Chapter 29
Marissa jolted upright, gasping as the mind–link connection flickered through her consciousness. Her father’s voice, faint and full of sorrow, filled her thoughts with a weight that stole her breath away.
“Marissa… my daughter… forgive me. Stay strong… protect the pack… for our family…”
“Dad?” Marissa‘ s voice broke into the empty room as she clung to the fading link, panic swelling in her chest. “Dad, answer me! Please!”
But there was only silence, an unbearable.
void that felt like it would consume her
whole. She pressed her hands to her head, willing the bond to come back, but all she felt was emptiness. Her father, once a powerful, steady presence, was gone.
Tears streamed down her face as a sharp, panicked cry escaped her. She could barely
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breathe, her mind reeling with horror and denial. Her body trembled uncontrollably, and she felt as though she might break apart.
“Dad!” Marissa’s voice was barely a whisper as she pressed her hands against her heart, where she could still feel the bond fraying.
She stumbled to her feet, staggering toward the door, her body moving of its own accord. Her mate, the Alpha King, Idris, was in the hallway when she flung the door open, her eyes wild and frantic.
“Idris!” Her voice cracked as she threw herself into his arms, her whole body shaking. “It’s my father… he‘ s–he‘ s gone. I tried reaching him, but… I can‘ t… he’s not there!”
Idris‘ s arms wrapped around her immediately, his strength grounding her as she clung to him, her sobs muffled against his chest. He didn’t speak, simply holding her close, letting her grief spill out, her
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sorrow mingling with the fierce, raw pain radiating from her bond with her father.
After a moment, Idris tilted her chin up, his gaze soft but resolute. “Marissa, hush. It’s okay, I’m here,” he said, his voice firm and steady, “we‘ re going to the Shadow Pack. Now.”
Marissa looked up, her vision blurred, and nodded, her fingers still trembling as they gripped his shoulders. The thought of seeing the devastation left her paralyzed with fear, but she had to go. She had to see her father. To know what had happened.
Without another word, Idris took her hand, leading her outside where the pack warriors had already assembled. The urgency in their Alpha‘ s command was clear, and they swiftly shifted, their massive wolves ready to run. Idris‘ s wolf stood tall and powerful, his gaze fierce with determination as he turned to Marissa.
“Stay close to me, Marissa. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
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She nodded, her wolf clawing at the surface, desperate to find answers, to get to her family. Her shift was almost seamless as she felt her limbs elongate and her senses sharpen. Her wolf–a powerful creature cloaked in white fur–emerged, and together with Idris, they raced toward the Shadow Pack, the wind whipping around them, the landscape blurring as they pushed to reach her family.
As they neared the borders, Marissa‘ s heart sank, the scent of blood thickening in the air, a bitter taste she could feel on her tongue. She slowed, every instinct
screaming at her to turn back, to run, but she forced herself forward. She needed to
know. She needed to see.
When they reached the heart of the pack‘ s territory, the devastation was everywhere. Warriors lay still, their bodies. broken, fur matted with blood. The strong, proud wolves of her pack–friends she‘ d known since she was a child–were scattered across the grounds, some in their
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human forms, others in the twisted remains of their wolves. The rogues had taken no mercy.
Marissa felt her wolf whimper, the sound echoing through her mind, filled with a deep, painful ache. These were her people, her family. She stumbled, the sight of the death and destruction hitting her like a physical blow.
Beside her, Idris shifted back into his human form, his expression hard as he took in the scene. “Rogues did this,” he said quietly, his voice filled with controlled fury. “But it wasn’t just an attack. They took something. This wasn‘ t random.”
Marissa shifted, her legs trembling as she stumbled to her feet, her gaze sweeping over the broken, bloodstained pack grounds. “Why would they do this?” Her
voice was a strangled whisper, her mind
as
struggling to make sense of it all. “Why could they… kill innocent lives?”
She took a few shaky steps forward, the
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weight of her grief bearing down on her. Her mother’s scent was faint in the air, mingled with fear and pain, but there was no sign of her. Panic clawed at Marissa’s chest, the fear of what she might find overtaking her.
“Mom?” she called out, her voice desperate. She barely recognized it, broken and filled with dread. “Mom!”
