CHAPTER 33 – The Pull of the Unknown

POV: Lucien Blackveil

Her voice echoed in his ears long after he stepped out of the room.

"Thank you, Alpha."

So formal. So distant. And yet, when her eyes met his, something inside Lucien stirred violently—something old, something primal.

Roman growled deep in his chest.

"Mate."

The moment she had spoken, called him 'Alpha' instead of something… closer… Roman had snapped like a storm. The possessiveness that surged through him was unfamiliar—even for an alpha. He had touched her only gently, brushing her hair and telling her to rest, but that small contact had lit a wildfire beneath his skin.

She didn't respond. Not as a mate should.

Something was wrong.

He turned toward the healer at the door. His voice was calm, but the steel beneath it was unmistakable. "Make sure she is well taken care of. If she needs anything, you don't wait—you come to me. Personally."

The healer bowed, muttering a quick, "Yes, Alpha."

As Lucien stepped into the hall, Beta David waited, back straight but tense. The moment David met Lucien's eyes, the Alpha spoke low.

"I want every detail about Aira on my desk by sunrise," he said. "I don't care if you have to dig through school records or birth certificates. Find everything."

David blinked. "Of course. Is… she your—"

Lucien didn't answer. He didn't need to. The weight in his eyes said enough.

He walked past him and out of the hospital without a word. He didn't want to see Asher. In fact, if he saw Asher again too soon, Roman might do something the council couldn't overlook.

The car ride was silent. Only the hum of the engine, the rolling night, and the pulse of something ancient in his veins.

He was heading toward the edge of town—to an old pawn shop nestled between stone alleys and forgotten paths. A place of secrets. A place of answers.

The bell above the shop door jingled softly as he stepped inside.

"Come in, Alpha," said a voice, warm and knowing.

Seated behind a dusty counter, surrounded by shelves of clocks, trinkets, and forgotten magic, was Alakazam, the Seer of the Silver Fang Pack.

She looked like a regular middle-aged woman. Hair in a bun, reading glasses perched on her nose, a knit shawl around her shoulders. But her eyes were ancient. Eyes that had seen too much and forgotten nothing.

Lucien didn't speak as he entered. She gestured for him to sit.

"You've come because of the girl," she said, voice soft. "The one who makes your wolf tremble."

He nodded once. "She's my mate. I know it. But… she doesn't recognize me. Doesn't feel it. Why?"

The seer folded her hands. "Her wolf… she's asleep. Weak, perhaps even wounded. Something happened—rejection, trauma. Her spirit is still healing. When her wolf wakes, she will know."

Lucien exhaled, a breath he hadn't realized he was holding.

But Alakazam's eyes darkened. "It will not be easy, Alpha. She is not like others. She is marked by Selene herself. She has seen pain and betrayal… but also carries the potential to become something this world hasn't seen in centuries."

Lucien's jaw tightened. "Then I'll protect her. No matter what it takes."

A small smile tugged at the Seer's lips. She stood, walked to a wooden box behind the counter, and returned with something in her palm.

A necklace.

A simple chain with a blue pendant, glowing faintly like moonlight.

"Give this to her," she said. "But not yet. Wait until her wolf wakes. Only then will its magic recognize her. It will shield her from what's coming."

Lucien took the pendant, his fingers brushing hers. It pulsed with a strange warmth.

"She is special," the Seer whispered. "And special things must be protected. Fiercely."

Lucien nodded once and left.

He slipped the pendant into his coat pocket, hand still wrapped around it as he looked up at the stars above.

Roman stirred.

"She's ours, Lucien… and we were made to fight for her."