Curves And Claws: The Lycan King's Relentless Claim novel Chapter 138

Chapter 138

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I stood there long after Tyran and his people vanished into the darkness with my Roana. My boots felt rooted to the sand, as if the ground itself refused to let me move. The arena slowly eruptied, voices fading, weapons lowering, victory tasting like ash in my mouth. The bonfires crackled around us, their orange lames dancing against the night, casting long, broken shadows over the sand that stretched and warped like accusing fingers.

I could have killed them, but I knew that Tyran would never let us know how to move Roana from the truck since the bomb might trigger it. The thought burned behind my eyes, my jaw tightening as my claws threatened to surface beneath my skin.

Elle had already been taken to the tent we set up behind the forest. I had watched them carry her away, surrounded by guards and healers, her cries echoing faintly through the trees. I remembered the way her hands clutched at the air, the way her head rolled back dramatically. Even now, hours later, the sound lingered in my head, pulsing in rhythm with my heartbeat.

She was yet to give birth. And I couldn’t be happy about it. My lips pressed together as nausea rolled through my stomach. Guilt was all I could feel in my mouth. The taste was bitter, coating my tongue no matter how many times I swallowed.

But no matter how many orders I gave, no matter how steady my voice sounded, I couldn’t stop the pain clawing its way through my chest. It was relentless. Each breath felt too shallow, too tight. It shook me to my core.

Roana’s face haunted me. The way she smiled bitterly, the way her expression paled when I chose her. My throat tightened painfully. Fuck. What did I do? What had I done?

The way she looked at me when she mouthed those words. Calm and resigned. Her shoulders had been straight, her chin lifted, as if she refused to give anyone the satisfaction of seeing her break. As if she had already accepted her fate before I had even spoken mine.

I should have chosen her.

The truth burned so fiercely it made my vision blur. Heat gathered behind my eyes, my lashes stinging. I really wanted to choose her. I wanted to slaughter everyone in that arena, drown the sand in blood, tear that truck apart with my bare hands just to pull her back into my arms.

But my conscience… my mortality… my cursed sense of responsibility betrayed me. It wrapped around my throat like iron chains.

Not Elle. Not Roana. Not anyone else. The child.

That innocent life that hadn’t even taken its first breath yet.

That was what my mind clung to when everything else screamed at me to choose differently. My nails dug into my palms as if I could punish myself for it.

And now, standing alone beneath the cold stars, I couldn’t understand whether I had made the right decision or the most unforgivable mistake of my life. The night air felt heavier with every passing second.

When Tyran first told me to choose, I had already decided. I was going to choose Roana. That certainty had been ironclad, unshakable. That was why I asked her to keep an eye on Elle ongast time I thought if she stayed close, if Elle remained stable, I could move quickly I would take Roana from the truck and deal with the consequences later.

I had been so certain. So confident in my own control.

Yet in the end, I had no excuse strong enough to defend what I did I abandoned my own mate. The realization settled like a blade between my ribs.

I lowered myself onto a wooden chair near one of the bonfires. The movement felt stiff, mechanical, as if my body no longer

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Chapter 138

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fully belonged to me. The soldiers were gathered nearby, preparing food after hours of tension and bloodshed. Meat sizzled over open flames. Fat dripped, hissing softly Laughter rose quietly, restrained, as if they were afraid to enjoy themselves too loudly in my presence

The smell of smoke and roasted meat filled the air. Normally, it would have grounded me, reminded me of survival and camaraderie. Tonight, it made my stomach twist.

My hands trembled as I clasped them together, elbows resting on my knees 1 flexed my fingers repeatedly, trying to stearly them. My eyes drifted to the flames, watching them devour the wood piece by piece, relentless and unforgiving, until nothing but embers remained.

How long had Elle been in that tent now?

One hour? Two? I rolled my shoulders slightly, tension crawling up my spine. Each passing moment felt heavier than the last, pressing down on my chest until breathing felt like effort.

Your Majesty

Lorenzo’s voice cut through my thoughts, sharp enough to pull the back into reality. I looked up slowly, forcing my expression into something hard and controlled, my heart already bracing for more bad news.

“Elle is in labor,” he said. “Our female soldiers are handling it.”

I nodded once, although we both knew that truth for long, forcing myself to stay composed. My jaw tightened, muscles jumping beneath my skin. His hesitation didn’t escape me. He stopped mid-sentence, his jaw tightening as well, his weight shifting uneasily from one foot to the other.

“Is there anything else you should tell me?” I asked quietly, my voice low and dangerous, studying his posture, the way his shoulders were too stiff, the way his gaze refused to leave mine.

He hesitated, then reached into his coat. His fingers shook, guilt racked across his expression, his breath uneven.

“Well,” he said slowly. He pulled out the vial. The antidote I grabbed from Tyran.

It was half full.

Without breaking eye contact, Lorenzo tilted his hand and poured the remaining liquid onto the sand. The sound was soft, almost mocking. It soaked into the ground instantly, disappearing as if it had never existed.

My eyes widened. My breath stuttered. Because of this, I had to abandon my mate, and he just ruined it?

“It’s a medicine,” he said evenly, “to help a pregnant woman have a smoother, less painful childbirth.”

My breath caught. Disbelief washed over me in a cold wave, leaving my limbs numb.

“Elle has been in labor for six hours,” he continued. “But there are no drugs in her veins. No poison either.”

The world tilted.

My stomach dropped violently, as if the ground had vanished beneath my feet. A sharp rush filled my ears. I stood so abruptly that the chair scraped against the sand, toppling slightly behind me.

“You’re saying” I whispered, my voice hoarse and broken, “that ey tricked me?”

Lorenzo nodded grimly. “Unfortunately, yes. And I believe Elle new the plan

The fire roared louder in my ears. My pulse thundered. The face of Roana, the face of Tyran, and fragments of the arena flashed through my mind in jagged pieces. I was tricked? I was ked into abandoning my mate?

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Chapter 138

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“What did you just say?” My breath hitched, my chest tightening as something dark and violent began to coil inside me.

Cyrus snarled inside me, crawling under my skin. He was furious devastatingly angry, clawing at my restraint, demanding

blood.

“Yes, Your Majesty,” he said. “The blood on her body wasn’t hers. It was cow blood. And she is marked.”

My vision flickered. The edges darkened.

“By Marco,” he finished. “Her scent is mixed with his.”

Something inside me snapped.

My jaw clenched so hard it ached, teeth grinding audibly. Heat surged through my veins, sharp and violent, racing straight to my core. I felt it instantly, the familiar shift, the power rising whether I wanted it or not. My spine straightened, muscles tightening. The world sharpened unnaturally. Sounds grew louder. Scents stronger. I could smell fear, smoke, blood, lies.

I knew my eyes had changed color before Lorenzo even reacted. I saw it in his expression, the way he stiffened, the way his instinctive fear bled through his composure as he took a careful step back.

He spoke carefully. “It’s not your fault that you chose her. It’s not easy to read people, especially when pregnancy is involved. I think Roana understood as well.”

I let out a low, broken laugh that held no humor. It scraped my throat raw. “It doesn’t change the fact that I chose someone else.”

My hands curled into fists, nails biting into my palms until I felt pain, grounding and sharp.

“I already made her think I chose Carolyn once,” I continued bitterly, my voice shaking despite my effort. “Even when that wasn’t the truth. And now I watched her being taken away. Again

Lorenzo’s voice softened. “We don’t know where she is right now”

I lifted my head slowly. My neck felt stiff, my movements deliberate.

“I know where she is,” I said.

My eyes burned crimson in the firelight. Rage, guilt, and regret twisted together until I could barely breathe, until my chest felt too small to hold everything tearing through me.

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