Page 33 of The Wolf’s Appetite (The Lycans #8)
LENNOX
I ’d hated leaving Aisling, but I’d stayed with her as long as I could before meeting with my Da, brothers, and the rest of the vampires and Lycans to figure this shit out.
We all knew this wasn’t a closed case. We had solved nothing but the immediate threat of that Leandrean in the manor.
The War Room felt smaller than usual, and the air was charged with the tension that made my Lycan pace with restless, feral energy inside me.
I’d been here for over an hour already, listening, watching, and trying to keep my temper and impatience to just go kill every fucking Katara member from spilling over.
Cian, Adryan, Sebastian, Kane, and Odhran were gathered around the long oak table that was littered with maps, hastily scribbled notes, and scraps of ancient scrolls written in dead languages and witches’ scribbles.
“What the hell happened out there?” Adryan demanded, his voice hard but low, as if speaking too loudly might invite the darkness back in.
He’d been there when shit hit the fan and knew the basics, but hell, we were all fucking confused and pissed.
“The Leandrean didn’t just come through the breach,” my Da said, leaning forward, elbows braced on the table. “They tested it first. Prodded at the seams before feeling confident to fucking slip through.”
“Like they knew exactly what they were looking for,” Cian added grimly under his breath.
My fists curled against my thighs. “Because they did. This wasn’t random. The witches said as much. They’ve been planning this for ages.”
“They were waiting for the right moment,” Tavish growled.
“They shouldn’t have been able to breach at all,” Odhran said. “Those wards were layered deep—bound, forged, and reinforced frequently.”
“The coven said what they said,” I murmured again because none of this mattered. What had happened… happened. We couldn’t go back. We couldn’t change an ything. We had to figure out how to stop this. “So here we are.”
The silence that followed was broken only by the faint rustle of paper as maps were unrolled and the low rumble of voices. “The witch—Magdalena—who sacrificed herself for my Aisling… she told me something.”
Everyone’s attention snapped to me instantly.
“She said this was always meant tae happen—that we–her, me, my mate–were always meant tae be here, together, for this moment.”
“What the fook does that mean?” Tavish asked.
My other triplet, Caelan, leaned back against the wall, arms folded and expression stern. All the males with mates held the same expression–a mixture of worry and anger that their mates and children had been too close to danger.
A muscle in my jaw ticked. “She also said there’s magic in play older than anything recorded. No’ the kind of darkness our enemies usually dabble in. It’s something deeper. Feral. It’s fooking magic that can rewrite the world.”
“The covens are working round the clock trying to track it, but we are getting word it’s too thick, too dark. It’s unlike anything they’ve seen or dealt with before,” Da said, his voice tight, his expression even more so.
“Their dark magic is… alive.” My voice sounded faraway as I stared at the maps.
“Until we know exactly what we are dealing with, we’re fighting blind,” Kane muttered.
Sebastian nodded. “The wards are holding—for now—but they won’t hold forever.”
My wolf pressed against my skin, restless and snarling at the thought of another threat to my female. “So, what’s the plan?”
“The plan,” Cian said, “is tae keep the wards reinforced, keep the breach under constant guard, and work with every damned coven willing to stand beside us. But even then…” He trailed off, expression and voice grim.
“If this magic is as dark as she says it is—we might no’ be able tae reseal it at all. ”
His words–the truth in them–settled heavy in my chest.
“And I assume that fucking portal rip could possibly stay open indefinitely or even widen and let more of these motherfuckers through?” Adryan said.
Da’s voice was flat when he said, “Aye. And then it won’t just be the Leandrean we’re dealing with. Anything on the other side will have free passage to come through.”
For a moment, the room was heavy and tense with fear, anger, and confusion. My Lycan didn’t like the uncertainty, the threat to what this all was. Aisling was still upstairs. My family and the females and the children were safe for now. But if this got any worse…
“I still donna understand what any of this has tae do with my mate and me and the witch,” I said, my voice like iron.
“No one fucking does,” Sebastian replied evenly.
Adryan broke the tension. “Until we have answers, we work with what we’ve got, and we work together. Wards, covens, constant patrols, and reaching out to all the other Otherworld factions for backup. We need all the alliances we can get right now.” He scrubbed a hand over his face.
I stepped up to the table, scanning the map one last time. “Then, we hold the line. And if this magic is as dark as they say…” My gaze swept over each of them. “Then we find something darker.”
It was a promise. Because whatever had been strong enough to make that breach and hold it open, it wasn’t finished.