Page 53 of The Breeding Cave

CHAPTER FIFTY-THREE

YEOSIN

I chewed on the inside of my cheek as Luciano parked his fancy, sleek car in front of a half-burned-down house.

“This is my old packhouse,” he said, jaw twitching. He peered in the rearview mirror. “The dragons burned it during the war. I don’t come here much anymore, but it is the only place that I can bring you right now, especially with this fucker following us.”

The structure, though ravaged by flames, still had a certain type of … familiarity to it. In its former glory, it must’ve been a homely place, where young beasts ran around with their friends; elders sat around a fire, talking about life; and leaders like Luciano made war plans.

Once Luciano stepped out of the car, he grabbed my hand, his warmth around mine.

“Yeosin,” he murmured, his voice a soft growl that sent shivers down my spine, “this used to be our home. One day, I will rebuild it for you and our family. I don’t care how long it takes. I promise you that our life won’t always be like this.”

I squeezed his hand and stepped into the house. What had it looked like before the dragons ruined it? The walls were now crumbled, blackened by fire. The roof had caved in several places, leaving only ash.

Still, somehow, I knew that it had once been beautiful.

“I can’t believe they did this,” I whispered, clenching my fists.

I knew that they had. I knew they were capable. And part of me knew they would happily cause this destruction.

But how could anyone want destruction and death like this? What had caused the dragons to hate the beasts this much? Why had the war begun again? And why weren’t the dragons satisfied that they had killed almost every one of them?

While I might’ve been born human, I was becoming more beast every day, and these ruins were a part of our history. The dragons had stolen something precious from us, and I couldn’t stand the thought of them going unpunished.

“I won’t let them get away with this,” I growled, canines lengthening.

We walked through the ruins, Luciano pointing out where the dining hall used to be, the grand staircase that had once led to the upper floors, and the courtyard where pack members would gather for celebrations.

I tried to picture it all, imagining the laughter and the sense of community that had once thrived here. But it was hard, especially when Luciano was looking over his shoulder, waiting for Gideon to walk in because he was definitely here with us now.

“It must’ve been beautiful,” I said.

“It will be again,” Luciano said, tugging me behind him in the kitchen that led out into the backyard. He turned toward the door we had entered, his body tensing. “If you’re going to follow us, you might as well show yourself, Gideon.”

Gideon emerged from the other room, his gaze cast on the ground. Usually, he wasn’t so submissive, so saddened. I had only seen the nice but stern part of Gideon a handful of times at the coffee shop.

But he looked … almost sad here.

“I was just about to bring Yeosin to your grave,” Luciano said. “Care to join us?”

“No, I am here to ensure Yeosin’s safety,” Gideon said, straightening himself out. “She’s not safe here.”

Conflicting emotions surged inside me, but I buried them all away and stayed put behind Luciano. He didn’t trust Gideon for a reason, and I trusted Luciano. I wanted answers just as badly as my mate, but I had made a promise to myself that I would have Luciano’s baby.

Our baby.

“I’m fine,” I finally said once the tension became enough.

“Is that so?” Gideon peered at Luciano. “She carries our future after all.”

“Our future?” Luciano growled. “Yeosin is my mate, Gideon. Don’t overstep.”

Gideon’s expression remained calm, but there was a glint of mischief in his eyes. “I’ve tried to be nice. I’ve tried to protect her. Most importantly, I’ve tried to keep quiet about the curse, but Yeosin deserves to hear the truth for her own protection.”

I furrowed my brow. “What are you talking about? What don’t I know?”

“Shut your fucking mouth before I tear it off,” Luciano snarled.

Gideon stepped forward. “Do you want to know why you feel this connection with both?—”

Before Gideon could finish his sentence, a deafening roar echoed through the ruins. The sky darkened as massive, winged creatures descended upon us. The dragons were here. They had found us, and we were alone.