Lycan's Prey by Jessica Hall

Chapter 96

Soren

Branches whip at my face, each lash searing into me that time is slipping through my fingers as howls rip through the night. Panic swells within me, an unrelenting emotion that propels my legs forward faster than I’ve ever dared to run. The soles of my boots are hot, and I can feel the thick soles burning my feet and the uneven forest floor. My breath comes in ragged gasps, white plumes in the chilled air that dissipate as quickly as my hope when I don’t find him straight away. I know he would have had to go through the forest; my men would have spotted him if he tried to go through the front gates.

The moon is high in the night sky and bathes the world in a ghostly silver hue. Its light slips through the dense canopy in shards, illuminating patches of gnarled roots and thorny underbrush that threaten to trip me and cost me precious time. Shadows flit and twist around me, playing tricks on my eyes–eyes that strain for any sign of him but only see my men searching in just as much panic as me.

My chest heaves with each heartbeat. I can almost feel the moon’s mocking gaze, its cool light casting long, grotesque shadows that seem to reach for me, as if the darkness itself is alive, hungering for the dread that clings to me like a second skin.

Sweat beads on my brow, despite the crisp air that stings my lungs. It’s not just the physical exertion; it’s the horror of the unknown, the terrifying possibility of what might happen if I don’t reach him in time. The stakes have never felt so dire,

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KIRA

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Chapter 96

1 288 Vouchers

me

scenarios I dare not fully imagine, each more

bone. Leaves slap and tear at my skin, unforgiving as the reason propelling me forward. My son, my heir, my little boy lost to

tonight, her realm bleeding into ours, anointing the earth with magic and madness. And out there, somewhere in this twisted maze of forest, Max’s innocence calls to them, he is the dominant species, Lycans are. Werewolves would see him, even as tiny

warns, its roar a tumultuous

the sound of the

the tumultuous roar of the river as

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Chapter 96

movement ahead.