The Golden Lycans (Ella) novel Chapter 87

< A Doorway?

A Doorway?

*Will***

+25 Points

It’s a little after four o’clock, and I lie on my bed, staring at the ceiling, thoughts looping endlessly in my mind. No matter how hard I try to ignore it, the knowledge sits at the back of my mind like a

parasite-Erebus knows I’m here…and he’s waiting.

He hadn’t reached out since my first week at Exton, but I feel it. The time is coming. I’d be hearing from him again soon-especially after what happened in London. The test that he had put Ella

through.

The connection I have to him is like a shadow stretching across my life, sullying anything that might otherwise bring me peace. At least when I’m around Ella, her energy is like pure light- blinding, consuming, capable of drowning out the ever-present that knaws at the edges of my

sanity.

My thoughts shift, unbidden, to Annabelle.

Meeting her after the winter break had been… unexpected. Sitting down with Ella for a quick chat, I hadn’t anticipated the tug I felt in my chest in Annabelle’s direction. A subtle pull, barely noticeable at first, but there and undeniable.

I can see the logic of it.

Me, a third-in-line alpha hybrid, always an outcast-too much of one thing, not enough of the other. And her, an omega who had likely felt just as misplaced due to her low rank, despite the wealth of her Gamma parents.

Neither of us needed to worry about our place in the pack. Neither of us had anything to prove. Maybe that’s why it felt easy. The possibility of simply existing together. No expectations. No

burdens. Just… us.

Then, without warning….a shockwave rips through me.

I bolt upright, every hair on my body standing on end. The air around me shifts, crackling, charged. I

can taste it…light energy.

Before I can register what’s happening, a tremendous burst of magic erupts somewhere nearby. The impact slams into me like a tidal wave. I fall off my bed, gasping on all-fours. It crashes through my senses, raw and unfiltered, leaving me momentarily stunned. My chest rises and falls rapidly as I brace myself against the floor, trying to ground myself against the intensity of it.

I know this magic. I’ve spent weeks training alongside it, aligning myself with its rhythm. It’s Ella.

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A Doorway?

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But this-this is greater than anything I’ve felt from her before. Stronger than when she was released from the talisman. I press my back against the bed, forcing my thoughts back into order.

What the hell just happened?

***Ella***

Freya and I step into the main hall, and I immediately notice that everything is back to normal-like last night’s party had never even happened. We grab our food and make our way to our usual table. It’s almost like any other day. Almost.

“I haven’t seen AB all day,” Freya muses as we settle in with our dinner trays.

“Maybe she’s busy with Will,” I tease, waggling my eyebrows.

Freya makes a disgusted face, “Ugh.”

“Come on,” I grin, “she seems pretty taken with him.”

“Yeah…” Freya sighs, twirling some spaghetti onto her fork, “she does.”

“Ah-speak of the devil.”

I nod toward the entrance as Annabelle strolls into the hall. A few minutes later, she joins us, her tray loaded with food, a glow practically radiating off her.

“How’s it going?” Freya asks casually.

Annabelle lifts an eyebrow, then gives us a sly smile.

“Oh my word,” she breathes dramatically, “things are just… amazing. Last night was really great.”

She takes a bite of her garlic bread, her eyes practically twinkling.

“I’ve never felt like this about a guy before. It’s crazy.”

I smirk.

“Aww, look at us-all smitten with guys. Maybe we’re starting the new year as we mean to go on?”

Annabelle’s grin turns positively wicked as she glances at Freya.

“Oh? All of us, huh? That fiery little dance did get you all worked up, didn’t it? Can’t say I blame you- it was intriguing to wat-”

Freya slaps a hand over Annabelle’s mouth.

“Can we NOT do this right now?” she hisses, sneaking a glance toward Ollie, “wolves have EARS.”

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<A Doorway?

He’s sitting a few tables away, deep in conversation with Austin and Dominic, his expression serious. I briefly wonder what they’re discussing before my attention is abruptly pulled away.

Will suddenly appears at the end of our table, perching on a chair with a very intense expression.

“Ella, what happened just after four o’clock today?” he asks urgently, “what did you do? Are you

alright?”

I blink at him, confused for a second-until it clicks.

“You felt that?”

Will nods emphatically.

“Yes! It literally knocked me to the floor. What the hell happened?”

I twirl some spaghetti around my fork, still not entirely sure how to explain it.

“To be honest? I’m not entirely sure myself,” I glance at him, “actually, can we meet in the greenhouse after dinner? You might be able to help me figure it out.”

Will studies me for a moment, then nods.

“Yeah, sure thing.”

At six o’clock I stood in the greenhouse with both Freya and Annabelle, who had decided they wanted to join in on this strange mystery. Annabelle hadn’t been in here since I’d entered the first time either, so she was quite keen to see how it looked now.

“This place looks intense compared to when Freya brought us both here back in November,” Annabelle said, looking around the place, clearly impressed.

“She has definitely been busy,” Freya comments, sniffing one of the many flowers I’d revived over

recent weeks.

“Austin calls it my ‘garden of Eden’,” I say proudly just as Will comes in through the door.

“So what’s this all-” he stops mid-sentence, his entire body going rigid. His eyes lock onto the

massive wisteria tree, his expression shifting from curiosity to outright shock.

“F*ck,” he breathes.

I cross my arms.

“Yeah… That burst of magic you felt earlier? That was me growing this.”

Will turns to me sharply.

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< A Doorway?

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“Why? Why this?”

exhale, shaking my head.

“I have no idea. It just… happened. It’s in the empty patch.”

His eyes narrow slightly.

“The one you’ve been mysteriously saving for no reason?”

“Yeah,” I admit, “I just… stuck my hands in and-boom-there it was.”

Will steps forward, studying the seven trunks that rise side by side against the wall, his hand reaching out almost instinctively. The moment his palm touches the bark, his eyes widen.

“Come feel this, Ella,” he says urgently. I go and stand next to him and place my palm against another of the trunks. I could feel a huge amount of energy surging under the surface of the trunk.

The tree is full of it.

“How?” I whisper.

Will shakes his head.

“I have no idea.”

He takes a step back, scanning the tree with an expression I recognize. He’s looking-not just with his eyes, but with that extra sense of his, the one that lets him see auras. After a long moment, he

blinks and refocuses.

“This tree…” he murmurs, “it’s a beacon of pure light magic. But I can’t tell where it’s drawing it

from.”

“We Lycan ladies are lost over here,” Annabelle interjects, “what language are you two speaking?”

Will chuckles and turns to her.

“Ella’s magic grew this tree, and just like how I see people’s auras, I can see the energy of this too.

But it’s not normal magic-it’s pure light. Pure goodness.”

He hovers his hand over the wisteria, concentrating. Then, with a small sigh, he shakes his head.

“I can’t really tell you much beyond that. This is all you, Els.”

I frown, deep in thought. Then, hesitantly, I ask, “Could… could it be a doorway?”

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