Mated to My Fiancé’s Alpha King Brother - Chapter 100

100: Chapter 100 100: Chapter 100 Seraphina’s POV
“Riley?” I called out again, my voice barely above a whisper as I pressed my back against the rough bark of a massive pine tree.

“Marcus?

Anyone?”
The silence that answered me was deafening.

Not even the rustle of small animals or the call of birds broke the oppressive quiet that had settled over this part of the forest like a suffocating blanket.

My heart hammered against my ribs so hard I was sure anyone within a mile could hear it.

How had I gotten separated from the others so quickly?

One moment we’d been moving together along that narrow trail, and the next I was completely alone in what felt like an entirely different forest.

The mist that swirled around the trees was wrong somehow-too thick, too deliberate.

*This isn’t natural,* Ayla warned, her voice tight with anxiety in the back of my mind.

*Something’s very wrong here.*
I tried to retrace my steps, looking for any landmark that might help me figure out where I’d gone wrong.

But every tree looked exactly like every other tree, and the mist made it impossible to see more than a few feet in any direction.

*Focus,* I told myself firmly.

*You’re an alpha now.

You’ve got enhanced senses and healing abilities and a pack of warriors counting on you.

Figure this out.*
But the longer I stood there, the more convinced I became that this wasn’t just a case of getting turned around in the woods.

The mist, the silence, the way my team had simply vanished without a trace-it all felt orchestrated.

“A trap,” I whispered, the words sending ice water through my veins.

“This is all a trap.”
The moment the realization hit me, I knew I had to get out of here.

A distant howl echoed through the trees, low and mournful and definitely not from any member of my rescue party.

It was answered immediately by another, then another, until the forest seemed to ring with the sound of approaching predators.

My blood turned to ice.

The rogues hadn’t just been alerted to our presence-they were surrounding us.

Hunting us.

Without hesitation, I threw back my head and released my own howl into the misty air.

The pre-arranged signal Riley and I had agreed on if we needed to abort the mission and retreat immediately.

The sound seemed to be swallowed by the mist almost as soon as it left my throat, but I had to hope that at least some of my team would hear it and understand.

A scent hit me like a physical blow, stopping me mid-thought and making my knees go weak with relief and confusion.

*Damien.*
It was definitely his scent-that unique combination of sandalwood and masculine warmth that made my wolf Ayla whine with longing.

But there was something wrong with it.

The familiar scent was there, but it was layered with something else.

Something sharp and chemical and completely wrong.

“Damien?” I called out, my voice cracking with desperate hope as I stumbled forward through the mist.

“Damien, is that you?

Please, if you’re there, say something!”
The scent grew stronger as I moved deeper into the fog, following what might have been a path or might have been nothing more than my own desperate imagination.

The words died in my throat as a wave of dizziness crashed over me without warning.

The forest tilted sideways, and I had to grab onto a nearby tree branch to keep from falling.

My vision blurred around the edges, and suddenly it felt like I was trying to breathe through cotton.

*What’s happening to me?* I thought frantically, fighting against the weakness that was spreading through my limbs like poison.

I collapsed to my knees in the damp forest floor, my hands clawing uselessly at the moss and fallen leaves as I tried to fight off the effects of whatever they’d used on me.

But it was too late.

“Well, well, well,” came a voice that made my blood freeze in my veins.

It was female, rich with satisfaction and dark amusement.

I tried to lift my head to see who was speaking, but my neck muscles wouldn’t obey.

As the last of my strength drained away and consciousness began to slip through my fingers like water, I managed to send one final, desperate message through the mate bond.

Then the darkness swallowed me completely, and I knew nothing more.