Morning came slowly.
Soft grey light slipped through the tall windows of Kael's room, touching the wooden floor, the quiet walls… and the bed where he still slept.
For once, the Alpha of the pack looked peaceful.
No tension in his jaw.
No weight of leadership pressing on his shoulders.
Just a man, resting beside the woman who had finally become his.
His mate.
His Luna.
But the space beside him was empty.
The sheets were cool.
And the scent of golden fairy magic was fading.
Kael stirred.
At first, he didn't wake completely.
His arm moved instinctively across the bed, searching for warmth.
Searching for her.
His fingers touched nothing.
His brows tightened slightly.
Still half asleep, he reached again.
Nothing.
The bed was empty.
His eyes opened slowly.
Golden irises adjusting to the light.
For a moment he simply stared at the ceiling, the events of the night drifting back into his mind.
Lia's voice.
Her soft laughter.
The way she had looked at him before everything changed.
A small smile touched his lips.
Then he turned his head.
And the smile disappeared.
The bed beside him was empty.
Kael sat up slowly.
"Lia?"
His voice was rough from sleep.
The room was quiet.
Too quiet.
He frowned slightly, running a hand through his dark hair.
"She probably went downstairs," he muttered under his breath.
But something didn't feel right.
His wolf stirred uneasily.
Kael swung his legs off the bed and stood, scanning the room.
Her clothes were gone.
The faint golden glow of fairy magic that usually lingered around her scent…
Was barely there.
His chest tightened.
"Lia?"
This time his voice was louder.
Still no answer.
Then he felt it.
The mate bond.
A strange hollow sensation in his chest.
Not broken.
But distant.
Far away.
Like trying to reach someone through a thick wall of fog.
Kael froze.
His wolf surged forward violently.
Something is wrong.
His breathing slowed.
Dangerously slow.
The air around him shifted.
Alpha energy began to leak from his body instinctively.
Low.
Heavy.
Predatory.
He walked toward the window slowly, scanning the forest outside.
Nothing moved.
No sign of her.
No scent trail.
No magic trace.
Just empty morning air.
Realization began creeping into his mind.
Dark.
Cold.
Impossible.
"She left."
The words came out quietly.
But the moment he said them out loud, something inside him snapped.
The glass window beside him cracked instantly.
Kael's fist slammed against the wall with a violent crack.
The entire room trembled slightly under the force.
His wolf roared inside his head.
MATE. GONE.
Kael's breathing became uneven.
Not sadness.
Not yet.
Just pure instinct.
Pure rage.
Downstairs, the pack felt it immediately.
The moment Kael's Alpha aura exploded through the house.
Soren looked up sharply from the kitchen table.
"What the hell..."
Rowan froze mid step.
Ayara's golden eyes widened slightly.
"Something happened," she murmured.
Then the entire house shook slightly.
A deep growl echoed from upstairs.
Not just anger.
Something darker.
More dangerous.
Alpha fury.
Soren ran upstairs first.
He pushed Kael's door open
And stopped.
The room looked like a storm had passed through it.
Cracks in the walls.
Broken glass on the floor.
The air thick with Alpha dominance.
Kael stood near the window.
Completely still.
But the energy around him felt lethal.
Soren frowned.
"Kael?"
No response.
Soren's eyes moved to the bed.
Then realization hit him.
"Where's Lia?"
Slowly…
Very slowly…
Kael turned his head.
His golden eyes were glowing now.
Not warm.
Not soft.
Pure wolf.
"Gone."
The word came out cold.
Soren blinked.
"Gone… what do you mean gone?"
Kael didn't answer immediately.
His gaze drifted to the empty side of the bed again.
His jaw tightened.
"She left."
The room fell silent.
Rowan and Ayara appeared behind Soren, both sensing the tension instantly.
Ayara studied Kael carefully.
Then her eyes narrowed slightly.
"She didn't leave without reason."
Kael's gaze snapped to her instantly.
Danger flashed in his eyes.
"Then explain it."
Ayara didn't look afraid.
She simply watched him calmly.
"Her magic was always restless."
"She carried fear with her."
Kael's fists clenched slowly.
"That doesn't explain why she left."
Then suddenly his wolf surged again.
The mate bond pulsed faintly.
Far away.
But still there.
Alive.
Kael's head lifted slightly.
His eyes sharpened.
"She's still out there."
Soren crossed his arms.
"Well obviously."
Kael turned toward the door.
Energy rolling off him like a storm about to break.
"Get the pack ready."
His voice was calm now.
Too calm.
The kind of calm that came before something violent.
Soren raised an eyebrow.
"For what?"
Kael's golden eyes darkened.
"To find my mate."
His voice dropped lower.
More dangerous.
"And when I do…"
His claws slowly extended.
"…she's never leaving my side again."
Outside, the forest wind moved quietly through the trees.
Carrying faint traces of golden fairy magic.
And somewhere far away…
Lia was running.
Unaware that the Alpha she left behind had already begun the hunt.