Chapter 72: Father’s Return
The reconnaissance team returned before dawn, their looks grim with what they’d witnessed. Jake, the pack’s best tracker, changed back to human form, his clothes torn and bloody. "He’s alive," Jake gasped, accepting a bottle of water from Kael.
"Alpha Thorne is chained in the darkest part of the silver mine. But barely." "How many guards?" Jace ordered, already strapping on his weapons. "Twenty Silverbloods prowling the surface. Maybe more underground. The place slls of dark magic." Liana stepped forward, her wolf already pushing for action. "I’m coming with you."
"Absolutely not," all three triplets said in agreent. "That’s exactly what they want," Kael added. "You showing up makes their job easier." "My job is to protect this pack," Liana shot back, her eyes flashing silver. "Thorne risked everything to attend the Conclave. I won’t leave him." Rowan put a gentle hand on her arm. "We’ll bring him ho. I promise." Before Liana could argue further, Celeste spoke up. "Take instead." Everyone turned to stare at her. "I know how the Silverbloods think," she explained. "I helped build their basic programming. That knowledge might save your lives." "Or get us killed," Jace mumbled. "Without , you’re walking blind into a trap designed by soone who thinks like I do," Celeste pressed. "With , you have a chance." After a tense mont, Kael nodded. "Fine. But if you betray us—" "You’ll tear my throat out," Celeste ended. "I get it."
The rescue team moved through the forest like shadows—Kael, Jace, Rowan, Celeste, and six of the pack’s best fighters. The abandoned mine sat like a wound in the hillside, silver veins still visible in the exposed rock. "There," Jake whispered, pointing to the mine opening. "Two guards." The Silverbloods stood strangely still, their glowing eyes scanning the darkness. Up close, they looked even more terrifying than Jace had described. Their skin had a tallic sheen, and when they moved, Kael could hear the sound of liquid silver running through their veins. "How do we kill them?" Rowan asked quietly. "You don’t," Celeste whispered. "Not easily. Silver makes them stronger, not weaker.
But they have one weakness—they’re ruled by blood magic. Disrupt the link, and they beco confused." "How do we disrupt it?" Celeste pulled a small bottle of dark liquid from her pocket. "Witch’s bane. It blocks magical connections temporarily." Jace grabbed the vial. "You just happened to carry that around?" "I’ve been preparing for this mont longer than you know." Before anyone could ask her further, Jace was moving. He erged behind the first Silverblood like a ghost, pouring the witch’s bane over its head. The creature convulsed, silver light flashing in its eyes before going dark. The second guard turned just as Kael struck, downing it with the sa way. "That won’t last long," Celeste warned.
"Maybe ten minutes before the connection reestablishes." They descended into the mine’s depths, the air getting colder with each step. The walls were covered in strange symbols that seed to pulse with their own light. "This way," Rowan said, following the sll of Alpha blood. The caves branched and twisted, but the sll of pain and silver poisoning grew stronger. Finally, they reached a cave carved deep into the mountain’s heart. Alpha Thorne hung from silver chains, his once-powerful body reduced to skin and bones. Silver burns covered his arms and chest, and his breathing was shallow and strained. "Dad," Rowan breathed, running forward. But as he reached for the chains, Thorne’s eyes snapped open—not his normal warm brown, but glowing silver like the creatures that guarded him. "It’s a trap," Thorne rasped, but his voice carried true warning, not malice.
"She’s using as bait." "Who?" Kael demanded, trying to break the silver locks. "Who’s doing this to you?" "Your mother," Thorne whispered, and the words hit the boys like physical blows. "Evelyn isn’t dead. She never was." The room fell silent except for the sound of silver chains clattering to the ground. Jace caught his father as he fell, careful not to touch the burns. "That’s impossible," Kael said. "We buried her. We mourned her." "You buried an empty coffin," Thorne managed. "She faked her death to escape the pack ties. To seek power she couldn’t have as a Luna." Rowan’s face went white. "The witch family. She’s descended from the original group."
"More than descended," Thorne anded. "She’s the last pure-blood witch of the Shadow Coven. The one that made the first werewolves as weapons of war." The truth crashed over them like a huge wave. Their mother—the woman they’d grieved for, the loss that had shaped their entire lives—was living and had been orchestrating everything. "Why?" Jace’s voice cracked. "Why would she do this to us? To you?" "Because she believes werewolves should rule over humans, not hide from them," Thorne explained as they helped him toward the exit. "She’s been building an army to rule both worlds.
The Silverbloods are just the beginning." They moved quickly through the tunnels, but Celeste suddenly grabbed Kael’s arm. "Sothing’s wrong. I can feel the magic changing." The mine started to rumble around them. Dust fell from the roof, and the silver veins in the walls started glowing brighter. "She knows we’re here," Thorne said grimly. "The whole mine is booby-trapped." They ran for the exit as the tunnels fell behind them. Silver spikes shot from the walls, missing them by inches. The very mountain seed angry, trying to crush the rescue party. They burst into open air just as the mine entrance caved in totally. Behind them, the sound of Silverbloods screaming echoed from the depths. "We need to get back to the estate," Kael said, supporting his father’s weight. "Now." The trip ho felt like a nightmare.
Thorne’s condition worsened with each mile, the silver poisoning fighting his natural healing powers. But he stayed conscious long enough to share the most terrifying news of all. "She’s been watching you boys your entire lives," he whispered as they reached the estate gates. "Every choice you made, every girl you dated, every mont of happiness—she orchestrated it all." "What do you an?" Rowan asked. "The mate bond with Liana wasn’t natural," Thorne admitted. "Evelyn manipulated it. She wanted to ensure you’d have access to royal blood—Liana’s bloodline—to finish her ultimate ritual." Liana t them at the door, her face filling with relief when she saw they were alive. But that relief turned to horror as Thorne kept speaking. "She doesn’t want to destroy the packs," he said, looking straight at Liana.
"She wants to rule them all. And the only way to do that is to eliminate anyone with stronger royal blood than her kids." "aning?" Liana asked, though she already knew the answer. "aning you, Luna," Thorne said softly. "You’re the only threat to her plan. The only one who can stop her." As if called by his words, a voice echoed across the estate grounds—feminine, powerful, and terrifyingly familiar to the triplets. "My sons," the voice called out, seeming to co from everywhere and nowhere at once. "It’s ti to co ho to your real mother." The triplets froze, their faces going pale. It was a voice from their youth, from bedti stories and lullabies.
A voice they’d thought they’d never hear again. "Hello, Evelyn," Thorne said grimly. The temperature around the house dropped twenty degrees in an instant. In the distance, howls began to rise—not from wolves, but from sothing far more dangerous. "She’s here," Liana whispered. And sowhere in the darkness beyond the walls, a woman who had died seven years ago began to laugh.
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