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“Heat?” Lady Victoria’s celestial light flickered with concern. “But he’s barely twenty-one—far too young for a vampire’s first cycle.”

“Under normal circumstances, yes,” Lord Thanatos mused, shadows curling thoughtfully around his wings. “However, the ancient texts speak of certain… triggers.”

Lady Wei leaned forward. “Close proximity to a fated mate has been known to accelerate such things.”

The entire chamber seemed to hold its breath as every head turned toward the Whitlock brothers. Zane felt his wolf surge forward, suddenly very aware of how many eyes were fixed on them.

“Which raises an interesting question,” Lady Wei continued, her ancient eyes studying each brother in turn. “Which of you might be the fated mate?”

“Surely it would be Alpha Zane Whitlock,” Lord Harold Kingston suggested. “He is the alpha of the clan, after all.”

“But Luca is a vampire,” Lady Lucia Bellini countered. “Wouldn’t Alpha Sebastian Blackthorn be the more logical choice?”

Sebastian straightened in his chair, his aristocratic features thoughtful. “I’ve studied the pamphlet the elders provided quite thoroughly.” His lips twitched. “The one with the… interesting diagrams.”

“Those diagrams are essential reference material,” Lord Thanatos muttered.

“Indeed,” Sebastian continued smoothly. “But I don’t experience any of the signs listed. No overwhelming desire to claim or mark. No possessive urges. No dreams of eternal bonding under the midnight moon…” He glanced at the pamphlet. “Page twelve, subsection three, I believe.”

“Then what do you feel?” Lady Helena leaned forward eagerly.

“The same as Alan described,” Sebastian admitted. “An instinct to kneel, to protect and serve. Which, I must say, is quite fascinating for a vampire lord of my standing to feel toward such a young vampire.”

All eyes swung back to the brothers. Lord Johnathan’s gaze was particularly penetrating as he addressed Zane directly.

“And you, nephew? What do you feel toward Prince Luca?”

The brothers exchanged loaded glances, silent communication passing between them in seconds. All those moments of intense attraction, the overwhelming urges, the constant pull toward Luca… Could they really be signs of a fated bond?

Archer, in his typical fashion, broke the tension first. “Well, if we’re sharing…

” He grinned, though there was an edge of nervousness beneath his usual charm.

“He smells like cherry blossoms and moonlight. I haven’t been able to think straight since…

Keep wanting to wrap him in blankets and feed him blood-infused cookies. ”

The scratching of crystal styluses filled the air as scholars frantically recorded his words. But beneath the academic excitement, shock rippled through the chamber.

“You?” Lady Victoria’s celestial light pulsed with surprise. “Not Alpha Zane?”

“Actually…” Ryker’s quiet voice carried clearly in the stunned silence. “I’ve been experiencing similar reactions.”

The shock in the room doubled. Lady Wei’s teacup slipped from her fingers, saved only by her dragon reflexes.

“Both of you?” Lord Thanatos’s shadows twisted with interest. “Most unusual…”

“Three, actually,” Zane finally admitted, his wolf practically preening as he spoke the words aloud. “Since that first day he came out of seclusion and bit me… I’ve felt this pull. This need to claim him, to mark him as ours.”

The chamber erupted in chaos.

“Three mates?” “Is that even possible?” “The texts never mentioned—” “The power implications alone?—”

“SILENCE!” Lady Wei’s dragon magic crackled through the air, restoring order. “This is unprecedented.”

“Three alpha mates,” Lady Victoria breathed, her celestial light dancing with excitement. “And not just any alphas—the Whitlock brothers themselves!”

“The strongest wolf pack in New Vale,” Sebastian added thoughtfully. “Combined with a potentially powerful fated one…”

“The political implications alone,” Lord Harold Kingston murmured.

“Forget politics,” Lady Helena interrupted, her crystal tablet practically smoking as she recorded data. “The magical resonance of such a bond… Alan, are you getting these readings?”

Alan, who looked like he might faint from the historical significance of the moment, nodded vigorously.

“But this is wonderful news!” Lady Lucia clapped her hands together. “A fated one with three powerful protectors—Dark Haven and Silver Crown wouldn’t dare?—”

“Unless they see it as an even greater threat,” Lord Johnathan cut in, his expression grave. “Three alphas bound to one fated one… some might view such power as too dangerous to allow.”

The brothers stiffened at the implied threat, their wolves surging forward protectively. The temperature in the chamber dropped several degrees as Zane’s celestial ice responded to his anger, while storm clouds gathered in Ryker’s eyes and golden light flickered around Archer’s form.

Suddenly, the chamber doors burst open with enough force to crack the ancient wood. Several elders bristled at the interruption, their power flaring in instinctive response. Lady Victoria’s celestial light dimmed with disapproval, while Lord Thanatos’s shadows writhed in annoyance.

But Owen Whitlock, head of clan security and one of the most disciplined wolves in New Vale, ignored the council’s reaction completely. His face was ashen, his usual military bearing shattered as he gasped out two words that turned the room’s irritation to ice: “Luca’s taken.”

The temperature in the room plummeted. Frost crackled across the marble floor from where Zane stood. Lightning sparked around Ryker’s clenched fists. The shadows behind Archer writhed with golden fire.

“What?” The word came out as more growl than speech from all three brothers.

“Security footage shows Percy Hutton taking him during the hospital evacuation,” Owen reported rapidly. “They’re using a stolen transport in the UTS, heading south.”

“South?” Lord Richard’s face darkened with understanding. “He’s running to Dark Haven.”

“I’ve already alerted the elite guard units,” Owen continued. “But they’re moving fast through the transit system.”

“The council authorizes immediate deployment of all border security forces,” Lady Wei announced. “Lord Johnathan?”

The Whitlock Elder nodded grimly. “Council is adjourned. Owen, coordinate with the border units. We cannot let them cross into Dark Haven territory.”

The chamber erupted into controlled chaos. Lady Victoria’s celestial light flared as she began issuing orders, while Lady Wei’s dragon magic crackled through emergency communication crystals. “All border patrols on high alert. If Dark Haven’s hunters are involved?—”

“They must be,” Lord Johnathan’s voice cut through the chaos. “Percy wouldn’t risk this without backup.”

“Get the emergency vehicles ready!” Lady Wei shot orders to the waiting elite guards. “All units to their positions!”

“How dare they.” Lord Thanatos’ shadows writhed with cold fury. “Stealing a fated one from New Vale itself?”

“Alpha teams in position,” Lord Johnathan commanded as guards rushed to their vehicles. “No one crosses that barrier without council authorization!”

Lady Victoria’s celestial light flared as she strode toward the waiting transport. “Let’s remind Dark Haven why they don’t touch what belongs to New Vale.”

Zane could barely hear them over his wolf’s howling rage. Luca. Their Luca. Their possibly fated mate, taken while they sat here discussing prophecies and bonds.

“The Emergency Transit System,” Sebastian said sharply. “It’s our only chance to intercept them before the border.”

The brothers exchanged glances, their pack bond thrumming with shared fury and fear. Without another word, they turned and ran.

The journey to the ETS station passed in a blur of crystalline corridors and startled faces.

They emerged into a vast underground chamber that hummed with ancient power.

Massive archways lined the walls, each leading to a different territory.

Council forces poured in from multiple entrances, their movements precise and practiced.

“Gates charging,” a controller announced as power surged through the station’s crystal matrix. “Emergency protocols engaged. All nonessential transport suspended.”

But the brothers were already shifting. Bones cracked and reformed as fur rippled over skin.

Where three men had stood, three massive wolves now crouched—Zane’s silver-white form wreathed in celestial frost, Ryker’s dark-blond fur crackling with storm energy, and Archer’s golden coat shimmering with solar light.

They didn’t wait for the council forces. As soon as the nearest gate pulsed with activation energy, they charged into the tunnel.

The ETS was unlike anything else in New Vale. Not just a transport system, but a network of space-bending passages that could cross kilometers in seconds. Ancient magic twisted reality around them as they ran, their enhanced bodies pushing the system’s limits.

Every kilometer, the tunnel’s crystal nodes flashed, teleporting them forward in massive leaps. The sensation would have been disorienting if not for their wolves’ primal focus on one goal: Luca.

If Percy hurts him… Archer’s thoughts rippled through their pack bond, golden light flaring around his form.

We’ll reach him, Ryker’s mental voice carried the promise of thunder.

He’s scared, Zane growled, his wolf somehow sensing Luca’s distress. Can you feel it?

They could. Something about their possible fated bond let them sense his emotions, growing stronger as they drew closer. Fear, confusion, and underneath it all, a building power that made their fur stand on end.

The tunnel’s magic propelled them forward with increasing urgency, as if the ancient system itself recognized their need. They passed junction after junction, following Luca’s scent and the pull of their bonds.

Finally, they burst from the tunnel into the twisted forests of Death District. Their enhanced sight cut through the gloom, picking out details of the scene before them.

At the edge of a cliff, near the shimmering barrier that separated New Vale from Dark Haven, stood a group of dark figures. Percy and his cronies cowered before a tall vampire whose darkness made the shadows themselves recoil—Dominic Nightshade.

And in his arms…

Luca hung like a broken doll, his skin glowing with fever-bright power. As they watched in horror, Nightshade lowered his head toward Luca’s exposed throat, fangs extended.

Three howls shattered the night—deep, primal sounds that carried all their rage and fear and desperate need to protect. They launched themselves from the cliff’s edge, power blazing around them like falling stars.

But before they could reach him, Luca’s eyes snapped open. Pure light exploded outward, catching them mid-leap and throwing them back like leaves in a hurricane. Their powers scattered—midnight frost, lightning strikes, and golden sunlight—as his blast overwhelmed their defenses.

They landed hard, skidding through ancient soil as Luca’s power continued to pulse.

When they could finally look up, they saw him floating high above them, suspended in a maelstrom of pure light.

His nightshirt and hair floated around him like dark silk in water, his skin blazing with otherworldly radiance.