Chapter 167: Long-Awaited Reunion

Instantly, I felt the back of my eyes burn with unshed tears. My throat felt like it was closing up, and all of a sudden, I felt the entire weight of everything that had happened crash upon me.

Lucien looked a little more tired than I had last seen him. He was wearing a wig that hid his silver hair, but I would recognize his face anywhere. His eyes were weary, and there were some fresh cuts and bruises scattered across his skin that were healing in real time.

His werewolf healing was fighting every bit of damage that had been done to his body, and I watched as they vanished before my very eyes. The smaller injuries disappeared fairly quickly, while the larger ones took a while.

I reached a hand out, gently cradling his cheek. He leaned into my touch almost instantly, holding my hand tenderly in his before turning slightly so that he could kiss the palm of my hand. A pleased shiver ran through my body as I felt the soft skin of his lips on my skin, and a wellspring of tenderness threatened to overwhelm me the more I gazed at him. I wanted to commit every bit of his appearance to my memory, even if it was difficult to do since my sight was getting blurry with tears.

Lucien smiled brighter at me. "Silly girl. Don’t cry. Look― I’m perfectly fine."

As if to prove my point, the rest of his wounds healed without a trace with my touch. Lucien pressed another reverent kiss, this time on the back of my hand, like a knight kissing a lady.

"Told you I wasn’t lying," Ralph grumbled sulkily in the background, his voice filled with grievances. "If you had just listened to me, you would have reunited earlier. But no, you even punched me in the nose for no good reason."

However, Lucien and I both ignored him. It was terrible, but truthfully, I had almost forgotten Ralph existed. We were too enraptured by each other, and I refused to let my eyes leave him for even a second.

"Come," Lucien said, gently tugging at my arm as he turned around. "Let’s go. This time, I’ll make sure to keep you safe. You won’t ever have to suffer again."

"I―" The smile that was blooming on my lips disappeared in an instant. I wanted nothing more than to follow him, but I couldn’t simply leave like that, not when Willow was still lying unconscious in her bed and I was still none the wiser about the culprit.

Could I just leave now, and trust that the other Alphas would do her justice when they’ve failed so terribly the first time around?

I don’t think I could live with myself if that happened. I reluctantly stood my ground and shook off Lucien’s hold. When Lucien realized that I wasn’t eagerly following after him, he paused and turned back to look at me, confused.

"What’s wrong?" he asked, a trace of worry entering his voice as he looked over me with a more critical eye. "Are you injured? Do you need me to carry you?"

"I..." I hesitated, gulping.

Was this really what I wanted? After waiting so long to be reunited with Lucien again, now that I finally had the chance to leave, I didn’t feel the urge to disappear from Shadowclaw forever. Just the very thought made me feel incredibly guilty towards Lucien. He had spent so much effort trying to get to me, yet here I was dragging my feet, suddenly unwilling to leave the place that had been my prison, all because of a certain few people’s change of heart.

The marks on my neck burned, and I raised a hand to touch them, as though rubbing against them would make the tingling sensation disappear.

Finally, I spit out the words, "I can’t."

Lucien’s eyes trailed after my movement, finally landing on my neck. When he realized that there were two marks there, his expression darkened, and I could visibly see the storm clouds gathering in his eyes. His golden irises began to pulse, their light flickering as he struggled to control his rage, and by extension, his wolf.

"Wait," I said, holding two hands out against his chest. "I can explain."

"Who did this?" he asked. His voice was low and guttural, and I inhaled sharply in response. "Who marked you without your permission?"

His second question had me stumped. My eyes widened, and my entire body suddenly loosened up like a deflated balloon.

"You... think that they did this without my permission?" I asked unsurely.

"Of course," Lucien said with a frown. "Knowing those bastards, they probably took you by force, did they not? They’ve always been like this. Besides, I trust you infinitely more than all three of them combined."

Seeing the surprise in my eyes, Lucien faltered for a moment. The light in his eyes dimmed completely, and I watched as the anger on his features slowly morphed into hurt.

"Unless..." he said, "you allowed it?"

I pursed my lips. I didn’t exactly allow them to mark me, but circumstances made it difficult for me to completely push them away. If I had gone through extreme measures, I could’ve possibly prevented these marks, but I didn’t resort to them.

In truth, guilt ate at me alive. I felt dirty and used, especially when I should’ve been waiting for Lucien instead, the only man whom I wanted to accept as my fated mate.

Lucien took my silence as a form of confirmation. His shoulders slumped, and even the rims of his eyes were starting to turn a little red. The niggling guilt I felt was overpowering, and I wanted nothing more than to hug him tight.

"I mean," he said, his voice sounding small and choked up. "If you wanted them to mark you, I would be fine with it as well. They are your fated mates too, after all." He looked like a puppy on the roadside that had been kicked. "I was just hoping that I could be your first―"

"You’re the only one I want as my mate. You’re the one I love the most," I blurted out. Reaching forward, I quickly grabbed Lucien’s hands in mine. "And no, they’re not the reasons why I want to stay. I don’t know if you still remember Willow."

"Your sister?" Lucien asked, cocking his head to the side. "I thought she went missing a while ago. Wasn’t she presumed dead?"

A short distance away, Ralph slightly jolted to attention. He straightened a little more, keenly listening to what I had to say. If I had more time to think, I would wonder why he didn’t report this particular fact to Lucien, since he had been hanging out with her unconscious body.

But since time was of the essence, I replied to Lucien, my words coming out in a hurried tumble.

"Well, she’s not. I found her wandering in the wild, injured. We barely managed to bring her to the pack in time, but... she’s still unconscious. I need to know what happened to her, and who did it to her," I continued. "I cannot leave until then. I hope you understand," I finished quietly, squeezing Lucien’s hands tightly.

"I see," Lucien replied evenly as he pulled a hand away from my hold, and my heart sank. I lowered my eyes. I didn’t have the guts to keep looking at him, not when I had let down his hopes. I was sure this wasn’t the reunion outcome he had in mind.

"Silly girl." There was a pause as Lucien sighed before he flicked my forehead with his fingers. I glanced up, surprised at the tired, yet soft smile he wore on his face. "If this is the problem, then it’s no issue at all."

"We can’t bring her with us," I said warily. "She needs constant medical attention." And facilities that a rogue pack would not have, but I didn’t think I needed to bring that up to Lucien. But Lucien only laughed and shook his head.

"No, of course not. That would be highly irresponsible and dangerous. Since you want to stay, then I’ll simply stay with you. I heard you have a huge room now; would you mind sharing it with me?"

"Yes― I mean, no!" I quickly retorted, squashing down my instinctive response to agree. "Are you nuts? You can’t!" I exclaimed, my eyes widened with alarm even as my heart raced with anticipation at the thought of waking up next to him every day.

"And why can’t I?" he asked with a huff. "I refuse to leave you here alone with only my brothers for company. If you are not willing to share your bed, I’ll take the floor if it pleases you."

"It’s not about that!" I cried out, sensing he was being flippant on purpose. "So do you remember you have three brothers. Need I remind you that they’re all trying to kill you? I can’t make you stay here when it’s so dangerous for you!"