Mate by Fate, Bound by Love

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*Adrian’s POV*

They came faster than I had expected. I wondered how long they had been planning this, how long they had waited to get their revenge on me. It was all beginning to make sense now. I understood why I stumbled upon Lena at that bar.

But what I still couldn’t comprehend was why the Moon Goddess made her my mate. I had never had a mate before; Claire was just handpicked as she had the grace of a Luna and came from a good background.

“What’s that sound?” Lena asked, her voice tinged with worry.

“They’re here for you,” I replied coldly.

“What do you mean? Who’s here for me?” she pressed, confusion evident in her tone.

“Ethan,” I said, watching closely for her reaction. But I couldn’t quite read her expression. She looked… disappointed? I couldn’t believe her. What was she trying to achieve? Play the victim until she had my head on a platter?

Never. I would never allow that to happen.

“Look here, Lena. I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but I won’t fall for this trap. If you know what’s good for you, do as we said earlier,” I warned, pointing towards my Beta. “Don’t try anything funny if you want your child to live. Even if you survive the electrocution, your baby might not.”

I ordered two guards to the front gate, knowing their assistance would be needed there. The banging was getting louder, and the iron barrier sounded weaker with each blow. It wouldn’t be long before we were breached.

“Come with me. We have to get the young and old wolves to safety first,” I instructed my Beta.

I glanced at Lena one last time, hoping to see an expression that said, ‘Yes, I have succeeded.’ Instead, I saw only despair and sadness. I pushed the feeling aside. I needed to be alert. With Ian gone, I had to be emotionally strong to have any chance against Ethan.

After a long assault, the iron doors finally collapsed, and Ethan’s people poured in. I followed my Beta to help the young and old wolves who couldn’t fight to safety. The rest who could fight waited with me in the Palace rooms.

We split our forces, half at the gate and half with me in the Palace. The sounds of clashing swords, axes, and flying arrows filled the air. They had come prepared and evolved.

‘Where are you, Ian? I need you right now. This is the time you have to show up,’ I pleaded silently. I knew I couldn’t defeat Ethan with my strength alone.

“We fight to the death, to save our land and family!” I rallied the warriors.

“We fight to the death!” they echoed.

I feared I was leading these people to their doom, but I couldn’t back down. Not now, not ever. Today was originally meant to be Lena’s execution day, but I had delayed it because of the child in her womb my child. How did they know to strike today? Had she found a way to send out information about her planned execution?

The fight outside was getting closer to the inner Palace doors. Suddenly, I saw someone enter through the secret back entrance of my chambers. I was shocked only I knew about that passage. Then I saw shining yellow eyes and long hair emerging from the shadows.

It was Claire. I felt a wave of relief.

“Where are the warriors you went with?” I asked.

“They joined the front lines,” she replied.

“Good,” I nodded.

“I came as fast as I could, Adrian. I told you Lena was up to no good, but you wouldn’t listen,” Claire chided.

“Now’s not the time for blame. We have a home to protect,” I cut her off.

“And we’ll die trying to protect it,” she said, looking me straight in the eye. I could see the sincerity there; she was truly ready to lay down her life for the pack. It filled me with a grim pride.

A loud thud on the door jolted our attention. It came again and again. On the third hit, the door crashed down, revealing angry red eyes, bloodthirsty and fierce. Looking at our numbers, I knew we were outnumbered. We couldn’t win this war unless Ian showed up, and right now, Ian was nowhere to be found.

“I guess you must be Adrian?” Ethan asked, his voice dripping with contempt.

I remained silent.

“And judging by how you’re standing so close to him, you must be Claire,” he continued.

“I see your spy dog gave you lots of information about us,” Claire spat.

“Spy dog?” Ethan laughed uncontrollably, his eyes still blazing red. “Oh, Lena was never a spy. Lena has such a great heart; she wouldn’t even hurt a fly. If you think Lena was a spy, then you’re delusional. Lena would never hurt anyone.”

“And you expect us to buy that bullshit?” Claire snarled.

“It’s up to you to believe it or not. After all, it won’t matter when you’re dead,” he said coldly.

“What do you mean Lena was never a spy? How did you know she was here, and how did you know to come on this particular day?” I demanded.

“A few days back, I received information that she was captured by you. I sent spies to confirm if the information was valid. They returned, telling me you planned on executing Lena today after finding a black witch.”

His eyes narrowed dangerously. “I couldn’t allow your plans to succeed and then have you end up killing Lena. Lena is more special than you know.”

“What do you mean by that?” I asked, a chill running down my spine.

The air crackled with tension as we stood on the precipice of a revelation that could change everything.

“Oh you don’t want to know Adrian, because if I tell you now, you will be rolling in regrets in your grave” Ethan said

I couldn’t understand what he was saying, and he wasn’t trying to make me understand.

“I will definitely not be the one dying here today” I said