Chapter 90 - Hold him down!

(Luca's Perspective)

The moment Kimmy's call ended, it was like my body wasn't mine anymore. I couldn't breathe, couldn't think, couldn't see anything but Quinn's face twisted in pain. My fists clenched so hard my nails dug into my palms, but I didn't feel it. All I felt was Amarok, my wolf, surging forward with a fury that burned hotter than anything I'd ever known.

Get to her. Now. His voice was a snarl, feral and commanding. It wasn't a suggestion. It was an order.

"If we rush in, we'll get her killed," I spat back, my voice a harsh whisper in the empty room. But my words felt hollow even to me.

Amarok didn't care. He roared inside me, a sound so powerful it ripped through my chest and escaped as a guttural growl that shook the walls. Glass shattered somewhere downstairs. My vision blurred at the edges as the shift threatened to overtake me.

The house erupted into chaos. Footsteps thundered down the hall. Voices rose, panicked and urgent, but I couldn't make out the words. My senses were too consumed by Amarok's rage, his desperation to protect our mate.

My mate.

The door burst open, and Marcus was the first to rush in, his Beta instincts on high alert. Behind him, Ash, Nick, and several others filled the room, their eyes wide with alarm. But I couldn't stop. Couldn't think. Amarok was clawing his way to the surface, and I was losing the fight to keep him contained.

"Luca, what the hell is going on?" Marcus demanded, his voice sharp. He stepped closer, his hands raised as if approaching a cornered animal—which, let's be real, wasn't far off.

I couldn't answer. The words were trapped beneath the growl that rumbled from my chest, low and dangerous. My hands trembled, claws threatening to burst through my fingertips. My bones ached, caught in the tug-of-war between man and beast.

"He's shifting," Nick said, his tone grim. "But it's not right. Something's off."

"No shit," Ash snapped. "We need to stop him before he destroys the whole damn house."

Marcus took another step forward. "Luca, you need to get it together. Talk to us. What's happening?"

"I can't control my wolf," I ground out through clenched teeth. "He's…" My voice cracked as a snarl ripped from my throat. "He's trying to take over."

Amarok roared again, louder this time, drowning out the sound of Marcus's response. My vision darkened, and when it cleared, I was on my knees, the wooden floor splintered beneath me. My hands were braced on the ground, claws digging into the wood, and my breaths came in ragged gasps.

"Get to her now!" Amarok thundered, his voice a deafening roar in my mind.

"We cannot! Not Yet!" I shouted back in my mind, slamming a fist into the floor. The impact sent cracks spiderwebbing out from the point of contact, but it did nothing to calm the storm raging inside me.

Amarok's anger surged again, and this time, I felt the shift begin in earnest. My bones snapped and reformed, my skin stretched taut as fur began to sprout along my arms. The pain was searing, but it was nothing compared to the agony of knowing Quinn had been hurt—that she was out there, vulnerable, and I wasn't by her side.

"Hold him down!" Marcus barked, and suddenly, hands were on me, pinning me to the ground. Ash and Nick held my arms while Marcus and two others braced my legs. I thrashed against their grip, snarling and snapping, but they held firm.

"Luca, listen to me!" Marcus shouted, his voice cutting through the haze. "You're losing control. If you shift in this state now, you'll tear through everything in your path, and we need you to keep it together."

His words struck a chord, and for a moment, I faltered. But Amarok was relentless.

"She's our mate," he growled. "We're supposed to protect her. And you're failing."

"If we act now, she dies," I said, my voice trembling with the effort to stay in control. "Do you hear me, Amarok? If we go to her like this, we'll be walking into a trap, and we'll all pay the price."

Amarok's rage simmered, but it didn't abate entirely. "She's in pain," he said, his tone softer now, laced with anguish. "Trinity would have taken the brunt of the injury, but it was a silver blade, that's bad, Luca. We should have sensed this with our mate but we didn't. That means the blade was ancient and a werewolf killer."

The mention of Trinity, Quinn's wolf, hit me like a punch to the gut. The bond between wolf and host was sacred, unbreakable. If Trinity was suffering, it meant Quinn was too. And if Trinity couldn't hold on…

No. I couldn't think like that. I wouldn't think like that.

"Trust me," I said, my voice steady despite the storm raging inside me. "We'll get to her. But not like this. Not when we're out of control."

For a long, agonizing moment, Amarok didn't respond. The tension in my body reached a breaking point, and I thought for sure he was going to force the shift. But then, slowly, I felt his presence recede, his anger giving way to reluctant acceptance.

"You'd better not fail her," he said, his voice a low growl. "If you do, I'll never forgive you."

With that, the pressure inside me eased, and I collapsed onto the floor, gasping for air. My packmates eased their grip, though their hands lingered as if they weren't entirely convinced I was back to normal.

"Luca?" Marcus said cautiously. "You good?"

I sat up slowly, my muscles trembling with exhaustion. "Yeah," I said hoarsely. "I'm good."

The room was silent for a moment, the weight of what had just happened settling over us like a thick fog. Finally, Marcus stood and offered me a hand. I took it, letting him pull me to my feet.

"You wanna tell us what the hell that was about?" Ethan asked, his tone light but his eyes serious.

I looked around the room, taking in the faces of my pack. They were loyal, strong, and capable. But they didn't need to know everything. Not yet. Marcus was the only one who knew what was happening.

"Start training the pups," I said, my voice firm. "Increase the training for the warriors. Make them better than you ever thought possible."

Ethan frowned. "Why?"

I met his gaze, my eyes hard. "Because we're going to war soon."

The room erupted into shocked murmurs, but I didn't stick around to explain. I turned and walked out, my mind already racing with plans, strategies, and one unwavering thought:

Cale will pay.