The Lycan Kingpin's Captive: A Baby For The Beast novel Chapter 46

There’s warmth everywhere and I’m floating on a cloud of bliss. Sunlight touches my skin and it feels like it’s penetrating every inch of my skin, filling me up with nothing but contentment.

I haven’t felt this happy since Niko told me he loves me, and the memory alone brings a smile to my face. Closing my eyes, I allow myself to drift some more, knowing that this happiness won’t leave me wherever I end up.

Then I feel a shift in the air, and a crack of lightning splits the sky. That warmth is now replaced by a chill, and my blue skies are now tainted with black clouds.

“Mira, wake up!” I hear a voice calling me, It sounds like a whisper, then it swells. “Mira, wake up! There’s danger! An enemy is close!”

My eyes shoot open and I sit up in bed too quickly; a dizzy spell threatens to pull me under again and I blink the hazy feeling away. I take a few breaths, placing a hand on my heart to steady myself.

What had woken me up? Oh, it was a voice, wasn’t it? Wait…was it Star’s voice? Danger…an enemy.

An unknown yet familiar scent hits me and I whip my head to the left quickly. As I spy the empty bassinet, I know what Star meant by that warning….and I scream.

Ares, my baby! Someone has taken my baby! Where is Niko? Why isn’t he here?! Without thinking, my hands go to my hair and I start to pull - the pain pales in comparison to what I am feeling right now.

The door to the bedroom bangs open and Niko rushes in with Maxim at his side. He looks at me with wide, fearful eyes while scanning the room for a threat.

I leap out of bed and rush to him. “He’s gone, Niko! Ares is gone!” tumbles out of my mouth; that familiar fear constricts my heart so much I struggle to catch my breath. Niko pulls me close and everything falls away.

My heart is thudding painfully in my chest while flashes of memory appear in my mind's eye. Ares’ birth, feeding him, touching his tiny little hands, and kissing them. A heart-wrenching sob splits my heart in two as the realization hits me.

Someone took my baby.

I hear voices but I don’t put two and two together, not until Niko lets go of me and he walks towards the empty bassinet beside our bed. The anxiety coming from him knocks the wind out of me and I watch as he takes something out of it.

A spiked dog collar, only the spikes are on the inside.

Maxim asks him a question and he nods, then he turns around and I see nothing left of the powerful Alpha as he swallows deeply. His hands are trembling as he holds up the collar, then he drops it and takes a step backward.

I crumble to the floor, sobbing. The emptiness in my chest grows when I look at that bassinet and know my baby isn’t in there.

“Why weren’t you here?” I murmur, rocking back and forth. “You left and he was taken, you left me…”

A menacing growl comes from deep within Niko’s chest, and I watch as he tries to stop himself from shifting. “Panzer, Armata - get the Pente ready to go,” he orders before turning to Maxim. “Grab one of Lilah’s coats so they can memorize her scent; she can’t have gotten far.”

Then he grabs the collar and Panzer catches it. “Give this to Descry, tell him to run ahead when he catches a scent.”

Everything hits me all at once and I finally understand what is being discussed. I turn to Niko and see the anger in his eyes, but I stalk over to him anyway.

“Lilah took him?” I ask, but he doesn’t even look at me. “Niko! Did Lilah take Ares?”

He turns to me with eyes the color of bloody rubies, but as soon as Maxim and Panzer walk out of our bedroom, that coldness leaves his eyes. “Yes, she took him,” he says and is about to walk out when I grab his arm and pull him back.

“That’s all? No comforting embrace or words to placate the mother of your child?!” I shriek, shaking my head. “My baby is gone, Niko, and you’re just brushing me off!”

There’s no warmth of the Niko I know, just a determined crimson glare. “I can’t do this right now, Mia. The longer I stand here, the further she gets; so let go of me so I can do my fucking job,” he says, pulling his arm out of my grip.

I ran to keep up with him. “I’m coming with you-”

“No, you’re not,” he growls, walking me back to the bed. “You’ll only be a distraction.”

My heart drops. “What the hell, Niko! He’s my child too! You can’t just leave me here not knowing what’s going on, I refuse to stay!” I exclaim, punching his chest, but he simply grabs my wrists and pulls me close. “Please…please let me go with you.”

I bow my head and the tears don’t stop falling. The happiness I felt in my dream now seems so far away, as if it never even existed. That contentment was now replaced with fear and anxiety gnawing and coiling in my stomach… I didn’t even get to spend a full hour with my newborn pup and someone already took him.

Niko cups my face, his eyes back to the deep green I love so much. “This is my fault, Mia. I trusted Lilah without knowing…” he swallows deeply and shame fills his eyes. “She’s connected to my mother and aunt.”

The floor feels like it’s giving way beneath my feet and my heart stills. “Y-your mother? How…” my eyes grow wide when I remember the collar he took from the bassinet. “Was it…was the collar yours?”

He nods with his lips a thin line of worry. “It’s their way of telling me they’ve taken him,” I fall to the floor at his words and he wraps his arms around me. “I need to fix this, kardia mou; I need to get him back and if you’re there…they’ll use you against me.”