Page 53 of The Alpha's Lunar Crown

My eyes don't leave the picture, and it takes everything in me not to hurl the phone at the wall." How long has this been? His reunion with his father?"

This bastard has been hanging around Aurora from the very first day I ran into her. I have no doubt he is aware of our situation and the fact that Ronan is my son. It is hardly possible their relationship is a coincidence."A little over six years. Almost at the time, the attacks started. But here's the thing. At the time of the first attack, the one that led us to the queen, Kaden had not found Damon. Their reconnection happened somewhere in between."

"The attack," I fill in, putting two and two together. The attack on my wedding night was Damon. "Fucking sneaky son of a bitch."Liam raises an eyebrow. "You know him?"

"He is the vermin that's been hanging around Aurora."

Liam's eyes almost doubled in size. "Come again?""She said they were college mates, so I never bothered looking into him, but now it's all coming together."

"What is coming together?" Liam's confusion is still evident in his tone.

"His appearance, how is always around. She once said he's like a guardian angel and always appears whenever she needs him, but now that I think of it, what if he's always there because—"

"The situations were created by him to give her a false sense of security while he perpetuates his evil without suspicion," Lucien finishes off, and a new bolt of rage surges through me. The bastard has been hovering around my family like a fucking vulture. I'll make a corpse out of him.

"I want him found. Whatever it takes, I want him found and brought to me alive. Am I clear?" Before Liam could respond, my phone rang, cutting through the thick tension. The second I see Aurora's name on the screen, a protective streak washes over me.

I answer immediately. "Aurora?"

Her voice is shaky and frantic. "Lucien—he's gone. Ronan's gone."

The world around me slows. My grip on the phone tightens. "What do you mean he's gone?"

"He was in the backyard. He—he was just playing with his nanny, and she turned away for a moment, and then—" Her voice cracks. "I think Damon took him."

A growl rips through my chest, so deep it rattles the walls. Liam's head snaps up, already knowing something had gone terribly wrong.

"I'm coming to you," I say, my voice dark with promise. "I'll find him, Aurora. I swear it."

***

I arrive at Aurora's house to find her pacing in the living room, her eyes red-rimmed and her hands trembling. The moment she sees me, she rushes forward, gripping my arms.

"Lucien," she breathes as if saying my name is the only thing keeping her grounded. "We have to find him."

I cup her face, forcing her to meet my eyes. "We will."

She exhales shakily, nodding, but I can see the fear in her gaze. "He's just a child," she whispers. "He doesn't understand any of this. He did nothing wrong."

Rage burns through me, dark and consuming. "I'll kill him," I promise. "No one touches my son and lives to tell the tale."

"I can't believe I never saw him for who he truly is," Aurora says, her voice cracking at the end. "He checked all the boxes, sweet, caring, reliable, and always there, and I brought him into my home, into my baby's life, without knowing he is the devil incarnate."

I draw her into a tight hug, placing a kiss on her forehead. "None of this is your fault, baby. You can't beat yourself up for something beyond your control."

She sniffs. "But I could've been more careful.""But you're no mind reader. Like you said, he checked all the boxes. There was no reason to suspect him."

"When I catch him, I swear to the Goddess I'm going to…" her voice breaks into a sob. "I just want my baby."

"And we will find him," I reply, rocking her gently in my arms.

I glance at the wall clock, wondering when Selene would get here. I asked Liam to inform her of the situation and to dismiss all the plans we had. This calls for a fresh plan and immediate action.A knock at the door makes us both turn sharply. I instinctively move in front of Aurora. But when the door opens, it's Selene, and next to her is Liam. "I came as soon as I heard," she said, glancing between us. "What's the current situation?"

Aurora tenses beside me, but she doesn't say anything. Now isn't the time for old grudges. Now is the time for war.

"He was taken from the backyard. I've sent out scouts and trackers. People are looking all over for him."

"We need to move quickly," Selene says, drawing out a map from a bag I didn't notice her carrying. "If Damon took Ronan, he'll take him to Silver Pack. He'll want to use him as proof to show his father how much progress he's making. Which means he's probably going to travel through this point." She points her index finger to a spot on the map.

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