Bought by the Beast King (Katerina and hunter) novel Chapter 144

17:45 Mon, Jan 5 Mau

Chapter 144

Chapter 144

HUNTER

I sensed the threat the moment Kitty pulled me outside.

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The air was heavy with it. The darkness prickled beneath my skin, stirred awake by something familiar but so deeply wrong. Something was coming for us. Or for me?

If what the Blackmores said was true, then the darkness bound to my blood would be like a beacon. If I faced it head–on…

Was this the day it got me?

My rage dulled as I tilted my head towards the nearly full moon. Five days. Five days to end this. To make sure Kitty lived through the storm closing in on us.

I helped her into the car, then lifted my gaze to Nathan. My lip curled into a snarl before I could stop it. Unwanted images flicked through my head. I saw his answer to this problem, the methods he’d use. I wanted to tear him apart.

Yet he was still the only one who could keep Kitty safe.

From me.

“Take her,” I growled.

“Wait–what?” Kitty grabbed my arm as I tried to shut the door. “Don’t go back in there. We need to leave.”

Her panic and fear rushed into me, gripping my heart. I pried her fingers loose gently, lifted her hand, and pressed my mouth to her knuckles.

“I’ll be fine,” I said quietly. “I’ll find you.”

I would never run from a fight. And if standing in its path was the only way to keep her breathing, then so be it. My beast was born for this. That darkness was a part of me–I would use it to protect her.

Not to end her.

I slammed the door shut, and Nathan pulled away before Kitty could argue again. By the time I’d stripped, the Blackmores had come out, their faces towards the coming threat. It was powerful magic. I felt it even from this distance.

“You should have left, Your Majesty,” Zachary said. “Whatever it is, it’s about to breach the wards.”

They had already formed a circle, their voices weaving together as they chanted. Zachary pulled a smooth pendant from beneath his shirt, and it glinted briefly in the moonlight before he clenched it in his fist. A golden haze surrounded it. It was ancient magic. Was it powering the wards?

“Even after I warned you what this feeds on, you stayed,” Zachary muttered.

A warning grow rumbled from my chest, and the old man recoiled, his fear spiking. So the bastard knew who I was, but he’d still tried to justify taking my mate.

I didn’t waste any more time. I took off down the path and shifted mid–stride. My enhanced senses locked onto the intruder instantly. The stench of that magic hit me first. It was sour, almost rotten, burning my nostrils. And the power within it pressed into my fur, even from this distance.

Elijah hadn’t smelled like that. His magic had no scent, no aura. When he vanished in front of me, there had been nothing to track.

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The magic didn’t hide. It roared across the land in violent red waves. Red, not gold, like the scent was raw or corrupt, What

was this?

I tore through the forest, trees splintering beneath my shoulder, leaping over obstacles that would have slowed me down once. The earth cracked underneath me from the strength in my legs. My new size no longer surprised me, but that new awareness did. Those threads of power woven through muscle and bone would take some time to master.

Miles vanished beneath my paws. Then my steps lightened. Quietened. Just as Kitty’s had done the night I’d chased her. The only sound left was the wind rushing past my ears.

And the thunderous impact against the wards.

The ground shuddered with the force of it. Something massive crashed against the wards. They must have used really potent magic to completely block the danger. Could Rivers do the same? Completely seal everyone, no matter their intent, outside the wards to protect Kitty? Everyone, including me.

But those thoughts disappeared as I got closer. My senses burned with the emotions that slammed into me.

Desperation. Fury. Agony. And darkness. So much darkness that I skidded to a halt, my claws carving into the earth.

Was I walking straight into the hands of the person behind Elijah?

I emerged onto the dirt path, my nose to the ground, teeth bared, and hackles raised. Then I froze.

At the turn into the dirt road, a path no one was supposed to see without an invitation, a large black werewolf hurled himself into the invisible barrier again. Trees shook, leaves rained down, and a loud crack echoed in the night. The wards were failing.

Who the hell was this? Red wisps lashed violently around him. They were nothing like the golden threads I usually saw. And his aura… It was not one I’d felt before.

But beneath the stench of decay, his scent was all too familiar.

Kostas.

Shock rippled through me as he struck the wards again. He looked rabid. Foamed flecked his muzzle, and he was larger than I remembered.

And his glowing yellow eyes were rimmed with red.

This wasn’t the man who’d knelt before me for three years, swallowing his pride as he begged me to find his sister. Logic told me he wasn’t the man behind Elijah. He’d have found Kitty sooner if he were.

As if he’d finally sensed me, he stopped and turned slowly. He looked mé directly in the eyes, challenging me despite our size difference. No hint of submission at all.

He backed away, not breaking eye contact, and rammed into the barrier again. The crack was louder this time, and the ward shimmered before me. I braced myself. I’d come ready to kill, and perhaps this would be my excuse. But would Kitty forgive me? I wasn’t ready to clash with her over her family yet.

Dust and grit swirled as I exhaled. His head would fit perfectly between my jaws. Just a little pull and he’d be gone. I could already see it playing out in my mind. The wards would break, Kostas would lunge at me, and that would be the end of his

story.

‘Please come back to me, Hunter‘

Kitty’s voice in my head sliced through my fantasy. I huffed and waited, watching Kostas‘ movements. The more I knew about what the hell was happening, the better I could protect Kitty. It was clear the Blackmores wouldn’t be on my side.

17:45 Mon, Jan 5 M TEA

Chapter 144

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