Chapter 180: The Storm Breaks

Words : 1037 Updated : Sep 21st, 2025

Chapter 180: The Storm Breaks Zane~ I was done waiting. The silence was eating me alive, crawling beneath my skin like ants in my veins. Every second that passed without hearing Natalie’s voice felt like a blade slowly twisting in my chest. I couldn’t take it anymore. I yanked open the massive oak doors of my chamber and stormed into the hallway, boots pounding on the marble floor like war drums. The palace guards standing outside jumped to attention, but I didn’t look at them. I didn’t care. I was going to kill them—every single one of the guards my father had sent after Natalie. I didn’t care how loyal they were, how many years of service they had. If they laid even a finger on her or Alex... They were dead. I’d almost reached the outer corridor when a sharp voice cracked through the mind-link. "Zane." The mind-link flared to life like a lightning strike across my skull. It was Fox. His voice was sharp and laced with irritation. "What the hell was your father thinking sending guards after Natalie?" I froze, the world tilting. My breath caught in my throat. "Fox—thank the goddess—is she okay?" I demanded, already halfway down the corridor, heart thundering like an avalanche. There was a pause. Then Fox replied, cool and lethal. "No. She’s not okay." Everything in me stopped. The words gutted me. Red let out a roar inside me, so loud I staggered. "What do you mean?" I rasped, gripping the edge of a pillar like it was the only thing keeping me from collapsing. "Fox, what happened? Tell me!" Fox exhaled, his voice tight now. Controlled fury. "Listen. It was last night. Around 8:45. You had just left with Natalie—headed back to your marble prison. Alex couldn’t sleep. So Tiger stayed outside with him and Rose. They were watching a firefly show Tiger conjured up—just something to tire them out. Cute stuff. Real heart-melting.They were giggling, chasing lights, being kids. Tiger was nearby. So were the guards you left behind. supposedly watching the property." I stayed silent, heart in my throat. "Rose was the first to fall asleep," Fox continued. "So Tiger took her inside. It should’ve only been a few minutes. But that’s when it happened." "When what happened, Fox?" I growled, my voice breaking. My legs felt like stone, like my whole body was slowly sinking into the earth. "Alex caught your scent." Everything in me froze. I blinked "What scent?" I asked, quietly now. Dread climbing up my spine like ice. "I wasn’t there. What scent did he catch?" "He thought it was you, Zane," Fox said quietly. "He said it smelled just like you. So he ran toward it." The blood in my veins turned to ice. "Fox—no—" "He soon realized It wasn’t you." His voice dropped like a blade. "It was a decoy. A trap. Someone used something of yours. One of your shirts. They must’ve stolen it from your room at the palace. We didn’t ask. But they lured Alex out with your scent. That sweet kid, thinking his dad came back to surprise him, ran after it." I couldn’t breathe. I could see it. Alex’s little legs sprinting through the hedges, calling out for me. My name on his lips. Hope in his chest. Fox didn’t let up. His voice was sharp, each word like a blade. "The King’s men. Your father’s damn lapdogs. They convinced your guards that they had orders to retrieve Natalie. That it was official. So your guards let them in." I felt my pulse spike. "No..." "They let them in through the east gate. Didn’t even blink. And the bastards didn’t march in loud—they slithered behind the hedge maze like shadows with teeth. Just waited. Watching. Like jackals circling a wounded stag." "No." My voice broke before I could stop it. "No, no, he was alone—he was surrounded. Fox—please—just tell me he’s okay. Just say he’s alive." Fox’s eyes darkened, jaw clenched. "They waited until he was close. Then they lunged. Tried to snatch him like some animal in a snare. But this is Alex we’re talking about. He wasn’t going quietly." My breath caught in my throat. I could picture it already—too clearly. My son. Scared. Cornered. "He hates being touched by people he doesn’t know," I whispered, my stomach twisting. Fox nodded grimly. "Exactly. He freaked. Started screaming. His whole body trying to push back—then he tried to shift." My knees gave out. I hit the wall like dead weight. My hands were shaking. I could see it too well—Alex, eyes wide, calling for me with a voice I wasn’t there to answer. Trying to fight back with the only thing I taught him—his power. Fox’s voice dropped, the link between us heavy. "One of the soldiers panicked. A rookie. Young. Stupid. They weren’t supposed to harm him. That wasn’t part of the orders. But the idiot—he lost it." I felt it before he even said the words. "He stabbed him." Something primal tore out of me—part snarl, part scream. I slammed my fist into the stone wall with everything I had. It cracked, exploded, shards ricocheting across the corridor. My heart was no longer beating—it was pounding, feral and savage. "Those bastards—" The word shot out of me like a war cry. The ground trembled beneath my feet. "No. No. No!" "Zane." "I’ll kill them," I growled, rising so fast the air around me shattered. The wall behind me groaned and split. My claws unsheathed, Red’s rage roaring through my blood. Everything turned red. Red and black. Red and revenge. "I’ll rip them apart. One by one. I’ll burn them down to their names." "ZANE!" Fox’s voice cracked through my fury like a slap. The bond between us snapped taut. "He’s alive. He’s fine." The world halted. "What?" Fox let out an exasperated breath, I could imagine him scrubbing a hand down his face. "I said, he’s fine. You can stop huffing like a half-drowned kitten. The story doesn’t end with a tragedy. At least not ours." I blinked. Staggered. The storm inside me stilled—just slightly. "There’s... more?" Fox’s held quiet amusement as he replied, "You have no idea."

Chapter 180: The Storm Breaks

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