Chapter 9: The Hunt Begins

The forest reeked of death. Lucien paced the manor’s entrance, his muscles coiled like a predator ready to strike. The pack stood behind him, restless and anxious, their eyes darting toward the corrupted tree line. The once vibrant forest had rotted overnight — blackened leaves fell like ash, and the ground pulsed with a slow, unnatural heartbeat. The curse was spreading. And Evelyn was the source. Lucien clenched his fists, claws digging into his palms. “We move now,” he growled, voice rough as gravel. “Before it gets worse.” “Alpha,” one of the pack members hesitated, stepping forward. “What if she’s already dead?” Lucien’s glare cut through him like a blade. “She’s not,” he snarled. “I’d feel it.” Serena was alive. Barely. He could feel her through the bond, her pulse faint and uneven. Every breath she took was like a thread unraveling, and the more the forest decayed, the weaker she became. If Evelyn wasn’t stopped, the forest would kill her. Or worse — it would keep her