Lethal Temptation (by Michelle Ray) novel Chapter 121

121 The Battle Front

Lucian

We arrived at the scene-and it was chaos.

Gunfire had faded, but the violence hadn’t. Snarls, growls, and the sickening crunch of bone filled the air. The scent of blood clung to the wind.

My father immediately moved to organize the troops. Orders flew. We broke into our assigned formations, each Alpha taking command of their team. I didn’t waste time. Denis was already stripping down beside me, preparing to shift.

“The hell is this?” I linked him, surveying the battlefield. “Why is this still going on? They had guns, but they should’ve been overwhelmed by now.”

“They’ve had reinforcements,” Denis replied, his tone grim. “Not from the shores. From inside the island. Grey’s efforts there are useless-they predicted we’d defend the coast. These bastards came to Mooncrest in small groups, probably weeks ago. Settled in different areas. Now they’re converging.”

That explained the sustained resistance. “Have we interrogated any of them?”

Denis shook his head. “Wolfsbane. They carry it in their mouths. As soon as they’re caught, they bite down. Instant death. No information. No prisoners. Whoever sent them trained them to die rather than talk.”

My stomach turned. That level of fanaticism meant only one thing-this was more than territory. This was war fueled by belief or vengeance. Something personal. Something deep.

There was only one option now: kill them all.

I linked my father and Darian.

“No more mercy. No prisoners. Anyone without our mark dies. Pass it down.”

As I gave the order, something inside me shifted.

My alpha mark-etched into the skin of my upper right arm-flared to life in bright orange fire. Heat surged through me like a current. Around me, wolves howled. Then it happened-

All the marks on our warriors began to glow. Not just from our pack. Even wolves from other island packs -those sworn under us-had their secondary marks ignite with the same light. A glowing orange sigil burned onto every ally’s forehead. Clear. Unified.

The battlefield lit up with identification.

Our enemies remained shadowed, unmarked.

“What the hell… Lucian, how did you do that?” my father linked, astonished.

“I don’t know,” I replied truthfully. I didn’t. But whatever had awakened-it was Alpha-level. Maybe beyond.

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I tore off the last of my clothes and shifted, fur ripping through skin in a wave of heat and muscle. The glowing mark burned brighter on my arm even in wolf form, declaring me as the Alpha-no longer just in

name, but in power.

No more confusion. No more hesitation. Now we knew who belonged to Mooncrest-and who had come

to destroy it.

We charged.

Any wolf without a mark-dead. Any sign of hesitation-ripped through.

The night favored us. And no one could have predicted this.

Not even me.

Four hours in, the tide finally turned.

The enemy’s reinforcements stopped. Whatever force had been feeding their numbers dried up-and we tore through what remained. Ruthlessly. Precisely.

Some of our wolves were injured, especially those who’d taken the first wave of gunfire. But the rest?

Standing. Alive.

When the last enemy fell, I tilted my head to the sky and howled-to honor the dead, to thank the goddess, to commend every warrior who’d fought beside me.

The moon howled in response. One voice. One pack.

As the echoes faded, the glowing marks on our bodies began to dim. The fire on my arm flickered out, the strange burning that had anchored me throughout the battle finally subsiding. I noticed something else, too-wolves from the other packs no longer bore the temporary sigil. Their borrowed allegiance had ended with the fight.

We’d been unified in war. But peace returned us to our separate lines.

Darian found me as I shifted back into my human form. He was already dressed, wiping blood off his face

with a scrap of cloth.

“That was incredible, Lucian,” he said, eyes still wide. “The mark on my arm-it glowed. Bright as hell.”

“Did it burn?” I asked.

He shook his head. “No. Not like yours. But it was strong. Like it knew what it was doing.”

Our father approached, shifting as he reached us, his body limping from a deep gash in his side-but his

spirit was light.

“Victory is ours,” he declared, throwing an arm around both of us. “You two were exceptional. Lucian… you led like a true Alpha.”

His eyes softened as he looked at me. “When I was young, your great-grandfather could make our marks

121 The Battle Front

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glow during battle. Back then, all the island’s packs were direct descendants of Mooncrest. That’s why their marks answered yours tonight.”

Then his expression shifted, curious. “But how did you do it?”

I shrugged. “I wanted to win. I needed us to survive. I didn’t think-I just… did it.”

He grinned. “That’s the heart of a true Alpha. Whatever it was, it worked. We didn’t have to guess who was ours and who wasn’t. The mark showed us.”

I nodded. It had turned the chaos of battle into clarity. We moved like one because the battlefield looked like one. That’s what the mark had done-cut through doubt.

Denis arrived then, respectfully greeting my father and nodding to Darian and me.

Darian clapped him on the shoulder. “Congrats on the upcoming wedding, Denis. Big day’s around the corner, huh?”

I blinked. “Wait-you’re getting married soon? I thought you didn’t have a date yet,”

Denis chuckled. “Everyone seems to know, Alpha.”

“I’ve been a little preoccupied,” I said, and we all laughed quietly.

“Glad it’s over,” Darian murmured.

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