Mated to My Fiancé’s Alpha King Brother - Chapter 264

Chapter 264: Chapter 264
Seraphina’s POV

“Including the Alpha,” Claire finished. Her voice barely a whisper.

The world tilted.

“What?” The word came out strangled. “What do you mean lost contact?”

“The entire forward camp.” Claire’s hands were shaking. “Everyone. The scouts. The warriors. Damien. Lucas. All of them. No communications in the last six hours.”

Six hours.

Damien could be hurt. Could be dying. Could be—

No. I couldn’t think that. Couldn’t let my mind go there.

“When did you last hear from them?” I forced my voice steady. Forced myself to think. To plan. Not to panic.

“This morning. Lucas reported they were engaging a small rogue group. Standard skirmish. Then…” She gestured helplessly. “Nothing. Radio silence.”

I pulled out my phone. My hands were shaking so badly I almost dropped it.

Pulled up Damien’s contact. Hit call.

It rang. And rang. And rang.

*The number you have dialed is not available. Please try again later.*

I tried Lucas. Same thing.

Marcus. Nothing.

Every number I had for the forward camp. Dead air.

“We need to send people.” The words came out sharp. Decisive. “Now. Search parties. Scouts. Everyone we can spare.”

“I’ve already mobilized the reserve warriors.” Claire pulled up a tablet. “Fifty fighters heading north as we speak. But Sera—it’s a four-hour drive to the border. They won’t arrive until after midnight.”

Four hours. Four hours while Damien could be bleeding out. While something terrible could be happening.

The USB drive felt heavy in my pocket. The proof. The truth. Everything I needed to tell him.

Everything I might never get the chance to say.

“I need to go.” I started for the door.

“Sera, wait—”

“I need to go to him.”

“You can’t.” Claire grabbed my arm. “You have responsibilities here. The pack needs leadership. The kids need their mother. You can’t just—”

“He’s my husband!” The words exploded out. Louder than I intended. “He’s out there and he needs help and I can’t just sit here doing nothing!”

The hallway had gone quiet. Other Council members staring. Watching this breakdown happen in real-time.

I didn’t care.

“Three years ago I made a mistake.” My voice cracked. “I acted on impulse. I ran. And I almost died because I wasn’t thinking clearly.”

The memories flashed. Sharp. Brutal. The rogues. The pain. Losing Ayla.

“I won’t make that mistake again.” I pulled my arm free. Forced myself to breathe. To think. “But I also won’t sit here safe while he’s in danger.”

Claire’s face softened. “Sera—”

“Call everyone.” I was already walking. Back toward the conference room. “Every Council member. Every senior warrior still here. Everyone who can help. We do this smart. We do this organized. But we do it now.”

—

Twenty minutes later, the conference room was packed.

Elders. Warriors. Logistics coordinators. Medical staff. Everyone who wasn’t already deployed to the border.

I stood at the head of the table. The map of pack territory spread out in front of us. Red markers showing the last known positions. Blue showing our forces.

And a big empty space where the forward camp should be.

“Status,” I said. My voice steady now. Commander mode. Luna mode. The role I’d been avoiding for months. “What do we know?”

Elder Morrison pulled up reconnaissance reports. “Last confirmed visual was at 0900 hours. Camp was intact. Warriors were present. No signs of distress.”

“Communications?”

“Went dark at 1430 hours.” He pointed to the timeline. “Mid-conversation. Lucas was reporting a skirmish when the line cut.”

“Equipment failure?” I asked. Hoping. Praying for something simple.

“Unlikely.” One of the tech specialists shook his head. “We have redundant systems. Multiple frequencies. For everything to go down simultaneously…”

He didn’t finish. Didn’t need to.

Someone took them out. Deliberately. Systematically.

“The search parties?” I looked at Claire.

“En route. ETA three hours forty minutes.” She pulled up a tracking map. “I’ve got three teams approaching from different angles. Twenty fighters each.”

Sixty warriors. Against an unknown enemy force. In hostile territory. At night.

My stomach churned.

“Not enough,” one of the younger warriors said. “If something took out the entire forward camp, sixty fighters won’t—”

“Then we send more.” I cut him off. “How many can we mobilize?”

Elder Chen checked his tablet. “Without leaving the pack house defenseless? Maybe another forty. But it’ll take time to organize. Weapons. Supplies. Coordination.”

“Do it.” I pointed at him. “I want them ready to move in thirty minutes.”

“Sera.” Elder Morrison’s voice was careful. “We need to consider the possibility that this is a trap. That whatever happened at the camp is meant to draw us in.”

“I know.” I’d already thought of that. Had thought of every terrible possibility. “That’s why we’re being smart about this. No single large force. Multiple teams. Different approach routes. Constant communication.”

“And if we lose communication too?”

“Then we assume the worst and send everyone.” I met his eyes. “But we don’t abandon them. We don’t leave our Alpha and our warriors to die without even trying.”

Silence fell. Heavy. Everyone processing.

“What about the kids?” Claire asked quietly.

My chest tightened. Adrian. Lily. Safe at home. Probably asking questions. Probably scared.

“I’ll have Ophelia stay with them.” The words hurt coming out. “She’s trustworthy. She’ll keep them safe.”

“And you?”

“I’ll coordinate from here.” The lie came easily. “Monitor communications. Direct resources. Make sure—”

My phone buzzed.

Everyone’s phones buzzed.

Simultaneously. All at once. Some emergency alert.

I grabbed mine. Read the message.

My blood turned to ice.

**EMERGENCY ALERT: Rogue activity detected at northern border. Multiple casualties reported. Alpha status: UNKNOWN.**

Unknown.

Not injured. Not captured. Unknown.

Which meant they didn’t know if he was alive.

The room erupted. Everyone talking at once. Shouting. Demanding information.

I couldn’t hear them. Couldn’t hear anything except the roaring in my ears.

Unknown status. Unknown. Unknown.

“Sera?” Claire was shaking my shoulder. “Sera, we need decisions. What do we do?”

I looked at the map. At the empty space where Damien should be. At the hundreds of miles between me and him.

Then I looked at the Council. At the warriors. At everyone watching me. Waiting for orders.

“Double the search teams.” My voice sounded distant. Mechanical. “Send everyone we can spare. Medical support. Extraction teams. I want eyes on that camp within two hours.”

“And if the rogues are still there?” Someone asked.

“Then we fight.” Simple. Final. “We get our people out. Whatever it takes.”

The meeting continued. Plans forming. Resources allocated. Everyone moving with purpose now.

But I barely heard it. My mind was miles away. At that forward camp. Where Damien was.

Where Damien might be dying.

The USB drive burned in my pocket. The proof I’d waited too long to watch. The truth I’d refused to see.

And now—now it might be too late.

—

The meeting ended near midnight.

Everyone dispersed. Running to their assignments. Preparing. Mobilizing.

I stayed in the conference room. Staring at the map. At the markers that didn’t move.

“You should go home.” Claire appeared at my side. “Get some rest. Check on the kids.”

“Can’t rest.” I kept staring. “Not until—”

My phone rang.

Unknown number. Northern area code.

I answered before the first ring finished. “Hello?”

“Luna?” A male voice. Young. Panicked. “This is Private Chen. First Scout Team. We’ve reached the forward camp.”

My heart stopped. “What did you find?”

“It’s…” His voice cracked. “It’s bad, Luna. Really bad. The camp is destroyed. Tents torn down. Equipment scattered. Blood everywhere.”

“Survivors?” The word barely made it out.

“We’re searching now. But Luna…” He paused. “We found bodies. At least a dozen. Maybe more. All of them rogues.”

Rogues. Dead rogues. Which meant there had been a fight.

“And our warriors?”

“Some. Not many. Most seem to have retreated or…” He didn’t finish.

“The Alpha?” My voice shook. “Did you find the Alpha?”

“No, Luna. No sign of him. Or Beta Lucas. Or most of the senior command. They’re just… gone.”

Gone. Not dead. Not captured. Gone.

“Keep searching.” I forced my voice steady. “Every inch of that camp. Every surrounding area. Find them.”

“Yes, Luna.”

The call ended.

I stood there. Phone in my hand. Staring at nothing.

Gone. Damien was gone.

The door opened. More Council members returning. Wanting updates. Wanting orders.

I gave them. Automatically. Mechanically. Coordinating search grids. Organizing medical evacuations. All the things a Luna should do.

But inside? Inside I was screaming.