<h4>Chapter 429: Chapter 429 Shadows Rising</h4>
Author’s pov
Dark power filled the air as Belinda suddenly appeared in front of Cecilia.
ck shadows swirled around Xenia’s small body like smoke.
The witch’s eyes burned with crazy desire as she reached toward Cecilia.
"This child belongs to me!" Belinda snarled, her voice full of evil.
Alpha Sebastian moved lightning fast. His huge wolf form jumped between his mate and the witch.
His fur stood up with protective anger as he took the full hit of Belinda’s dark magic.
ck energy crashed into his body, cutting his flesh and breaking his bones.
Blood sshed across the deck as three ribs cracked loudly.
Even in pain, Soren kept growling.
"You will never touch them," Alpha Sebastian’s voice came from the wolf’s throat, rough but clear. "Not while I’m alive."
Cecilia bent over in pain, holding her stomach.
The baby kicked harder than ever before, like it could sense the danger.
Each kick felt like her child was fighting back, refusing to ept the witch’s im.
"The ritual has already begun," Belindaughed, pointing toward the center of the yacht’s ballroom.
The fancy floor cracked open.
An old stone altar slowly rose up from below.
It was covered in glowing symbols that pulsed with sick green light.
Evil energy radiated from it.
"Three centuries of preparation," the witch said, starting to chant in anguage that made people’s ears bleed just from hearing it. "The sacred binding will not be stopped."
As the chanting got louder, Alpha Sebastian fell to his knees. His wolf form fought against an invisible force trying to control his mind.
Cecilia watched in horror as his golden eyes flickered between normal andpletely ck.
"Help him!" she screamed.
Alpha Xavier and Alpha Gavin rushed to Alpha Sebastian’s sides. They each put a hand on his massive shoulders.
Beta Sawyer and Tangpleted the formation, loyal to his Alpha no matter what.
They helped him fight the mind control trying to take over.
Golden light began to glow around them, pushing back against Belinda’s darkness.
In the middle of this power struggle, something unexpected happened.
Xenia’s body shook violently.
For a brief moment, her real self broke through.
"Mom... help me..." the real Xenia’s voice emerged, scared and childlike. "She’s... inside me... the ruby... her weakness is the ruby..."
Maggie had just run into the ballroom after hearing the noise.
She froze when she heard her daughter’s true voice.
Her face changed from confusion to shocked understanding.
"Xenia! My baby!" Maggie screamed, pushing through everyone to reach her daughter.
"The ruby!" Cecilia pointed to the blood-red gem hanging from Xenia’s neck. "Xavier, Gavin—destroy it!"
The two Alphas moved together perfectly, attacking from different sides.
But Belinda was ready.
A wall of pure darkness shot up around her, throwing both men backward.
"You think I wouldn’t protect my anchor?" the witch sneered. "After three hundred years, I’ve learned to guard against every—"
She never finished.
Maggie, driven by fierce mother’s love and desperation, threw herself through the barrier.
The dark magic burned her skin like acid, but she kept going.
"Get out of my daughter!" Maggie howled, reaching for the ruby.
Belinda struck back hard, sending a spike of dark energy through Maggie’s chest. Blood sttered across Xenia’s face as Maggie fell, but her fingers grabbed the ruby pendant.
The crack that formed in the gem sent shockwaves through the room.
Belinda screamed, a sound so terrible it shattered every wine ss within fifty feet.
"You fool!" the witch shrieked, her control over Xenia’s body weakening. "You’ve ruined everything!"
Maggiey dying on the floor, but her eyes showed fierce victory. "My daughter... not yours..." she whispered.
Belinda’s power flickered.
The controlled Moonveil members stumbled in their attacks.
Some dropped to their knees, looking confused. But the witch wasn’t done.
"If I can’t have the perfect vessel," she hissed, raising Xenia’s arms overhead, "then none of you will leave this ce alive!"
She started a new spell, darker and more terrible than before.
The yacht shook beneath them as water began rushing in from below.
The ritual altar glowed blood-red, the symbols shifting to form a pattern of destruction.
Alpha Sebastian rose to his full height, his wolf form seeming to grow even bigger. Raw Alpha power crackled around him like electricity.
His mate bond with Cecilia pulsed between them like a living thing, feeding his strength.
"Enough," he growled, the single word carrying all his Alpha authority.
Cecilia felt something wake up inside her, beyond the baby’s movements.
Warmth spread from her heart through her whole body.
The Alpha bloodline of her unborn child awakened within her, responding to the threat.
Her family’s role as the bridge between werewolf and human worlds allowed her to channel this protective power.
Soft white light glowed from her skin, fighting against the darkness around Belinda.
Three powers crashed together in the center of the sinking yacht: Belinda’s ancient darkness, Alpha Sebastian’s primal Alpha strength, and Cecilia’s channeled protective power.
The yacht lurched hard. Water poured in through holes in the hull.
Guests screamed and ran for safety as the once-beautiful ballroom tilted dangerously.
"Everyone, move to the upper deck!" Cassian shouted, taking charge of getting people out while the Alphas fought the witch.
Through the chaos, Cecilia could see the fight had worn Belinda down.
The witch’s stolen body shook with exhaustion. Her dark magic flickered like a dying me.
As the yacht began sinking into the cold water, they faced a terrible choice: escape while they could, or finish the fight with the witch and risk everyone’s lives.
The water rose higher.
Time was running out.