Maximus POV~
The regret hit so hard that I could barely breathe, because the girl kneeling in front of was not just any girl; she was a living wound torn straight from my chest, her silver eyes and silver hair reflecting a face I had loved once so deeply that it had been carved into my heart with blood, and how could I have ever forgotten her? How could I have failed to recognize Elara when her shadow was standing right in front of wearing our child’s face.
My hand lifted on its own, trembling violently as I tried to cup her cheek, but I couldn’t do it; I couldn’t bring myself to touch her, because the mont my fingers hovered near her skin, I realized the truth was too heavy, and my entire body was shaking from the inside out as my mind scread that this girl could only be one thing...mine and Elara’s daughter...because if she was not Elarliya’s child, then there was only one woman in this world she could belong to.
And that realization didn’t bring happiness. It crushed .
Because another thought pierced my heart even harder, as I understood that while I had been drowning in guilt and punishing myself in isolation for years, my mate had been out there suffering alone, raising our child alone, protecting her alone, and I...her mate had not been there, not once, not when she needed most.
My chest felt like it was collapsing as questions flooded my mind, each one more painful than the last: Where was Elara? What had she endured? What had happened to her? And then Selene’s words echoed inside my head like a death sentence...my mother died...and the world seed to split open beneath my feet.
Elara was dead.
My mate was gone.
And I was still breathing.
For a mate, living in this world without the other half of your soul is worse than death itself, and I had already spent twenty years atoning for my sins, believing that one day, when my punishnt was complete, I would finally reunite with her, but what kind of cruel fate was this, where my atonent ended only to reveal that she had been gone all along?
And all that remained of her was our child.
A child who had wandered this world alone, without parents, without protection, manipulated and used by that twisted witch who dared to lay her hands on what belonged to my mate and .
Rage burned through my grief so violently that my vision darkened, because Elarliya had dared to use my daughter, dared to twist her mories, and dared to stand in my mate’s place, and I wanted to tear her apart with my bare hands, because I knew she was capable of such evil; I had always known.
And suddenly, one thing beca painfully clear... I had never touched her, not once, because even when I was confused, even when she lied, even when she tried to make believe I had betrayed my mate, my soul had rejected her completely, because I had only ever belonged to Elara.
I swallowed hard and finally found my voice, stepping closer despite my shaking legs, my eyes burning as I whispered, "My daughter... our daughter... you look so much like your mother."
Before Selene could respond, before she could say anything at all, a deep, vicious growl tore through the air behind us.
My instincts snapped to life instantly.
I spun around and pulled Selene behind my back without thinking, my body shifting as my Lycan aura surged forward, my own growl ripping from my chest as I bared my fangs, because standing before us were not one, but five...no, six massive wolves erging from the shadows, their eyes glowing, their teeth exposed, and their intent unmistakable.
I stepped forward, planting myself between them and my daughter, my power pressing outward like a storm as I snarled, "Take one step closer, and I will kill every last one of you."
But they didn’t step back. Not even an inch.
Instead, they laughed with mocking sounds rumbling from their throats, their lips pulling back from their fangs as if I were nothing more than an old wolf clinging to life, a relic they could tear apart without effort, and I knew in that instant that the two standing at the front were alphas, their dominance rolling off them in heavy waves, while the others behind them were no weak ogas either, their massive bodies and thick auras screaming power, hunger, and blood.
But none of that mattered. Because I was still standing. And Selene was behind .
I could feel her presence like a fragile heartbeat pressed against my spine, and the mont I sensed their intent sharpen, sothing ancient and violent rose inside my blood, because I was not just a Lycan wolf; I was a father protecting his child.
Nothing was going to touch her.
One of them stepped forward at last, a dark-furred beast with scars lining his muzzle, his eyes gleaming with cruel amusent as he snickered again and lowered his body, muscles coiling tight, and before the sound of his growl even finished echoing, he launched himself straight at , claws aid not at my body but directly at my throat, like he wanted to rip apart in just one move.
I didn’t let him.
The shift tore through in a violent rush, bones cracking and reforming as I stepped forward instead of back, and in the next heartbeat the ground shook beneath us as my massive white form burst into existence, towering over them all, my fur glowing faintly as moonlight bled into my veins, my size alone making them dread.
Gasps broke out among them.
I landed heavily, my paws slamming into the stone, and I threw my head back and roared, the sound exploding outward like thunder, scattering dust and fear alike, the sheer force of it sending two of them skidding backward despite their strength.
But they didn’t flee.
They attacked together. Why are they so confident that they would actually win against a Lycan?
Five bodies lunged at once, but I twisted sharply, my reflexes honed by centuries, and the first wolf reached just in ti to et my claws as I slamd into him head-on, raking across his chest and flinging him aside like dead weight as his body crashed into the wall with a crack.
Another went for my flank, his fangs grazing my fur before pain flared, but rage drowned it instantly as I spun and struck him with my leg, the blow snapping ribs and sending him tumbling across the ground, howling in agony.
The alphas were smarter.
They circled, attacking in turns, testing my reach, my speed, and my limits, but they underestimated one thing...they were fighting a lone wolf.
I was fighting for my child.
Another wolf tried to slip past .
I felt it instantly.
Fear shot through for Selene, and that fear turned into sothing lethal as I pivoted and slamd my paw down, crushing him into the ground inches from where she stood.
"Stay behind ," I snarled without looking back, my voice vibrating with power, my body shielding her completely as I advanced, step by heavy step, blood dripping from my claws, my breath coming out in thick clouds.
They hesitated now. They should have run earlier. But they are way too persistent, and why? I can’t understand.
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