*NEW* Chapter XXXVI

Derek

Vanessa was waiting outside Lydia's door, her arms crossed, impatience clear in her stance. "She's not answering," she muttered, glancing at me.

A deep sense of unease settled in my chest. I called Lydia's name, knocking firmly, but there was no response. My wolf stirred anxiously, and then it hit me—a sharp, gut-wrenching pain in my chest. She was in danger.

Turning to the guards stationed nearby, I demanded, "Did she leave?"

One of them hesitated before answering, "She went to Vanessa's room earlier and didn't return. We... we didn't think anything of it."

Vanessa's face darkened. "I never saw her. I left to talk to Caleb on the phone."

Every single one of them looked ready to bolt, tails tucked between their legs. They were all in serious trouble.

I didn't waste another second. Striding toward the reception desk, I ordered them to open the door. The moment the lock clicked and the door swung open, my worst fears were confirmed.

The room was empty.

All of Lydia's belongings were still there, as if she had left in a hurry. Her phone lay untouched on the side table, and beside it—a letter. Addressed to me.

My hands trembled slightly as I picked it up. Unfolding the paper, my eyes scanned her words, each one cutting deeper than the last.

She thanked me for everything—my patience, my love, my loyalty, my protection. But she had to leave. I was meant to be king, and she couldn't stand in the way of that.

We belong to different worlds, and where two distinct bodies of water meet, there is only tumult and chaos. We cannot mix.

She had never told me she loved me, but this—this was her way of showing it. Her sacrifice, her departure, was her way of caring for me. She begged me to ensure that a tyrant never rises.

By the time I reached the end of the letter, I was sitting on the floor, my head in my hands. My wolf howled in agony, clawing at me from within. She was gone.

Vanessa knelt beside me, her voice hesitant. "Is that from Lydia? What does she say?"

I barely found my voice. "She's gone."

The words felt like ash in my mouth. After years of searching, I thought I had found my mate. I had fought for her, done everything Vanessa had begged me to—given her space, held back, let her come to me at her own pace. I would have waited another ten years if that's what it took for her to love me.

But she had decided to leave.

Fate had never been kind to me.

I could feel my wolf crying inside me, the pain raw and suffocating. Why had fate healed me, restored my strength, only to take away the one thing I needed most?

There was no time to grieve.

Caleb burst into the room, his expression grim. "There's been an attack on the witches."

My head snapped up. "Was Lydia there?"

Caleb hesitated, surprised by the question. Vanessa quickly filled him in. "Lydia left."

Caleb's face tightened. "The council crew was ambushed. There are injuries, casualties—but Lydia isn't among them. She's missing."

My mind raced, the pieces falling into place like a nightmare unfolding in slow motion.

I pushed to my feet. "Are Arabella and the Snow Alpha still here?"

Caleb blinked. "Last I checked, yes—"

I didn't need to hear the rest.

I knew where she was. And I would tear the world apart to get her back.