Page 15 of The Wolf’s Appetite (The Lycans #8)

LENNOX

M y father’s office was thick with tension, the kind that clung to your skin and soaked into your marrow.

A map of the property and its surrounding land was spread across the long table. Cian stood to my left, eyes sharp and calculating.

Caelan lounged in a leather chair with forced ease, one boot resting on the edge of the coffee table. But he was tense. I could tell by the way his fingers twitched near the hilt of a blade he always carried.

My father stood at the head of the map, arms crossed like a statue carved from old fury and hard-earned war.

I tried to focus. Gods, I did. But all I could think about was Aisling .

I listened to Cian and what had transpired while I was with Aisling at her cottage.

The Guard had recovered a body from the eastern perimeter—mangled… tortured. It was torn in a way that roared of dark intent and brute force. There was also the heavy air of magic that had clung to it, the kind only an Otherworld could sense.

The body was a Lycan soldier, and he hadn’t just been killed. He’d been targeted because of what he was and who he served.

Us.

My father’s voice cut through the indistinct murmur. “It was the Therabus.”

The room stilled.

My father tossed a parchment down onto the table. The markings on the material were old style—ancient. It was roughly drawn and crude in design and reeked of blood.

The design, one I’d never seen before, chilled the air.

“Witchcraft,” Cian said, jaw tight.

“Possibly,” Dad replied. “But darker than any we’ve seen in generations.”

“They left more than just a sign,” Caelan added, standing now, no longer feigning disinterest. “There were claw marks up the trees—deep ones. A clear warning. They wanted tae be seen . ”

“Okay, but why now?” I asked, tightening my jaw. “Why would the Therabus come out o’ their cursed hiding after all this time?”

Cian dragged a hand through his beard. “I donna think they’ve just come out. I think they’ve been out of hiding the whole time. Right under our noses.”

“The scholars have been digging through the old texts. Archives going back hundreds of years,” Father said, his focus on the map. “They think there may have been a fissure between the worlds.”

I glanced at Caelan, his expression tense.

“Said when there was the time rip and Kane was thrown from dimensions, things never healed or fused back together.”

“And they think the Therabus are using this instability as a power shift?” Caelan asked.

No one answered for long seconds.

“We donna kno’. It’s all speculation right now.”

Cian crossed his arms, eyes narrowed. “Maybe they want it tae stay open, tae have that instability and gain power and energy?”

I stared down at the map, tracing the edge of the marked territory with my gaze. The borderlands. Too quiet for too long. Whatever held the Therabus back before… it was breaking.

“We need tae start speaking truths.” Father said, his voice hard. “Whatever is coming—it will no’ stop at the edge of our forests. It will sweep through the realms like fire eating through a dry field unless we act.”

I crossed my arms, jaw tight. “So what’s the next step, Da?”

He growled. “It’s time we call in the fucking vampires.”

The room went dead silent. Although we were allies with the bloodsuckers, truth was that alliance was threadbare and always on the verge of collapsing. And all because their leader Adryan was a fucking sociopath.

Cian muttered a curse under his breath. Caelan let out a short bark of a laugh, but there was no humor in it.

“We donna have the numbers. The Guard’s been stretched thin patrolling, and if the records are right—if the old books are tae be believed—we’ve only seen a fraction of what this threat truly is.

” My father’s voice was low and dangerous.

“The Therabus will only gain control if we donna stop it before it spreads. They’ll be like a virus. ”

I narrowed my eyes. “I agree we need the help, Da, but Adryan is unstable as fook.”

“Aye,” my father agreed. “He’s a brutal and crazy motherfooker, aye, but he’s no fool. He and his cousins command armies of their own. They’re loyal to each other, and this concerns them, as well. The Therabus are a threat tae all Otherworlders—not just us Lycans.”

“And what makes ye think they’d fight with us?”

“Because I already sent word,” he said calmly.

“And Adryan answered.” In the dead silence, my father growled, sensing our distrust of the vampires.

“I made that decision as King,” he snapped back, voice steel.

“Because I will no’ sit by and watch this land fall tae rot and darkness when we have help.

” He eyed each of us. “They are already on their way. They’ll be welcome guests. ” His word was final.

I gritted my teeth. My heart was pounding, not from rage but from unease. Everything felt like it was moving too fast—like the ground was shifting beneath my feet, and not even my instincts could find solid ground.

“Aisling…” I murmured under my breath.

Caelan looked over. “What’s that?”

“Nothing.” I straightened.

“If Adryan and his brood are coming, we need tae be ready. Set parameters. Rules. We canna trust them tae walk freely among our people,” Cian’s voice was low but controlled and respectful toward his king.

“They’ll be given one wing of the keep, locked down tight, and watched at all hours,” Father assured him. “But I’ll no’ turn down help when we need it most.”

There was a beat of silence.

Then I said, “Adryan may claim he’s come for an alliance, but if he so much as breathes wrong, I’ll tear his fookin’ heart out myself.” I couldn’t stop thinking about Aisling under the same roof as the crazy-ass vampire. He may be mated now, but I felt that made him even more fucking insane.

Cian rubbed his jaw. “Gods help us if the Lycans and vampires are sharing space under the same roof.”

Father grunted. “Gods help them if they cross the wrong line.”

I said nothing more, but in the back of my mind, I wasn’t thinking about vampire alliances or ancient threats.

I was thinking about Aisling. About the way she tasted. The way her body had arched into mine like she was made for me.

And the fact my wolf still hadn’t surfaced… even as my body begged to make her mine in every primal sense.

If Adryan was coming, that meant more danger. And if more danger was coming… I needed to be at her side.