CHAPTER 42: ALONE IN THE DARK

Lily POV

The scream tore from my throat before I could stop it.

Pain blazed across my arm like fire, so sudden and sharp that I dropped to my knees in the snow. My hand flew to where it hurt most, but there was no wound on my skin. The pain was coming from somewhere else.

From someone else.

"Caleb," I whispered, understanding rushing through me like ice water.

The mate bond. Whatever they were doing to him, I could feel every second of it. Another wave of pain crashed over me, and I bit my lip so hard I tasted blood to keep from yelling again.

I had to move. I had to find him.

But which way? The forest spread endlessly in every direction, dark and full of shadows that could hide anything. The rogues had taken him hours ago, and they could be anywhere by now.

Think, Lily. Think.

I closed my eyes and tried to focus past the pain. The mate tie was more than just shared hurt. Elder Iris had told me that true mates could sense each other’s location if they concentrated hard enough.

I pressed my hand to my chest, right over my heart, and reached out with everything I had. At first, there was only the burning pain from whatever they were doing to Caleb. But underneath that, like a whisper in the dark, I felt something else.

A pull. Faint but real, pulling me toward the north.

My eyes snapped open. The Sacred Grove. That had to be where they’d taken him.

Another scream of pain tried to escape as fresh agony shot through the bond. Caleb was hurting, and it was getting worse. I had to hurry.

I changed into my wolf form and ran like I’d never run before. Tree branches whipped past my face, and snow flew up around my paws, but I didn’t slow down. The pull in my chest got stronger with each step, guiding me through the darkness.

But as I got closer, doubt crept into my mind. What was I doing? I was just one small omega against a full pack of Shadow Wolves. They’d caught Caleb, who was stronger and smarter than me. What chance did I have?

The pain hit again, stronger this time, and I stumbled. Somewhere in the distance, I heard a real scream echo through the trees. Caleb’s scream.

All my doubts vanished. I didn’t care if I was walking into a trap. I didn’t care if they killed me. I couldn’t leave him to face this alone.

The trees began to thin, and I could see light ahead. Not the warm glow of a campfire, but something cold and pale green. I slowed down and crept forward on my belly, using the shadows to hide.

What I saw made my blood freeze.

The Sacred Grove looked like something from a nightmare. The old trees that should have been green and alive were black and twisted. The stone pedestal in the center was stained dark, and strange symbols glowed with that sick green light all around it.

And there, tied to a post near the altar, was Caleb.

Even from a distance, I could see the blood on his clothes. One of the Shadow Wolves stood next to him, carrying a curved blade that gleamed with unnatural light. Every few minutes, the thing would make another cut, and Caleb would cry out. Each time, I felt the pain like it was happening to my own body.

But the worst part was the thing standing in front of Caleb. The First Shadow was even more scary in person than I’d imagined. Too tall, too thin, with eyes like holes filled with cold fire. He was talking to Caleb, but I was too far away to hear the words.

I counted at least eight other Shadow Wolves around the grove. Way too many for me to fight. But I had to do something. I couldn’t just watch while they abused the person I loved most in the world.

That’s when I noticed something strange. The First Shadow kept looking toward the trees, like he was waiting for something. Or someone.

He was waiting for me.

My heart sank as I realized the truth. This wasn’t just about hurting Caleb. He was bait. They wanted me to come, wanted me to walk right into their trap. And like an idiot, that’s exactly what I was doing.

But I couldn’t turn around and leave him. Even knowing it was a trap, even knowing they’d probably kill us both, I couldn’t leave Caleb.

The Shadow Wolf with the blade raised it again, and I felt my mate’s fear spike through our bond. Without thinking, I stepped out from behind the trees.

"Stop!" I called out, my voice carrying across the grove.

Every head turned toward me. The First Shadow’s terrible smile spread, showing too many teeth.

"Ah, there she is," he said, his voice like nails on stone. "Right on schedule."

I walked into the grove, trying to look stronger than I felt. "Let him go. You want me, not him."

"Oh, but I want both of you," the First Shadow said, gesturing for his troops to surround me. "Him for leverage, and you for your power."

"What power?" I asked. "I’m just an omega."

His laugh made the dead trees shake. "Just an omega? My dear child, you’re the Triple Moon bearer. Do you have any idea how much power goes through your veins?"

I felt the Shadow Wolves closing in around me, but I kept my eyes on Caleb. He was shaking his head, trying to tell me to run. But it was too late for that now.

"The power to heal," the First Shadow continued, walking in a slow circle around me. "The power to bring balance. The power to unite wolves across all regions. And soon, the power to make me invincible."

He held up something that made me gasp. It looked like a collar made of twisted black metal, covered in symbols that hurt to look at.

"The Dominion Collar," he stated. "Once I drain your Triple Moon power into this, any wolf who wears it will command absolute obedience from every other wolf in existence."

"You’re insane," I said, backing away. "That’s not how the Triple Moon power works."

"Isn’t it?" His eyes shone. "Tell me, little omega, what happened when you first used your power during the fight with the rogues? Didn’t every wolf in the area stop fighting and listen to you?"

I remembered that night. The moment when my mark had blazed with silver light, and every wolf on the battlefield had turned to look at me. But that wasn’t power. That was...

"That was bringing peace," I said. "Not controlling anyone."

"Peace, control, what’s the difference?" The First Shadow smiled. "The result is the same. Wolves doing what you want them to do."

"No," I said strongly. "Peace is choice. Control is force. They’re completely different."

He laughed again. "You’ll understand soon enough. The draining process is quite interesting."

One of the Shadow Wolves grabbed my arms, and I felt something cold snap around my wrists. Shackles, just like the ones holding Caleb. But these were different. They felt wrong, like they were made to hold more than just a person’s body.

"These will prevent you from shifting or using your power," the First Shadow explained. "We can’t have you escaping before the ceremony."

"What ceremony?" I asked, though I was afraid I already knew.

"The Draining Ritual," he said, pointing to the corrupted altar. "At midnight, when the moon is highest, I’ll put you on that altar and slowly draw every drop of Triple Moon power from your body. It will take hours, and you’ll feel every second of it. But don’t worry – your mate will be watching the entire time."

I looked at Caleb, seeing the fear and rage in his eyes. Through our bond, I felt his desperate need to protect me, and his anger at being unable to break free.

"You’re a monster," I said to the First Shadow.

"I’m a realist," he responded. "The strong rule the weak. That’s the normal order. Your Triple Moon talk about balance and equality is just fantasy."

He nodded to one of his servants, who grabbed me and started dragging me toward the altar. I fought, but the shackles made me weak as a regular human.

"Don’t worry," the First Shadow called after me. "You have a few hours to think about it. Maybe you’ll come to understand that resistance is useless."

They chained me to a stone post near the altar, close enough to Caleb that we could see each other but too far apart to touch. The symbols cut into the altar glowed brighter as I got closer, and I felt something dark and hungry reaching for my power.

"Lily," Caleb whispered, his voice hoarse from yelling. "I’m so sorry. This is all my fault."

"No," I said strongly. "This is their fault. Not ours."

But as I looked around at the Shadow Wolves preparing for whatever horrible rite they had planned, I wondered if it mattered whose fault it was. We were trapped, helpless, and in a few hours they were going to kill me while forcing Caleb to watch.

That’s when I felt it. A tiny feeling in my chest, so small I almost missed it. My Triple Moon mark, even subdued by the shackles, was still there. Still connected to something bigger than just me.

The First Shadow thought he knew my power, but he was wrong. The Triple Moon wasn’t about ruling other wolves. It was about connecting with them. And right now, somewhere out there in the forest, there were dogs who cared about us.

I closed my eyes and reached out through that tiny link, sending a silent message into the night.

Help us.

The First Shadow was checking something that looked like a bent clock. "Thirty minutes until midnight," he announced. "Time to begin the preparations."

Two Shadow Wolves approached the altar holding bowls of something that glowed with the same sick green light as the symbols. The smell that rose from them made me gag.

"What is that?" I asked, though I wasn’t sure I wanted to know.

"The binding potion," one of the Shadow Wolves said with a cruel smile. "It will keep you aware during the entire draining process. We wouldn’t want you to miss a moment of it."

My heart hammered against my ribs as they set the bowls around the altar. This was really happening. In half an hour, they were going to chain me to that stone and slowly steal my strength while Caleb watched helplessly.

Unless...

I looked at my mate, meeting his eyes across the space between us. Even with everything that was happening, seeing his face made me feel stronger. Through our bond, I felt his love, his drive, and something else.

A idea.

Caleb gave me the smallest nod, so small that only someone watching very carefully would have noticed. He’d figured out something. I didn’t know what, but I trusted him totally.

The First Shadow approaches with the Dominion Collar in his hands. Up close, it was even more horrible. The black metal seemed to absorb light, and the figures carved into it moved and writhed like living things.

"Beautiful, isn’t it?" he said, lifting it up so both Caleb and I could see it clearly. "Soon it will hold all your power, little omega. And then every wolf in the world will kneel before me."

He was so focused on boasting that he didn’t notice Caleb slowly working his hands free from his bonds. The ropes were still tight, but my mate had found some way to loosen them just enough.

Twenty minutes until midnight. Twenty minutes until they killed me.

But as I watched Caleb continue his careful flight, I felt a spark of hope. Maybe, just maybe, we weren’t as useless as they thought.

The First Shadow turned toward the altar, and several Shadow Wolves moved to grab me.

"It’s time," he stated.

That’s when everything went wrong in the best possible way.

Caleb broke free of his ropes just as howls erupted from the trees around us. Not the twisted howls of Shadow Wolves, but the pure, strong sounds of Silver Peak Pack.

The cavalry had arrived.

But before I could feel relief, the First Shadow spun toward me with the Dominion Collar, his eyes blazing with rage.

"If I can’t drain you slowly," he snarled, "I’ll take your power by force!"

He lunged forward, the collar aiming at my throat.