CHAPTER <b>56 </b>


    Elias and I were lying in bed, his chest pressed against my back as he gently kissed my shoulder.


    “Are you okay?” he asked softly.


    “Yeah. I feel really good,” I replied, letting out a yawn. Elias chuckled and kissed my shoulder again.


    “Get some sleep. I’ll still be here when you wake up,” he murmured.


    I was surprised at how quickly I drifted off, and almost instantly I found myself in a ce I’d never seen before.


    ***


    **


    “Alpha, the vampires are getting closer,” a warrior reported. This Alpha looked different from the one in my earlier dream–his clothes were more modern, cing him a few centuries after the first King I had seen.


    “The shield over the castle will hold. We’ll be fine,” the King replied.


    “I know that, sir. But it’s the warriors outside the barrier I’m worried about,” the warrior said.


    “Their duty is to protect the royal family, and that’s exactly what they’re doing. Why are you telling me this? Go back out and do your job. Where are my sons?” he asked.


    “Three of your sons have fallen already, sir. I’ve ordered thest two to return to the castle. They must carry on your legacy,” the warrior responded.


    “Tell them toe see me as soon as they arrive. Now get back out there and defend the castle,” the King ordered. The warrior turned and ran back outside, and the King stepped out onto the grand front steps of the castle.


    The drop in front of the entrance was steep, but he looked out past the soldiers, over the forest, and toward the ocean shimmering below the cliffs that held the castle.


    “Where are the children?” the Luna cried as she rushed outside.


    “Get back inside, woman. They’re on their way now. They’ll be here soon,” he barked, pushing her back in. She stumbled and fell, but he didn’t look back.


    He focused again on the distant battle, the hills rolling in the background.


    This vampire–werewolf war had raged for seven years now. The one before thatsted twelve,


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    < CHAPTER 56


    both sides suffering heavy losses.


    “This won’t be the end of my bloodline,” the King muttered under his breath.


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    I jolted awake, and it must’ve startled Elias because he sat up as well.


    The sun had already risen. We had slept straight through the night out of sheer exhaustion,


    but none of that mattered now.


    “What’s wrong?” he asked.


    “I know where the castle is,” I said.


    “Are you sure?” he asked, his eyes narrowing.


    “Yes. We need to go there,” I insisted.


    “Where is it?” he asked. <fnc403> This content belongs to f?ndnovel</fnc403>


    “Ashveil Woods. In California,” I told him.


    “There’s nothing in Ashveil Woods–not even houses, let alone castles,” he said.


    “It’s hidden. Protected by a cloaking spell. That’s why no one can see it,” I exined.


    “Then how are we supposed to find it?” he asked.


    “I don’t know. But I’m certain it’s there. We have to go,” I said firmly.


    “Alright. I’ll tell everyone to start packing,” he said, kissing me quickly before jumping out of bed and slipping into his shorts.


    I got up and dressed, and soon Elias had spread the word. Everyone was packing whatever they could. We were leaving the pack. We were heading for the castle.


    He told them I believed I had discovered its location, and that we were setting out immediately to find it.


    Elias and I packed up too, loading all our belongings into vehicles. Since it was all the way across the country, driving made more sense–it would take several days, but it was far easier than running the entire way.


    Besides, we weren’t being hunted at the moment.


    When I came outside to hand Elias his bag, I noticed Mona and a few other women standing beside another car, ring at me.


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    < CHAPTER 56


    “Don’t pay them any mind,” Elias said.


    “It’s kind of hard not to when they’re ring daggers at their Luna,” I replied.


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    “I know. And if they don’t stop, I’ll be telling them to find somewhere else to go,” he said.


    “This pack’s getting smaller,” I murmured.


    “Don’t worry about that. We’ll handle it. Right now, let’s just get to the castle,” he said. I reached out and stopped him from walking off, gently running my finger over the mark on his


    neck.


    “That’s the reason they’re looking at me like that,” I said.


    “Because we marked each other,” he replied.


    “Yeah,” I nodded. He gave me a quick wink before turning and walking away.


    I ced my bag into the back of the car, and I felt someone approaching from behind. The scent hit me instantly–it was Mona.


    I turned to face her just as she bared her canines, ready to strike. Instinctively, I raised my hands to shield myself, but I identally flung her through the air, sending her crashing into


    the nearest house.


    “What the hell happened?” Elias called as he rushed over.


    “She just attacked me for no reason,” Mona whimpered as she got to her feet.


    “Lyra?” Elias asked.


    “It wasn’t unprovoked–she came at me with her canines out. I acted in self–defense. I didn’t know what she was going to do,” I said.


    “Alpha, you’ve known me longer. You’re really going to take her word over mine?” Mona


    asked.


    “Lyra’s telling the truth,” Elias answered.


    “What?” Mona gasped.


    “See this mark? I can sense what she feels–almost hear her thoughts. And before she sent you flying, I felt her fear. That’s how I know it was self–defense,” Elias snapped.


    “It was just a joke,” Mona muttered.


    <b>“</b>If you ever threaten your Luna again, you’re out. That goes for all of you,<i>” </i>Elias growled,


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    < CHAPTER 56


    turning to re at the group of women still standing where Mona had been.


    “Yes, Alpha,” they answered in unison.


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    “Let’s move out,” Elias shouted to everyone. So we all piled into our cars, with Elias and me


    leading the convoy.


    All I had was the vision from my dream, but I needed to see it for myself before I could be sure of the castle’s location.


    I couldn’t describe exactly where it was–but I’d recognize it the moment I was there. I was


    certain of that.


    We made sure there were at least three people in every vehicle so we wouldn’t have to stop for anything except gas. It took us three days to drive to California.


    Once we reached the highway running through the forest, I told Elias to stay on it until I said


    otherwise.


    There were lots of exits, but we drove for a long stretch before I finally instructed him to turn


    left.


    We exited the freeway and took a dirt road that cut through the woods and led toward the ocean. I could smell the sea air already, and thendmarks from my dream started matching up. I told Elias to stop the car.


    We both stepped out and looked around, puzzled. I <i>knew </i>this was the ce from my dream.


    “There’s nothing here.”


    “She just wasted our time,” a girl snapped bitterly.


    “I can feel it,” I said quietly.


    “What do you mean?” Elias asked. I began walking forward, pulled by something invisible, as if the ce itself was calling to me,


    I crossed a barrier that no one else could see, and suddenly I stood in front of a massive gray stone castle. It was perfectly preserved, sitting atop the cliff with a stunning view of the


    ocean<b>. </b>


    “Lyra!” Elias’s voice rang out, muffled. I turned around and realized–he was still standing <b>on </b>the other side. He couldn’t see me at all.


    < CHAPTER 57


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