The Lycan King's Second Chance Mate: Rise of the Traitor's Daughter-Chapter 100: A Hopeful Vampire

Sebastian~

Fox’s flames flickered between me and Brielle. My mind couldn’t comprehend what had just happened.

Brielle—my mate—had just tried to kill me.

I stood frozen, my body stiff as the reality of betrayal settled in my chest. The woman I had thought might be my salvation, my chance at something real, had lunged at me with a wooden stake, her expression void of hesitation.

Had I been too blind? Too foolish? Too hopeful?

I had always known I wasn’t an ideal choice for anyone. A vampire, feared by both humans and supernaturals alike. Even among my kind, I was different—an anomaly. A natural-born vampire, the rarest of my species. They called us purple-bloods, and because of it, I was either feared or hunted. People didn’t see me, only the power that flowed through my veins.

No one had ever wanted Sebastian.

Except Zane.

Zane, who had saved me from death, had treated me like a friend, like family. He had seen me as something more than just my bloodline. Zane filled a void in my life that I never thought possible. But romantic love? That had been a luxury I had never dared to dream of.

Until Brielle.

For the first time, I had let myself hope. And now, she had just tried to end me.

The crackling flames between us snapped me back to reality.

Fox stood in front of me, his fiery red hair seeming to glow in the flickering light. His golden eyes danced with amusement, despite the clear danger in the air.

"Whoa there, sweetheart," he drawled, tilting his head as he glanced at the pile of ashes where the stake had once been. "That’s no way to greet a guest."

Brielle didn’t respond.

But then Fox’s gaze lifted—not to Brielle, but behind her.

He smiled, but it wasn’t a friendly smile. It was knowing. Amused. Dangerous.

"Wow," Fox murmured, "look who finally decided to step out of the shadows. You’re trailing on dangerous grounds, Kalmia."

Kalmia? Who the hell was that?

A chill ran down my spine. There was no one there. No one except Brielle.

But Fox wasn’t talking to Brielle.

He was talking to something else.

Something unseen.

My pulse pounded in my ears as I forced my voice to work. "Who the hell are you talking to?"

Fox didn’t answer me. He just kept smiling at the empty air behind Brielle.

"Oh, don’t play coy," Fox continued, voice laced with mocking amusement. "You and I both know you don’t belong in this world. You’ve overstepped, Kalmia."

Still, no answer.

But something changed.

Brielle’s posture stiffened.

And then—she spoke.

Not in a voice I had expected. No, this voice couldn’t be normal. It was darker. Twisted.

"You have no power over me, Fire Spirit," she said, though she wasn’t looking at Fox. Her eyes were unmoving, glazed, as if she was staring into a void.

The hair on the back of my neck stood on end.

Fox chuckled, shaking his head. "You left your darkness unattended, Kalmia. Now you’re just an echo playing puppet master. I’d be careful if I were you." His golden eyes gleamed. "But do me a favor—don’t ever let me see you again. Next time, I won’t be so polite."

A low, invisible presence thickened around us like air. The room itself seemed to pulse with a sickening energy.

Then Brielle’s lips curled in a sneer. "This isn’t over."

And suddenly—Brielle collapsed.

My body moved before I could think.

I lunged forward, catching her just before she hit the ground.

She was unconscious. Her face—so perfect, so delicate—was slack, her breathing steady but shallow. She looked so fragile in my arms, so different from the cold killer she had been just moments ago.

I barely had time to process it when—

"Shit."

Zane’s voice snapped me out of my haze.

I turned my head just as he rushed past me, past Fox—toward something on the floor.

Something I hadn’t noticed before.

A body.

It was Griffin.

He lay sprawled out, deathly still, his eyes wide open but vacant.

A heavy scent of blood hung in the air, mingled with something darker. Something twisted.

Zane crouched beside him, his expression sad, but his voice was sharp. "She killed him. Brielle killed him."

I stiffened. "No."

Fox exhaled loudly, rubbing his temples like he was dealing with a group of unruly children. "No, Zane, she didn’t."

Zane’s head snapped up. "Then who the hell did?"

Fox smirked. "Kalmia. And before you ask who that is, she’s a demon."

A thick silence filled the room.

I swallowed, my grip tightening around Brielle.

The name sent a deep, crawling unease through me. I looked down at the woman in my arms, her soft features peaceful, almost angelic.

"What does Brielle have to do with a demon?" I whispered.

Fox turned his golden gaze on me, and for the first time since I’d met him, I felt genuine unease looking into his eyes.

He smiled. "Everything."

The seriousness of that one word settled deep in my chest.

Zane stood, wiping his hands on his pants, his expression resembling worry. "Is she gone?"

Fox shrugged. "For now."

"For now?" Zane echoed, his jaw clenching. "So she’ll be back?"

Fox only grinned. "Of course. Demons don’t just leave."

Zane ran a hand through his hair, exhaling in frustration. "What the hell did Griffin do to deserve this?"

Fox didn’t answer right away.

Instead, Fox walked over to Griffin’s body, crouching down.

He studied the corpse for a long moment before sighing. "I’m taking him with me."

Zane’s eyes narrowed. "Why?"

Fox simply smiled.

And didn’t answer.

I didn’t know what to think. Everything felt wrong. Like we had stumbled into something far darker than any of us had realized.

Fox straightened. "Zane, we need to go."

Zane frowned. "Why?"

Fox smirked. "Because the humans are about to wake up."

Zane blinked. "Wait—what?"

Fox stretched his arms lazily, like this was all just some boring inconvenience. "Kalmia put them to sleep. But that spell is breaking. You really wanna be standing in a room with a dead guy when a bunch of civilians come up to check if he’s ok?"

Zane cursed under his breath. "No wonder the hotel was so quiet."

I didn’t reply.

I wasn’t thinking about the hotel. Or Griffin. Or the demon.

I was staring down at the woman in my arms.

Brielle.

She was dangerous. Deadly. Possibly linked somehow to that demon.

But as I held her, all I could think about was how perfect she felt against me.

I had been a fool to let myself hope.

And yet—

I still wasn’t willing to let go.

Fox’s eyes gleamed as he placed a hand on Griffin’s lifeless body. A low hum filled the air, an unnatural stillness engulfed us. Then, as if the body had never been there in the first place, it dissolved into thin air. No ash, no blood, no trace—just gone.

I stiffened., Fox’s abilities unsettled me. The way the elements bent to his will, the way he and his siblings could make things disappear without so much as a flicker of effort—it was unnatural, eerie, and, quite frankly, annoying.

Fox turned to Zane, brushing his hands together as if dusting off the weight of the dead. "It’s time to go."

Zane exhaled through his nose, his hands clenching at his sides before he turned to me. "Sebastian, let’s go."

I didn’t move. Instead, I tightened my grip around Brielle. My mate. Her face was soft and relaxed, completely at odds with the fierce warrior I was positive she was.

"I’m staying," I said, my voice firm.

Zane’s jaw tensed. "Sebastian—"

"No," I cut him off. "I’m staying with her."

Zane looked at me like I had grown a second head. "She’s dangerous," he hissed, taking a step closer. "That thing—Kalmia—was inside her. You don’t know how much of it is still lingering around her. You don’t know what she’ll do when she wakes up."

"I don’t care," I said, voice unwavering. "I’m not leaving her."

Zane let out a frustrated breath, running a hand through his hair. "Damn it, Sebastian."

I turned to Fox. "Is she going to be okay?"

Fox studied Brielle for a moment, his fiery eyes shimmering. Then, with a small nod, he said, "Yeah. She’ll wake up soon."

Relief flooded my chest, but Zane was still glaring at me like I had just made the dumbest decision of my life.

"I’m staying too," Zane said suddenly.

Before I could protest, Fox’s sharp laughter cut through the room.

"No, you’re not."

Zane snapped his head toward him. "Excuse me?"

Fox smirked, his eyes glinting with mischief. "You have somewhere else to be."

Zane folded his arms across his chest. "Like hell I do."

Fox’s grin widened. "Oh, but you do." Then, with an infuriatingly casual tone, he said, "You need to go talk to Natalie."

Zane went rigid.

The shift in his expression was instant. His whole body tensed, his sharp blue eyes widening in something dangerously close to panic.

"Natalie?" His voice was no longer calm, no longer detached. It was frantic, desperate. "What’s wrong? Is she okay?"

Fox hummed thoughtfully. "Calm down. She’s fine." Then he leaned in slightly, his smirk deepening. "But you still need to go."

Zane looked torn, his instincts battling each other. He didn’t want to leave. He didn’t want to let me stay with Brielle. But the moment Natalie’s name was mentioned, all his focus shifted.

Fox reached out, placing a hand on Zane’s shoulder. Then he turned to me, winking.

"Take care, Sebastian."

And before Zane could utter another word—

They vanished.

Just like that.

Gone.

I blinked at the empty space where they had stood just moments ago.

"Damn fox," I muttered under my breath.

Then, slowly, I turned my attention back to the sleeping woman in my arms.

Brielle.

I sighed, carefully adjusting her in my hold before scooping her up completely. She was light, too light. For someone who tried to kill me, she looked fragile like this—vulnerable. It did something to my heart, seeing her like this.

I wasn’t going to let her slip through my fingers again.

I carried her up to one of the bedrooms, moving quietly through the empty house. The hotel was eerily silent, the remnants of Kalmia’s spell still lingering in the air.

Inside the room, I placed her carefully onto the massive bed. The moonlight streamed in from the floor-to-ceiling windows, glowing over over her sleeping form.

She looked peaceful.

For the first time since I met her, she looked... at rest.

I sat beside her, watching her, studying every detail of her face like a man obsessed.

Her long dark lashes fanned across her cheeks, her lips slightly parted, her dark hair spilling across the pillow in soft waves.

She was beautiful.

And she was mine.

I reached out, brushing a strand of hair from her face.

"You’re not running from me this time, Brielle," I murmured softly.

She didn’t stir.

I leaned closer, my voice low, intimate.

"I don’t care if you push me away. I don’t care if you wake up and tell me to leave. I’m not going anywhere."

I exhaled slowly, my fingers tracing over the back of her hand.

"That demon..." My jaw tightened. "Kalmia won’t take you from me. I’ll get rid of her. I don’t care what it takes."

I let my gaze roam over her once more, memorizing everything about her.

Damn, she was something.

I had spent years searching for something I didn’t even understand—only to now realize that the only thing I had ever truly needed was her.

I sighed, shaking my head. "You really are a pain in the ass, you know that?"

Then, she shifted.

It was a slight movement.

My breath caught in my lungs.

Slowly, her long, dark lashes fluttered.

And then her eyes opened.

Warm. Brown. Strangely familiar.

They locked onto mine instantly.

She blinked once, her brows furrowing slightly in confusion.

And then her lips parted, her voice soft, hoarse—

"...Sebastian?"

I smiled.

I had never heard my name sound so perfect...

"Wait...come again?"