The Lycan King's Outcast Omega (by Cara Anderson) novel Chapter 144

"Not completely gone," she reminds me softly. "Just hidden. Regrouping."

"And we'll find him." My certainty flows through our bond. "Every available resource focuses on tracking him now. He can't hide forever."

Outside our window, I watch workers rebuilding damaged sections of the packhouse, warriors training new recruits, healers tending the wounded. Life continuing, adapting, strengthening in response to adversity.

"When I mark you," I say, fingers tracing the spot on her neck where my claim will soon be permanent, "the entire kingdom will recognize what I've known since I first saw you. That you were born to be my queen."

Through our bond, her love flows like warm honey, easing the lingering tension of battle and politics. "And what about what I've known?" she asks, a smile finally breaking through her exhaustion. "That you were always meant to be more than just a king ruled by tradition. That together, we could build something new."

My answer requires no words - just the certainty flowing through our bond that whatever comes next, we face it as one. The marking ceremony will merely formalize what our hearts have known from the beginning, even if I tried to deny it at first.

Despite her exhaustion, I feel restlessness building through our bond as Sage shifts against me, her body unable to fully surrender to sleep. The events of the past days have left her mind racing, her powers still humming with residual energy from so much healing, so much fighting.

"I can't seem to quiet my thoughts," she murmurs, frustration coloring her tone.

"Then let me help you," I offer, my hands sliding beneath the thin fabric of her shirt. "Let me give you something else to focus on."

Her breath catches as my fingers trace patterns across her skin, following paths I've memorized during our nights together. Through our bond, I sense exactly what she needs - not just release, but reconnection. A reminder that beneath titles and battles and politics, we belong to each other in the most primal way.

"Yes," she breathes as my touch grows more purposeful, her body arching into my hands.

Territory by territory, reports return with the same conclusion: no trace of him within our borders. He's gone to ground somewhere beyond our immediate reach, nursing his wounds, planning his next move.

But whatever he plots next, whatever threat remains on the horizon, it cannot overshadow what we've accomplished. A kingdom united. Ancient prejudices confronted. A future where healing abilities are valued rather than feared.

And in one week, a queen who will stand beside me not because tradition demands it, but because she's earned the right through courage, compassion, and a strength I'm still learning to fully comprehend.

Through our bond, even in sleep, Sage's presence comforts like nothing else in this world. Whatever comes after the coronation - whether peace or new challenges - we face it together. As king and queen. As true mates.

As it was always meant to be.