Chapter 89

Harper’s POV

A sound pulls me from sleep, and I turn over, smothering my face in my pillow to block it out.

But it comes again.

And again.

The muffled voices continue, and I sit up and rub at my bleary eyes. For the second time, I hear Lucas’s voice outside the bedroom door. Irritation spikes in me again as I realize he’s still close by and now he’s interrupting my sleep.

Slowly, I creep out of bed. I try to be as quiet as possible so he doesn’t hear me, and when I get to the door, I recognize the second voice.

“… border’s been restless all night,” Brandon says. I press closer to the door to hear better. “There are too many sightings of intruders for this to be anything other than an attack or infiltration.”

Intruders… my mind immediately jumps to Mason and Lucas’s conversation earlier. Mason’s warning about the Domain being angry and coming after us makes me curl my fingers into the hem of the oversized sleepshirt I’m wearing.

“I’ll take care of it,” Lucas replies, his voice tinted with sleep. I glance back at his bed then at the door again. Has he been sleeping out there in the living room?

“You’ve already been out there half the night. You came back two hours ago, but…” Brandon pauses, and I wish I could see through the door. “Did you get any sleep?”

“No.”

Someone sighs before Brandon speaks again, “Have you been sitting outside her bedroom door again? You know she’s safe here. Let yourself rest tonight, Luc.”

Sitting out there again? Does that mean he sat outside the door last night?

I don’t know if the thought of Lucas outside my door is comforting or concerning. Both, probably, because my heart flutters then constricts at the thought. Without making a noise, I shuffle back to the bed and climb onto it. My hand touches the invisible mate mark on my shoulder as it tingles.

Each time he’s near, it tingles, and it hasn’t stopped since I got back. Even when he leaves his room, it tingles… that means he’s been close the whole time.

Soon, the voices fade and disappear altogether. I worry my bottom lip between my teeth, twist my fingers in my shirt’s hem, and tap my toes against the mattress. Is Lucas going to deal with the intruders?

What if he’s too tired from guarding me and being on patrol?

Then my brain switches paths. Are these intruders really from the Domain? Or is it something else?

Five minutes, then ten minutes pass, and my curiosity grows until I finally jump out of bed. I shove my feet into my sneakers and go to the door. I have to see what’s happening.

The living room is dark, except for a small lamp, and I sneak through it like a character in a movie. I’m practically holding my breath as I slip into the hallway and head for the exit. There’s no one in the halls, since it’s nearly two in the morning, but I keep my eyes peeled for others.

By the time I make it outside, the night air is thick with the scent of pine trees and is completely silent. Not even the breeze makes a sound.

An ominous feeling falls over me, but I push forward.

I shouldn’t enter the forest, but something urges me to keep going. I do. The moon barely filters through the trees, shining just enough to light my path. I stumble over a root or two, using the trees as leverage to keep me from falling.

My heart beats louder and louder in my own ears, then, I hear something.

A rustle sounds ahead of me, and I freeze. I can’t see clearly through the darkness, but something dark darts through the trees ahead. I squint to see better, but it’s too dark.

Then, Lucas and a group of wolves burst through the trees. They’re chasing several wolves, moving quickly and precisely as they fight. My eyes catch on Lucas, though, and I watch as he cuts through the intruding wolves. His movements are swift and unforgiving as he slices claws at a black wolf that nearly blends into the shadows.

It brings back memories of the first time I saw him in wolf form, and it still takes my breath away. I can’t look away as he turns on a wolf that attacks one of our pack mates, taking it to the ground with a bite of his powerful jaws.

The wolves and men around them fight, and I tuck myself behind a tree to keep hidden.

A few of the intruders are in human form, and I notice one of them has a crossbow. He motions toward the shadows, and I look closer to find that a little further away, a massive wolf stalks the edge of the fight. He moves closer to Lucas just as the man lifts his crossbow.

A double-sided attack.

Lucas doesn’t see them coming.

My heart lurches.

I don’t think. I just grab the first thing I can find, my hand wrapping around a jagged rock at the base of the tree I’m hiding behind.

“Lucas!” I shout desperately.

I launch the rock at the man with the crossbow with everything in me. It sails through the air, Lucas spins, and the two enemies look at me.

The rock nails the man in the arm, making him drop the cross bow, but the wolf still lunges. However, Lucas is ready. He whirls around, shifting mid-turn, and catches the wolf by the throat. A sickening crack sounds through the air, and the wolf goes limp.

I gasp, and then, the crossbow man is in front of me.

I stumble back, but he grabs me by the arm, yanks me forward, and pins my back to his chest. Something cold touches my neck. For a moment, I can’t breathe. Everything narrows down to the cold metal at my neck.

The man’s voice is muffled by the rushing of blood in my ears.

My heart pounds in my chest.

I can’t stop myself from shaking.

My stomach churns.

It seems like everything is going to end… until Lucas appears in front of me.

He grabs the man’s hand, twists it, and then shoves him back. Suddenly, I’m free from the intruder’s hold and Lucas is pulling me behind him, snarling, “You don’t ever touch her!”

Lucas’s shoulders are heaving as he breathes heavily, his chest rising and falling fast. His eyes glow bright gold, burning with fury as he stands between me and my attacker. He doesn’t move, not even as the man scrambles to his feet and runs.

Behind us, his men finish off what’s left of the intruders, capturing some and chasing others off. My head spins, and I don’t realize I’m gripping the back of Lucas’s shirt until he tries to turn around.

“Are you alright?”

I try to release his shirt, but my fingers won’t obey my mental orders. I stare at my fingers where they’re tangled in the back of his shirt, and all I can hear is his words from earlier today.

You’re not a prisoner.

You’ll be protected.

My heart climbs into my throat as his words echo in my mind. He was serious. He protected me without hesitation, and that sends a flutter through the unsealed mate bond.

Fingers beneath my chin tilt my face up and make me look at him.

“Are you hurt?” Lucas asks, and I blink. Am I hurt?

I look down at myself but find no injuries.

“N-No. Are you?”

He shakes his head, “No. Thanks to you.”

I nod, swallowing the tension that grows within me. Gratitude also surfaces, blooming in my chest as I realize I almost died.

I don’t want to need Lucas, but Goddess help me, I feel safer with him than I ever have with anyone else. The feeling is strange, considering what has transpired between us. I’m still not sure if I can fully trust him not to hurt me again, but part of me wants to trust him again.

That thought alone scares me.