter.
Elowen,
If you’re reading this, I’m dead. Killed by the same organization I served for thirty years. The Collective doesn’t forgive betrayal. Don’t forget disloyalty.
I betrayed them. By talking to you. By considering helping you. They found out. They always find out.
The flash drive contains everything. Names. Operations. Bank accounts. Proof of every crime the Collective has committed for the last fifty years. Use it. Expose them. Finish what your father started.
I’m sorry. For my part in your parents’ deaths. For lying to you. For everything. I was a coward. Choose power over principle. But maybe this makes up for some of it.
Be careful. Trust no one. Not even Elena. Especially not Elena. She’s more involved than you think.
Good luck.
Richard Marsh
I plugged the flash drive into my computer. Files opened. Hundreds of documents. Photos. Video. Audio recordings. Evidence of murders. Theft. Manipulation. Conspiracy on a massive scale.
And at the center of it all. One name appearing over and over.
Victoria Cross. Elena’s mother. Still alive. Still leading the Collective.
“Elena’s mother is alive?” Lycian stared at the screen. “I thought she died years ago.”
“She faked her death. Runs everything from the shadows.” I kept scrolling. “Elena knows. Has always known. She’s been feeding her information about us.”
Rage flooded through the bond. Lycian’s eyes flashed gold. “I’m going to kill her.”
“No. We use this.” I closed the laptop. “We have everything we need. But we have to be smart. If we move too fast, they’ll scatter.”
“So what’s the plan?”
“We act normal. Pretend we don’t know. We copy the evidence. Send it to the authorities. Media. Council members.” I looked at him. “When we strike, we strike everywhere at once.”
“How long will that take?”
“A week. Maybe two.” I took his hand. “Then we end this. For real.”
That night, Elena came to the estate. Smiling. Friendly.
“How was the honeymoon?” She sat on our couch like nothing was wrong.
“Perfect.” I smiled back. “The wedding was beautiful.”
“I’m glad you enjoyed it.” She glanced at my desk. “I heard about your uncle. Richard. Such a tragedy.”
“Yes. Terrible. Do they know who killed him?”
“Not yet.” Her expression stayed neutral. “These things happen.”
“I suppose they do.”
After she left, Lycian paced. Furious. “She lied to your face.”
“She’s been trained well.” I felt cold. “But in a week, it won’t matter.”
We spent the next week preparing. Copying files. Sending evidence. Building an airtight case.
On day six, everything was ready. The evidence would go public at noon. Authorities would move simultaneously.
The Collective would fall.
That morning, I got one final message. Unknown number.
Clever girl. You found Richard’s insurance policy. Used it perfectly. Your father would be proud.
But you made one mistake. You trusted that the evidence was complete. That Richard told you everything.
He didn’t.
There’s one more member of the Collective. Someone close to you. Someone you’d never suspect.
Want to know who?
Check your bloodwork from three months ago. The medical tests before your wedding. Look at the genetic markers.
Then you’ll understand everything.
My hands shook opening my medical file. Finding the bloodwork. The genetic analysis.
There. Highlighted. A marker I didn’t understand.
Until I did.
I wasn’t completely human.
I carried wolf DNA. Dormant. But there.
My mother had been part wolf. Which meant I could shift. Eventually. Maybe.
And the Collective had known all along.