Davian.

The door burst open with force.

The sound alone was enough to snap whatever fragile silence remained in the room.

"Alpha!" one of the guards shouted, slightly out of breath as he rushed in. "Something... something just happened!"

My head snapped toward him immediately, his expression darkening. "What exactly happened?" I demanded, his voice sharp and commanding.

Aidan and Damien were already on their feet, their attention fully locked on the trembling guard.

"What is it?" Damien pressed impatiently. "Speak!"

The guard swallowed hard, clearly struggling to steady himself. "Alpha Adrien..." he began, hesitating for just a second.

My brothers stiffened.

"What about him?" Aidan snapped.

The guard lowered his head slightly. "He’s missing."

Everyone went still, as silence engulfed us.

"Missing?" I repeated slowly, my eyes narrowing dangerously. "Explain yourself."

"That’s not possible," Damien cut in immediately. "He was chained. Poisoned. He could barely control himself."

The guard shook his head quickly. "That’s exactly why we thought the same, Alpha. But when we went to check on him... he was gone. The chains were undone. He wasn’t there."

Aidan let out a low curse under his breath.

For a brief moment, none of them spoke.

Then our gazes met.

Something unspoken passed between us.

"Mind-link him," I ordered coldly.

Immediately, we all closed our eyes.

I could feel it, the pull, the connection, the silent call reaching out through the bond that tied us together as brothers.

Adrien.

Nothing.

Adrien, respond.

Still nothing.

The silence on the other end was deafening.

My jaw tightened as my eyes snapped open. "He’s blocking us... or something is wrong." 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Aidan’s expression darkened. "Then we track him the old way."

Scent.

Within seconds, we were already moving.

"Guards, with us!" I barked.

Boots echoed through the halls as we stormed out, our movements swift and coordinated. The tension in the air was suffocating, thick with urgency and something darker—fear.

Because if Adrien was truly gone...then something was terribly wrong.

***

The scent trail was faint at first.

But it was there.

Adrien’s scent.

We followed it without hesitation, moving deeper into the territory, past familiar grounds... and into somewhere far less welcoming.

The forbidden area.

Aidan’s brows furrowed. "Why would he come here?"

"Or who brought him here," Damien muttered.

The deeper we went, the heavier the air became. The forest grew denser, shadows stretching unnaturally as if swallowing the light itself.

And then we spotted an old abandoned building.

I stopped abruptly. "He’s here."

Without another word, we surged forward, shoving the doors open with force.

The wood slammed against the wall with a loud bang and then, we froze.

Because what we saw...was not what they expected.

"ADRIEN!"

The three of us echoed in unison.

Our voices collided, rising together in a sharp, disbelieving shout that cut through the air like a blade.

For a split second, none of us moved.

Because right in front of us, too close, far too close, was Adrein who stood with Maria pressed against him, his hand firm at her waist, his other tangled in her hair. His lips were on hers, not tentative, not hesitant, but consuming, like a predator claiming what it believed belonged to it.

The sight burned.

The room itself seemed to pulse, the atmosphere thick, heavy, suffocating with something none of us could quite name. Tension coiled in every corner, wrapping around my chest, tightening with every passing second.

What the hell was going on?

Adrien blinked then, as though only just remembering we existed. Slowly, almost lazily, he pulled back, his gaze drifting toward us with casual indifference. There was no guilt. No panic. Not even the slightest hint that he had been caught doing something wrong.

"Oh," he said lightly, brushing a hand through his hair as if he had merely been interrupted mid-conversation. "Brothers... you are here?"

The silence that followed wasn’t quiet.

It was explosive.

"What the hell do you think you’re doing?!" Aidan roared, his voice shaking the walls as he stepped forward, eyes blazing with raw, unrestrained fury.

Damien didn’t move, but his fists clenched so tightly at his sides that his knuckles turned white. "Have you completely lost your mind?" he demanded, his tone low, dangerous.

But me...

I said nothing at first.

My gaze slid between Adrien and Maria, slow and deliberate, cold enough to cut through steel. Every inch of me had gone rigid, something dark and possessive rising from deep within, something I couldn’t quite control.

"You’re standing there," I finally said, my voice quiet each word laced with something sharp and threatening, "with her?"

Adrien let out a small scoff, utterly unfazed, like none of this mattered.

"Relax," he muttered.

"Relax?" Aidan snapped immediately, disbelief flashing across his face. "You’re getting close to Maria like this... have you forgotten Vanessa?"

At the sound of that name, something inside me shifted, but not in the way they expected.

Vanessa.

That wasn’t what echoed in my mind, it wasn’t her name that burned through me. It was the sight of him—Adrien—standing so close to Maria, touching her, holding her like he had a right to.

And he didn’t.

Ever since I marked her...something had changed inside of me, something irreversible.

The thought of anyone else near her—of him near her—felt wrong and unacceptable because deep down, in a place I could no longer deny... I wanted Maria all to myself.

Adrien laughed, then looked at us, his expression turning serious.

"Vanessa?" he repeated, shaking his head slowly. "You three can go ahead with the engagement," he said, his voice calm but firm. "Go on with the wedding if you want."

Our expressions changed instantly.

Mine was filled with shock and disbelief.

But Adrein wasn’t done.

"Count me out of it," he added, his gaze flickering briefly to Maria before returning to us. "Because the only person I want..." he paused, his lips curling slightly. "...is my mate."

I froze.

There is no way I’m going to let Adrein claim Maria for himself.