Shelbrooke moved forward, his steps cautious. The rest of the team geared up, some of them suddenly shifting. Luana let out her claws and Lyne snarled at them, her strong sharp teeth revealed. 

"I must say I'm quite amassed by your bravery and confidence. I mean, you even managed to come into his den." Luana said, walking behind Shelbrooke, her eyes turning black.

"Don't tell me you're thinking about lifting a finger because I won't hesitate to draw life out of you." Lyne threatened, gritting her teeth. 

Shelbrooke roared, his voice booming in the cave.

"You lose girl." He snorted and rushed towards her. 

Lyne jumped up and landed behind them, turning sharply when she heard Shelbrooke order the others. 

"Let her be guys. I know how to handle her." 

She snarled at him, eyes catching her father's body from the corner of her eyes. "Bring it on." 

Shelbrooke hopped on her but she turned sharply and hit him head-on, her teeth sinking into his neck. A painful cat cry pierced the cave and he flung her against the hard planes of the wall rocks. She rose almost immediately, her eyes fixed on Shelbrooke who still felt the pain in his neck. 

"You bastard!" He came at her but she raised her forelimbs so that she could press him to the ground and they were both rolling over each other in the cave, biting, tearing, and snarling at each other. 

Lyne felt a kick on her abdomen and she was forced to release him, standing up and rushing to her Father, grabbing him by the fur, and running out of the cave. 

"Grab her." She heard Shelbrooke call from behind but Luana stopped them.

"Never mind. I'll go after her." 

Lyne ran at full speed, not minding the road she passed which was full of muddy pools. Her Father was heavy, no doubt about that, but she needed to save him or they may both die. 

Soon, a swooshing blade was heard coming from behind. Before the tip would hit her, her Father rose and pushed her to the ground, his weight pressing on her body as they lay in the bush. He transformed back to his human form and he coughed blood on her body.

That it dawned on her. Her Father had taken the sword in instead of her. Her hands were shaking as she pushed him off her body to the ground, holding his face in her hands. 

"Dad?" Her voice was shaky as she called but he looked back at her, eyes red and blood dripping down his lips.

"My daughter," he struggled to say, eyes closing. "I...I want you to know that...you know that I love you."

"I know, Dad. And you're going to tell me later. First, save your breath so I can get help." She looked around, swallowing her tears and believing her Dad was just panicking as he would soon be fine. 

"Lyne," he called softly, smiling and revealing his blood-stained teeth. "I'm sorry I couldn't show how much I love you the way I should. I tried to protect you...b...b... because if they know how much I loved you, they would have killed you a long time ago."

Lyne raised her brows as she thought about it. All these while, her Father had been doing that to protect her.

"That was the main reason why I agreed to let Zeidan marry you. The first time he came for my army, he mentioned your name above any other names. He loved you when he first saw you and I could see it in his eyes." He placed a blood-stained hand on her cheek on which she rested her face. "Zeidan loves you, just as I do. Please," he coughed again, more blood coming out of his mouth and he wheezed as of trying to breathe.

"Please, Lyne, fight with all your powers and make m...me proud. I love you so much." His body shook and like magic, his warm body began to turn cold and rigid. 

"Dad?" She called. "Dad? Dad, please answer me!" Lyne cried, tears rolling down her eyes as she screamed in the forest. "Dad!"

★★★★★★★★★★

Lyne rushed in with blood-stained furs and went straight for their room. Hitting her paws against the door, it opened and she slid in, transforming immediately. 

Zeidan stared at her nakedness for a while before deciding to speak up. 

"I want to believe this happened because you went hunting for your coronation and nothing else." However, his thoughts changed when Lyne sat down on the bed, head in her hands and brooding.

He heard her sobbing and he went to her side, grabbing her shoulder.

"What's wrong with you?"

He asked but she fell on his chest, crying harder.

"Weren't you made the Alpha anymore?"

"No!" Lyne raised her head. "Not like I care about it anyway." 

"Then, what is the problem?" He asked.

"Dad," her voice broke. "He died on the way."

"On the way? I don't understand, what happened?" 

"Charles didn't want me to take up the leadership position. He wanted it all to himself." She explained while Zeidan nodded.

"He abducted my Dad last night and took him to the Werecats' den "

Zeidan straightened not wanting to imagine what Lyne did next.

"Please, tell me you didn't go after him."

"He took my Father, Zeidan. He went to our enemy's den and wanted to kill him there. Shelbrooke killed Charles by the way." More tears and Zeidan felt sorry for her. 

She just lost two people in one night. He embraced her again as she sobbed against his chest.

"Styx doesn't deserve to die like that. He was a strong man and a fighter. He believed in justice and stood for what was right. I can't believe he's gone."

"Luana killed him."

"What?"

"Yes. She was the one Shelbrooke sent to go after us when I was trying to escape with him. She threw a sword at him and it caught him. This just motivates me to kill Luana. I want to grab that crazy woman in my hands and crush her to death!" She cried, her veins popping. 

"I'm so sorry about your loss."

"Don't be sorry, Zeidan. Prepare. You have to prepare for war."

"I don't understand."

"What do you not understand? With what Shelbrooke has seen, he is ready to strike in fact for the sake of wanting to kill me." Lyne explained, voice rising. 

"Okay." Zeidan sighed. 

"So, what do I do?"

"First, we need to call together our most trusted men."