Traded To The Lycan King

Ezrah brought her here? I wonder as I whirl around, searching the trees and shoreline for the messenger who is always everywhere, always in everyone's business.

Caspian stands with Zale, the two of them carrying my enormous lycan mate up onto a less sandy part of the beach. Ezrah will have to wait. Right now, I need to be sure Merikh will be okay.

I rush toward them, sliding a glance back at Lauren as she tries to creep out, only to hiss and cry harder. Serves the evil vampire right for everything she has done and continues to do.

Strange how easy it was to defeat her when everything is all said and done, though. I sort of expected more, certainly something more than the sobbing mess cowering under a rock.

"How is he?" I call out, Calvin humming as he moves efficiently from wound to wound, seemingly more interested in one from the next.

My nails find themselves trapped between the nervous pressure of my teeth as I nibble on them, my anxious nerves only growing bigger with every passing bout of silence.

"Calvin," I growl out. He snaps his surprised eyes up to me, blinking as if he hadn't even noticed I arrived.

"I am assessing him," He says back, but his eyes are telling me more than his lips.

Vampire bites are meant to kill. That's the whole point of them. To feed or to create a new vampire toy. But what happens to a lycan king who is bitten? Not fed upon and not intended to create? Does he live? Does he suffer?

These are the questions plaguing my mind that no one seems able to answer right now, right when I need them. My mom moves close to me, entwining my hand in hers as she tugs me close, and I rest my head on her shoulder. It is incredibly strange how quickly the mother-daughter bond came back.

Though I sort of attribute that to the fact that all this time in the water has helped me remember a lot from my past. Not everything, but enough of my life with her and even Caspian before I was hunted.

Also, trauma bonding is a real thing, and that definitely happened with mom on more than one occasion, so there is that.

"He will be okay," she assures me with a gentle smile.

"We do not know that," Zale says bluntly and I glare at him as he frowns and shrugs.

"I am only speaking the truth."

well maybe don't?" My mom snaps

side, sighing heavily as he avoids looking at

known better than to attempt to fight her." Caspian murmurs and my mom scoffs, shaking

has a point,"

forward-looking gaze as if she is biting her tongue. It is clear that she has much to say, but either refuses to in front of dad

to explain everything all over again." I say, turning

up." She sighs. "She

Merikh screams and shoves

out to grab Merikh who tries to stand, only to

scan the area, pulling me as close as he can to

to hold his face still so he can focus on

on his face breaks me as his frantic fear drips away to a look of sheer pain. I see the flecks of green in his iris' not his normal shade of emerald but the same distorted rotten green that lived in Lauren's eyes. The rot, the kind that

I whisper, my voice breaking as I say his name and he bumbles over to me.

see who

to wait and see." I growl at him, unable to control

looking distraught. "I am sorry Luna,

the tears, giving Merikh a fake smile as look up into his eyes. It is like he is drunk, unable to focus and remain steady as he grins a brilliantly handsome smile.

struggling to keep the quiver from my voice. "I am going to have you sit here for just

I press pull his head down to meet mine and nuzzle my nose against his, taking

talk to my dad for a minute." I whisper,

speaking time with him and not me," he

grin to myself, "And I miss you, too. I promise it

groans, rolling his

ease him to the ground and rush over to my

is something water can do to heal him, or maybe cleanse his blood?" I ask, placing both hands on my head as the air grows thin, making it harder to

where I become a sobbing mess and am of no use to anyone. Merikh is the stable one, the one who holds me when I break down or just break in