The Lycan King and his Dark Temptation novel Chapter 387

KATHERINE

The scream got stuck in my throat.

It was nothing but a blur—heavy footsteps thundering against the earth, emerging from the deep forest, massive claws reaching for Francis’s back.

Its roar tore through the night, shaking the entire world. The man who had me trapped had no time to react.

A shriek of agony filled the air when that fur-covered hand latched onto his throat, holding him like a ragdoll.

It lifted him over its head, wrenching him away from me.

Before my eyes, it stood like a giant—merciless, red-eyed, its gaze like two frozen rubies.

The force of the impact made me collapse against the tree, hugging my knees tightly to my chest as if they could protect me.

I was trembling, my teeth chattering, my vision flooded with crimson as a rain of blood poured from above.

Francis’s body was shredded between its claws. Its gaping maw didn’t stop roaring, consumed by visceral hatred.

Organs flew through the air, staining the green grass—an arm landed near my feet.

I curled up even tighter, trying to make myself invisible, hoping to go unnoticed. A few terrified tears slipped down my cheeks.

What was this creature? I had never seen anything like it in my life.

And after killing Francis, would it come for my head next?

*****

All my questions would soon be answered.

The slaughter was over. It tossed the soldier’s head aside as if it were nothing.

Despite the situation, a dark satisfaction stirred within me at the sight of his torn, distorted face—empty eye sockets, muscles and bone protruding, brain half-exposed.

For a moment, I even forgot about his executioner.

But when my erratic gaze returned to the creature, I found it standing still in the middle of the clearing.

Rigid.

Like it had just realized something.

Then, its massive, lupine head slowly turned toward me.

That was its form—an enormous dark-brown wolf standing on its powerful hind legs, like a towering, savage man but in its most primal beastly shape.

The thought of running crossed my mind. It flashed through my head while those fierce eyes locked onto mine, filled with panic.

But I couldn’t move. I was frozen—paralyzed by sheer terror.

I shrank even further, curling into myself as I watched it lower its front limbs, pressing them into the grass. It advanced like an animal, one step at a time, slowly.

I stared at its fangs, sharp enough to tear my throat apart in a second. Then it suddenly shut its mouth. It felt like it was studying my reactions… another step. My heart pounded wildly.

*****

ELLIOT

"You’re scaring her! Let me out, damn it!"

"NO! You can't protect my female! Look at what that bastard was doing to her—she reeks of him! I hate him so much! If you had let me take control earlier, none of this would have happened! I would never have let her be hurt! I would never have left Katherine!"

"Vorath, I already explained the situation! Let me out so I can talk to her, calm her down! You should have killed that man somewhere else—now she’s terrified of you!"

"Don’t call me by my name! You have no right! Only Katherine can! And fuck no, you’re not coming out! I can comfort my mate just fine! I’ll show her that with her, I’m a good wolf! I love her! I only act this way toward those who try to harm her!"

We had been arguing since the moment my inner wolf broke free from the chains I had placed on him.

Now, I watched through his eyes, adjusting to this strange sensation as my woman trembled beneath the overwhelming aura of my Lycan, while he licked her face all over.

I could feel his intense desires, his deep emotions. He called her mate, his fated one.

That profound connection I had always felt with Katherine but could never explain—my beast had recognized it, even from within his prison.

I knew I had been wrong to suppress him. I had feared what I couldn’t control and the consequences it would bring in this cursed realm.

Now, I had to figure out how to make my woman understand that this beast—the one who had just ripped a man apart before her horrified eyes and was dying to mark her with his scent—was none other than her husband.

The Duke of Everhart.