Found by the Lycan King by Natalie Winter
Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Callahan

(start of flashback)

I was on my knees, waiting for judgment to be delivered. At this point, I did not care.

I had lost everything that I ever held dear to me. I was sick and tired of fighting.

I sat on the ground with my head bent low, a hooded figure hovering in the air in front of me. Thefigure, a fierce and c g looking woman looked down at me as she raised her staff.

I did not even bother looking at her, my eyes were fixated on the woman lying in front of me.

I held her close and took her hands in mine.

"Please, don't go.”

She only gave me a sad smile as her hands cupped my cheek, “You are strong. You know that.”Tears stung at the back of my eyes. I could see the life being drained out of her body as tendrils ofwisp-like threads rose up from her body, flowing towards the point of the staff held by the cloakedwoman.

“I need you, I cried as I felt her hand go limp in mine.

(end of flashback)

“Noooo.” I cried and reached for empty air as a heard a familiar voice call out to me.

“Callahan, are you okay?" it was as if I had been pushed back to the present again.

Drusilla looked at me worriedly and held my hand. “You saw it again?” She asked another question,but I guess she knew based on the look on my face that it indeed was the same memory that kepthaunting me wherever I went.

It had been years since the incident had occurred. 1 had been just a young boy, naive andinexperienced. My wounds and scars had already healed, but the pain was as raw and real as itcould get.

“I have been urging you to start looking for-" Drusilla started again, but before I could reply the cargave a jerk. It was followed by a scream and a thud.

Startled, we all got out of the car and I saw a girl lying on the road. She had probably gotten hit byour car.

“S t, Matteo, where were you looking?” I asked as I ran towards the girl.

Matteo or Matt, my beta, nervously replied as he rushed outside with me, “I swear she literallyappeared out of nowhere and legit jumped in front of the car.”

I ignored Matt and squatted down to look at the girl. Her hair hid most of her face so I parted themand to my shock, I saw the same girl who I had seen arguing with Matt earlier.

I tried talking to her and helping her get up but she did not seem in the condition to talk. She wasbleeding a little and looked at me with a mixture of apprehension and fear.

Was she afraid of me?

Ignoring the terror in her eyes, I picked her up and got her into our car. Fate had made our pathscross again, and my Lycan felt relieved when I held her close.

“Drive us to the nearest hospital,” I yelled at Matt, who only nodded his head and drove to thenearest pack hospital.

1 again gingerly picked the girl in my arms as the nurses came out with a stretcher. They took herinside as I asked about the doctor and went straight to him.

He was a short, middle-aged man with sandy hair and baggy eyes.

“Heal her and make sure she stays alive,” I thundered. The doctor looked at me once and noddedmeekly before running to the operation theatre.

“Matt, you are going to stay here and keep me updated about her health. I am going to have a talkwith the alpha here.”

Matt looked at me as if I had sprouted another head, “Why me? Who will drive the car?”

I gave him a look, and he immediately fell quiet. “Because you all brought us here and wasted ourtime. And if anything happens to her, it is on you.”

"But-"

“No ifs and buts. Stay here and I will return after meeting the alpha shortly. Drusilla, come with me.”I turned around, leaving Matt as the girl's guardian. My beta was not happy with my decision, but itwas not as if he could do anything.

Chapter 6

I took the keys from him and headed to the house of Drake Archer, the alpha of the nightfall pack.Twenty minutes later, we were in his office and the alpha’s wife and son were staring at me as if Iwas a goldmine.

"G-Good evening King, welcome to our humble abode,” Alpha Drake said as he gave me a bow.

“I want to know what is going on here. The rogue attacks are the highest in this area. Aren't you thestrongest alpha here? Why the issue has not been addressed yet?”

I got straight to the point. Though while I was away from the girl, my mind was somehow stillworried about her.

I felt bad that she had been hit by my beta and was in the hospital because we were too engrossedin our issues.

“P-please do not worry, your majesty. We have forged alliances with the neighboring packs and Ialso have asked for support from packs in the east. The rogue menace will be taken care of soon.”“If 1 had to come here all the way from my home, I believe you are failing at your job. This is yourlast warning. If you do not nullify the threat soon, I will have to make some other alpha in chargehere.”

Upon hearing my words, the alpha went to his knees and begged me.

“No, your majesty, I will do as you ask. I will have an emergency meeting with the other alphastoday itself.”

His wife, who had been silent all this time, spoke in an overly sweet voice, “I apologize on behalf ofmy husband, your majesty. He has not been in his element today ever since...”

She began, but Drake raised his hand, asking her to stop. “The alpha does not have to know of ourinternal issues, Celeste.”

I raised an eyebrow at that. Something was fishy here.

"What issues? Have rogues infiltrated your pack? Is that why we have the situation out of controlhere?”

Celeste bit her lower lip and began. “Well, it is more about alpha Drake's daughter from his previousmate, who died of ill health. My son, Sid, saw her with the rogues recently and believes she has beengiving them insider information, but since we think of her as a daughter, we have no idea how todeal with the situation.”

Celeste began sobbing and her mate got up from the floor to hold her close. Their son, Sid, toojoined them as they stood together.

Sid gave a defeated sigh. “After all the love and care that we gave her, this is what she has donebrought shame upon the name of our family and put everybody's life at risk.”

"Where is she? Why have you not punished her for her crimes already?” I asked. I did not likebackstabbers and loathed them to the core

Celeste broke into a fresh bout of tears. “We were going to offer her to you as a gift. We wanted herto live like a princess in a lavish castle. But we learned only now that she prefers those filthy rogues.”Sid ran a hand through his hair. “I saw her with her rogue boyfriend. We tried to catch them, butthey fled and we lost them. in the woods.”

My eyes went to Drusilla, who was already looking at them with pity. I was going to reprimand themfor their poor handling. of the situation, but she had a sympathetic look on her face.

She neared me and spoke, “They are troubled, King. Let us leave and let them handle the situationon their own. It is a matter of family.”

“I hate it when people you trust break it. Such people need to be punished,” I muttered angrily.Drusilla tried to calm ne down. “Yes, but she is already a rogue now. They will not accept her in thispack. And we are already hunting rogues We have found the root cause of our problem already.Sooner or later, we will replace her and then. you can deliver justice.”

Celeste seented to have heard Drusilla“s words for she immediately fell to her knees, startling myfriend.

"Bless you, dear girl. May the Moon Goddess soon give you a handsome mate.”

Drusilla’s expression stiffened, but she only helped the woman get up and spoke in a caring voice,"We understand that betrayal of our own is hard on you. I will suggest the King to be lenient withyou. And if you need more support or time, all you need to do is just ask

"When I replace her and I know that I will, I am going to take her. Consider that I have already acceptedyour gift. I will punish her in a way I deem fit.”

Iclenched my fists as the alpha thanked us profusely and I got up from the chair, signaling that I wasdone with the discussion.

And that is when I received a mind link from my beta, who said the words I had been wanting tohear. “King Callahan, she is

awake

Chapter 7

Zenovia

(Two weeks later)