Chapter 22
Chapter 22
I jolted upright, a gasp escaping my lips as the mind–link surged into my
consciousness. The connection was weak, faint as if reaching across an unfathomable distance, but I recognized my father’s voice. There was a sorrow in his tone I’d never heard before–a sorrow that hit me with a weight that made my heart stutter.
“Malinda… my daughter… forgive me. Stay strong… protect the pack… for our family…”
“Dad?” My voice trembled, barely more than a whisper, filling the emptiness of my room. I clung to the link, desperation.
clawing at my chest as if sheer will alone
could keep him there. “Dad, please! Answer me! Don’t leave me—‘
99
But there was only silence.
An unbearable void settled over me,
pressing in with a darkness that felt like it
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would swallow me whole. I pressed my hands to my temples, willing the bond to come back, to pulse with life and strength again, but all I felt was emptiness. The powerful presence of my father, always a steady, reassuring beacon in my life, was
gone.
Tears spilled freely down my cheeks as a strangled sob tore from my throat. I couldn’t breathe. Panic was swelling within me, tangling with a sharp, unrelenting grief that made my hands. shake uncontrollably. Dad…
I stumbled to my feet, legs weak and trembling as if I were in a nightmare. My body moved on its own, half–stumbling toward the door. My mate, the Alpha King, Damon, was in the hallway when I flung it open, his face twisted with concern the moment he saw me.
“Damon!” My voice cracked, raw with grief, and I threw myself into his arms.
“It’s my father… he‘ s–he’s gone. I
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tried reaching him, but… he’s not there. He’s just… gone.”
Damon’s arms wrapped around me, solid and grounding, pulling me tight against him. He didn’t say anything, just held me as I sobbed into his chest, my fingers twisting into the fabric of his shirt, my sorrow a wild, uncontrollable force. Every heartbeat was a painful reminder of the void left in my father’s absence, a wound that felt as if it would never heal.
After a long, silent moment, Damon tilted my chin up, his gaze filled with both understanding and fierce determination.
“Malinda,” he murmured, his voice low and steady. “We’re going to the Shadow Pack. Now.”
I nodded, my vision blurred with tears, my body still shaking as I gripped his
shoulders. The thought of seeing what had happened the devastation—I was terrified. But I had to go. I had to see my father. I had
to know.
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Without another word, Damon took my hand, leading me outside. Pack warriors. were already gathered, their expressions somber yet determined, sensing the urgency in their Alpha‘ s movements. Damon’s wolf stood tall and powerful beside me, his intense gaze focused forward. “Stay close, Malinda. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
I nodded, letting my own wolf take over as the need for answers surged within me. My shift came with a rush of power, and in an instant, I felt the ground beneath my paws, my senses sharp and keen. Together, Damon and I raced toward the Shadow Pack, the wind whipping around us as we pushed forward, desperate to reach the heart of my family.
As we drew closer to the Shadow Pack‘ s borders, my heart sank, the scent of blood hitting me with an almost physical force. It thickened the air, a sharp, bitter tang that
stung my nose and tasted metallic on my tongue. My pace faltered, every instinct
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telling me to turn away, but I forced myself forward, gritting my teeth against the
horror clawing at the edges of my mind. I had to see. I had to know.
When we crossed into the pack grounds, the devastation lay stark before us, a nightmare etched into reality. Bodies–still, broken–scattered across the field, some in human form, others in twisted, mangled remnants of their wolves. These weren’t strangers; they were family, friends, people. I’d known my whole life. People I’d loved and laughed with. People who‘ d protected me.
A whimper echoed in my mind, my wolf‘ st pain mingling with my own. This was my family. My people. I stumbled, barely able to process the scenes of death and destruction surrounding me.
Beside me, Damon shifted back, his expression hardened with fury. “Rogues did this,” he said, voice taut with barely contained anger. “But this wasn’t just an
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attack. They were after something.” His gaze swept over the broken remains of the once–strong Shadow Pack. “This wasn’t random.”
I shifted, my legs weak as I forced myself upright, eyes scanning the bloodstained ground. “Why?” My voice was hoarse, strangled. “Why would they… why could they kill so many innocent lives?”
The question echoed in the air, unanswered, as I took a few halting steps forward, the scent of my mother drifting faintly on the breeze. It was laced with fear, with pain, and yet… she wasn’t here. She wasn‘ t among the bodies. A surge of panic overtook me, driving me forward, my chest tight with dread.
“Mom?” I called, my voice trembling, barely recognizing it as my own. “Mom!”
But there was no answer.
Then I saw him. A figure lying still, one I recognized even without seeing his face.
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My legs buckled beneath me as I approached–my father, Beta Roven, motionless on the ground. Blood soaked through his clothes, his chest torn open, his face frozen in an expression of fierce, unyielding resolve.
“No…” The word was barely a whisper, my body shaking as I fell to my knees. beside him. My hands hovered over his body, desperate to touch him, to feel him warm and alive. My fingers brushed his skin–it was cold, lifeless. A sob tore from my chest, raw and broken.
“Dad…”
I cradled his face, my tears dripping onto his cheeks, refusing to believe this was real. Memories flooded my mind–his laughter, his strength, his unwavering pride in me. I closed my eyes, letting the memories wash over me, even as my heart shattered with every passing second.
A gentle hand rested on my shoulder, grounding me, and I opened my eyes to
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find Damon kneeling beside me, his expression filled with sorrow and compassion. “Malinda,” he murmured softly. “Your father fought to protect you. To protect your mother. He died for the ones he loved.”
I looked up at Damon, my vision blurred, my heart aching. “Why didn’t he call me sooner? I should have been here. I could have saved him…”
Damon’s hand moved to my cheek, his gaze filled with understanding. “He wanted to protect you from this, Malinda.”
His words stilled the chaos within me, the realization settling like a heavy stone in my chest. My father had sacrificed everything to give me a chance, and I hadn’t been there to say goodbye.
A rustle behind us made me turn, and I saw my mother—-Isabel–stumbling toward us. Her face was pale, eyes red and
swollen, her steps shaky. But she was alive.
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Relief surged through me as I rushed to her, wrapping my arms around her tightly. She clung to me as though I were her lifeline, her hands gripping my shoulders as if afraid to let go.
“It’s my fault…” she whispered, her voice trembling. “He died to save me… he…” Her words broke, and fresh tears spilled down her cheeks.
I pulled back, looking into her grief- stricken eyes, seeing my own pain mirrored there. We‘ d lost him together.
She looked to Damon, her gaze sharp.
“They took everything–our weapons, anything of value. But… they wanted more. Information. They knew exactly what they
came for.”
Damon’s face darkened, anger simmering beneath his calm expression. “The Rogue King,” he muttered, his voice low and deadly. “He wanted to break this pack, to weaken it entirely.”
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Mom nodded, sorrow flickering in her eyes. “He knew Roven was the strength behind Alpha Nathan, and he took his life. to prove his control.”
A fierce resolve stirred within me, simmering beneath my sorrow, a determination I hadn‘ t known I was capable of. My father‘ s courage, his sacrifice–it wouldn’t be in vain. I would
make sure of that.
“We’ll avenge him,” I whispered, my voice trembling but steady with newfound strength. “They’ll pay for this.”
Damon’s gaze met mine, fierce and proud, his hand on my shoulder, a silent vow. “Your father‘ s sacrifice will not be forgotten, Malinda. We’ll make sure of it.”
And in that moment, I knew—no matter the cost, I would protect what remained of my family, of my father‘ s legacy. The Rogue King would learn that I, too, was my father’s daughter.
