The Lycan King's Second Chance Mate: Rise of the Traitor's Daughter
Chapter 48: Risking Everything.

Chapter 48: Risking Everything.

Zane~

At my company, I sat in my office, my head in my hands, my thoughts miles away.

I had told myself not to chase after her. That it was for the best. That she was safer this way.

Then why did it feel like someone had ripped my heart from my chest?

I clenched my fists, trying to focus on the endless reports in front of me, but the words blurred together. Numbers, figures, contracts—I didn’t care about any of it. All I could think about was her.

Natalie.

She had walked out of my house last night, and I had let her go. I had stood motionless, while Red growled in agony in the back of my mind. Every instinct in me had screamed to go find her, to pull her back—but I had forced myself to stay put.

She was someone I shouldn’t be seen with. Someone who could destroy the future my father had fought so hard to secure for me. Someone who could strip the Goddess’s blessings from my life just by being near her.

I had convinced myself that letting her go was the right thing to do.

I had never been more wrong.

Because today, as I sat in my office, I felt like I was suffocating. It was like my lungs had forgotten how to work, like my heart had been carved out of my chest and left to bleed.

Red snarled in my head, his voice rough and ragged.

"I can’t take this, Zane. I can’t—"

"Neither can I," I admitted, rubbing a hand over my face.

I had never realized how much she had become a part of my life. Until now. Until she was gone.

A soft sniffle broke through my thoughts, and I turned to the small figure sitting in the corner of my office.

Alexander.

My son sat cross-legged on the floor, his tiny hands gripping a half-built Lego tower. His golden curls were a mess, his eyes puffy from crying. He had been like this since last night. He had shifted into his wolf form, curled up in Natalie’s empty bed, and refused to come out.

I remembered this morning, when I tried to make him eat, he wouldn’t budge. He wouldn’t even speak.

I had been terrified.

The last time Alex had been like this was before Natalie came into our lives. Before her, he had been a silent, broken child. But when she arrived, everything changed. She had made him smile, made him laugh, made him feel safe.

And now she was gone.

"Alexander," I remembered saying softly.

He sniffled, not looking up.

I sighed, kneeling beside him. "Do you want to come to work with me today?"

His ears perked up slightly, but he still wouldn’t meet my gaze.

I exhaled. "If you shift back to your human form, I’ll take you with me."

For a moment, he was still. Then, with a small shimmer of light, his tiny wolf form disappeared, and my son sat there, his face streaked with tears, his lower lip trembling.

I pulled him into my arms.

He clung to me, his little fingers digging into my shirt. "I miss Mummy Natalie, Daddy."

I swallowed the lump in my throat. "I know, buddy. I know."

I held him tightly, my mind racing. And that was how we got to this point.

I couldn’t do this.

I couldn’t sit here, pretending I was okay. Pretending Alex was okay.

Natalie was gone, and it felt like my entire world had been thrown off balance.

Red growled again, more desperate this time.

"I’m going to lose my damn mind if we don’t find her. I need to know she’s safe. I don’t care if father finds out. I don’t care if the entire werewolf world finds out. I just—"

"I know," I interrupted. "I feel the same way."

I took a deep breath, then pulled out my phone.

There was only one person I could trust with this.

I dialed.

The line rang twice before a familiar voice answered. "You better have a damn good reason for calling me Zane. I’m currently drowning in paper work, I—"

"Sebastian." My voice was tight.

There was a pause. Then, his tone shifted. "What happened?"

"Meet me at my office," I said. "Now."

Another pause.

Then, "I’m on my way."

The call ended.

I looked back at Alexander and sighed. "I promise, I’m going to fix this." I whispered more to myself than him.

Sebastian arrived a minute later.

Like always, he didn’t knock. He simply strolled in, adjusting the cuffs of his expensive suit, his black hair perfectly styled. "Alright, Zane, what kind of crisis are we dealing with? Did someone finally expose your secret identity? Did you lose a bet to a seven-year-old? Did—"

"It’s about Natalie," I said.

Sebastian froze. His sharp, vampire eyes studied me for a long moment before he let out a low whistle. "Oh, this is serious."

I ran a hand through my hair. "She’s gone, Sebastian. And I let her go. But I can’t—" I exhaled sharply. "I can’t breathe without her."

Sebastian arched an eyebrow. "That sounds an awful lot like something a man in love would say."

I stiffened. "I’m not in love with her."

Sebastian smirked. "Mhm. Sure."

"I’m not."

He leaned against my desk. "You haven’t eaten, you haven’t slept, your wolf is losing his mind, and your son has been crying non-stop. But you’re not in love?"

I glared at him. How did he know all that?

He grinned. "Relax, I’m just making an observation."

I exhaled heavily. "I had a mate, Sebastian. She’s gone, but I still love her."

Sebastian’s expression softened slightly. "I know, Zane. But loving someone who’s gone doesn’t mean you can’t love someone else."

I shook my head. "That’s not possible. Werewolves love only once."

Sebastian hummed. "Maybe. Maybe not." Then his sharp eyes studied me again. "What do you want me to do?"

I met his gaze. "I need you to find her."

Sebastian’s brows lifted. "Natalie?"

I nodded. "But no one can know. Not Charlie and Nora. Not my father. Not even Abel and Roland."

Sebastian let out a slow breath. "You’re really risking everything for her, huh?"

I clenched my jaw. "I don’t care about the risks."

Sebastian was silent for a long moment. Then he let out a low chuckle. "Alright, Faceless Prince. I’ll find her."

Relief crashed over me so hard my knees almost buckled.

Sebastian smirked. "But you owe me. Big time."

I sighed. "I figured as much."

Sebastian turned to Alex, who was still playing with his legos. "Hey, kid. You miss Mummy Natalie?"

Alex nodded, rubbing his eyes.

Sebastian grinned. "Then don’t worry. Uncle Seb is on the case."

Alex blinked up at him. "You’re gonna bring her back?"

Sebastian winked. "You bet."

Alex sniffled. Then, for the first time since last night, he smiled.

And just like that, I knew I had made the right decision.

I didn’t care about the consequences.

I was going to find Natalie.

And this time—I wasn’t letting her go.

**********

The ticking of the clock and Alexander’s constant sniffing was the only sound in my office after Sebastian had left. The faint scent of his cologne still lingered, mixing with the crisp, expensive leather of my chair and the faint aroma of freshly brewed coffee from earlier. I leaned back, my fingers tapping rhythmically against my desk, my mind running over the conversation we’d had.

What Natalie meant to me was a puzzle I hadn’t yet solved but one thing was sure, I just couldn’t go back to living my life without her in it.

Just as I was about to return to my work, a sharp knock echoed through the room.

"Come in," I called out, my voice calm but firm.

The door opened, and my secretary, Clara, a no-nonsense woman in her fifties with sharp eyes and an even sharper tongue, stepped inside. She adjusted her glasses and regarded me with a knowing look.

"Someone is here to see you, Sir," she announced.

I frowned. "Who?"

She hesitated for a second, which immediately put me on alert.

"A Griffin Blackthorn," she said finally.

I arched a brow. The name Blackthorn wasn’t just familiar—it carried weight, power, and a legacy built on blood and dominance. The Blackthorns were a force in the werewolf world, feared and respected in equal measure. But my issue wasn’t with their reputation. It was with Darius Blackthorn.

I had secretly promised Natalie—and myself—that one day, I would carve Darius into pieces so small that not even the vultures would find enough to scavenge.

But now, his nephew was here.

Why?

Had Griffin somehow caught on to the quiet destruction I’d been dealing Darius and his pack? No—impossible. I had been meticulous, precise. There were no loose ends, no traces left behind.

Still, the timing felt too convenient.

Normally, I wouldn’t entertain random visits. People didn’t just show up at my office without an appointment, and those who did were usually turned away before they even got a chance to knock. But the Blackthorn name piqued my interest.

I leaned forward, resting my elbows on the desk. "Let him in," I said, my tone light.

Clara gave me a curt nod and disappeared.

Moments later, the door opened again, and a young man stepped inside.

Griffin Blackthorn. I could still recall him standing there at the art exhibition, silent and complicit, watching as his uncle humiliated Natalie without lifting a damn finger. He hadn’t defended her. Hadn’t even looked uncomfortable. Just stood there, letting it happen.

I wasn’t going to forget that.

His time would come. And when it did, mercy wouldn’t be on the table.

Griffin walked in like he owned the place—tall, broad-shouldered, and radiating that effortless arrogance of someone who had never heard the word no. His black hair was neatly styled, not a strand out of place, and his gray eyes were sharp, calculating. He carried himself like royalty—like someone who believed the world was his to command.

I didn’t bother with pleasantries.

He stopped in front of my desk, his gaze flicking over me with the same careful assessment I was giving him.

"Mr Lucky," he said, his voice smooth but edged with something I couldn’t quite place.

I inclined my head slightly, offering a polite—if not entirely welcoming—smile. "Mr Blackthorn," I returned. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Griffin didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he lowered himself into the chair across from me, leaning back as if this was his office.

Arrogant.

He wouldn’t be for long.

His gray eyes locked onto mine, serious. "I’m looking for my mate," he said finally.

I kept my expression neutral, but inwardly, I was intrigued. This wasn’t the kind of conversation I had expected.

I leaned back in my chair. "Your mate?"

He nodded. "I have reliable information that she’s with you."

That got my full attention. My fingers stilled against my desk as I studied him carefully.

"I see," I murmured. "And who, exactly, is your mate?"

Griffin didn’t hesitate.

"Natalie Cross."

Everything stilled.

For a moment, all I could do was stare at him, waiting for him to laugh or say he was joking. But he didn’t. His expression remained serious, his gaze steady.

Natalie?

My Natalie?

Red, stirred in the back of my mind, suddenly alert.

I blinked, my fingers curling slightly against the desk.

"You’re telling me," I said slowly, my voice dangerously even, "that Natalie Cross is your mate?"

Griffin nodded once. "She is."

My eyes narrowed. There was something in his voice—something hurried, almost desperate.

If Natalie was his mate, then why did he look at her the way he did at the art gallery?

Why had she never mentioned him?

And most importantly... why was she bearing his uncle’s mark?

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