The Alpha's Fated Outcast: Rise Of The Moonsinger. - Chapter 413

Chapter 413: The midnight call…

Lyla

The shrill sound of my phone cut through my subconscious mind, making me stir from sleep.

I groaned softly, pressing my face deeper into Ramsey’s warm chest, hoping the noise would stop. The twins had finally settled down for the night after hours of restless kicking, and my body craved every minute of rest it could get.

But the phone rang again.

I felt Ramsey stir beneath me, his arm tightening protectively around my waist before he reached across me with his free hand.

“It’s your sister,” he mumbled against my hair, his voice still thick with sleep as he handed me.

In the next instant, I was wide awake. Clarissa never called this late unless something was seriously wrong. Since we travelled here, we’d always chat on the phone and nothing more. So, this was strange. My heart hammered against my ribs as I took the phone, noting the time – 2:47 AM.

I slid out from under Ramsey’s arm and sat up against the headboard.

“Rissa?” I answered, trying to keep the worry out of my voice. “Are you okay? What’s wrong?”

“Lyla, I’m so sorry for calling so early,” Clarissa’s voice came through the speaker. “I know you need your rest, especially with the pregnancy, but I… I didn’t know who else to call.”

“It’s fine,” I assured her, shifting to relax against Ramsey’s chest. His hand moved to rub soothing circles on my back as he listened. “What happened? Are the children okay?”

“Emma and baby Nathan are fine. They’re safe at home with Mother.” Clarissa’s voice wavered slightly. “It’s… It’s about the Alpha meetings. The situation with the southern packs.”

I felt Ramsey tense beneath me. We’d heard rumours about the challenges Clarissa was facing as the new Alpha of Blue Ridge, but I hadn’t realised how serious things had become.

“Tell me,” I said simply.

“I waited five hours yesterday waiting for them to show up at the meeting. None of them called before to give their excuse. It was that morning that they all sent their regrets. They have repeatedly done things like this, making decisions without my consent.”

For the next several minutes, Clarissa poured out the story of her failed meeting, the empty hall, the dismissive messages from the six Alphas.

“They don’t see me as a legitimate Alpha,” she concluded, with a whisper. “They think I’m just keeping the seat warm until I find another mate. Plus, somehow, they still want you.”

My free hand clenched into a fist. “Clarissa, I gave up any claim to Blue Ridge. You know that. You are the rightful Alpha.”

“I know that, and you know that, but they don’t care,” she replied. “Lyla, I… I wanted to ask if there might be a way for Ramsey to help. I know it’s a lot to ask, and I know you’re dealing with a lot of things right now, but I’m running out of options.”

I looked up at Ramsey, whose expression had grown serious as he listened to our conversation. He could hear every word since I’d put the phone on speaker, and I could see the wheels turning in his head.

“What kind of help are you thinking?” I asked.

“I’m thinking of paying a visit to each of their packs, but if I’m turned away at one door, the next Alpha would not even let me come an inch close to their pack. But if I had… backup. Someone whose authority is greater than theirs. Someone they’d have to respect…” she trailed off, clearly uncomfortable asking for what felt like charity.

“Someone like the Lycan Leader.” I finished for her.

“I wouldn’t ask if I wasn’t desperate, Lyla. The southern packs are fracturing, and if I can’t bring them together, we’ll be vulnerable to outside threats. With everything that has happened, we can’t afford to be divided.”

I heard her take a deep breath.

“If there was also a way for Ramsey to come around and be here for my coronation. I feel that one of the reasons why these people sideline me is because I haven’t been properly coronated.”

I felt pressured. Clarissa was asking Ramsey to leave in the middle of everything that was going on to help her establish authority with the hostile Alphas. It was dangerous for all of us, especially with the threat looming over our heads.

But she was also my sister, and she was fighting for the same thing our father had died protecting – the stability and unity of our people.

“Let me pass you to Ramsey,” I said, handing him the phone.

I watched his face as he spoke with Clarissa. Their conversation was brief but intense, conducted in low tones.

“We’ll figure something out,” Ramsey said finally. “Give me until tomorrow evening to make some calls and see what support I can arrange. As for the coronation, I am not sure it’s something that can be done now. But I’ll see if there’s a way to send a representative instead,”.

I could hear the relief in my sister’s voice even through the phone. “Thank you, Ramsey. Both of you. I know this isn’t your fight—”

“Family is always our fight,” Ramsey interrupted firmly. “Get some rest. We’ll talk tomorrow.”

Just as he was ending the call, a loud crash echoed through the house, so loud and violent that the windows rattled. I jerked upright instantly, my heart leaping into my throat as the babies responded to my spike of adrenaline with frantic movement.

Ramsey was on his feet before the sound had entirely faded, his body shifting into full alert mode. “Stay here,” he commanded, moving toward our bedroom door. “I’ll find out what that was.”

“Absolutely not,” I said, struggling to get out of bed as quickly as my pregnant body would allow. “I’m not staying here alone while something is happening downstairs.”

“Lyla, you’re pregnant,” Ramsey said, turning back to me with concern etched across his features. “If there’s danger—”

“Then I need to know what it is,” I interrupted, finally managing to stand. “I’m not hiding in our room like a helpless damsel while there might be in trouble. Besides, pregnancy is not a disease”

“You’re not helpless, but you are vulnerable,” he argued, moving to help steady me as I swayed slightly. “The babies—”

“Will be fine,” I finished firmly. “Ramsey, I understand you want to protect us, but I can’t just sit here wondering if everyone else is safe. What if it’s urgent and my powers are needed? What if someone got past our security?”

Another sound drifted up from downstairs – not a crash this time, but voices. Urgent, concerned voices that made my skin crawl with apprehension.

Ramsey’s expression shifted as he heard them too. “Kyren,” he murmured, recognising one of the voices. “And… Circe.”

“See?” I said, moving toward our bedroom door. “Everyone else is already investigating. I’m not staying behind.”

Ramsey caught my arm gently. “If we’re doing this, you stay close to me. The moment I tell you to get back, you don’t argue. Agreed?”

“Agreed,” I said, though we both knew that if things got truly dangerous, I’d do whatever I thought was necessary to protect the people I loved, pregnancy or no pregnancy.

When we pulled the door open, Circe was already outside her door at the far end of the corridor in an oversized tee and black leggings, hair in a messy braid and annoyance in her eyes.

“What now?” she muttered, scratching her hair.

Kyren also stepped out of his room with no shirt and no shoes on. He was practically naked and looked almost bored.

“What happened?” Ramsey asked as we joined them.

“Something breached the front of the house,” Kyren replied grimly. “The protective wards are still intact, which means whatever got in was either invited or powerful enough to slip through without triggering them.”

“That’s not comforting,” I muttered, one hand instinctively moving to cradle my belly.

“Could it be Delia?” Circe asked, her voice tight with concern. “Maybe she figured out that I’m here?”

“Only one way to find out,” Kyren said, moving toward the staircase.

Together, the four of us descended to the main floor. The house felt different somehow – colder, with an underlying tension that made my babies move restlessly as if they could sense something.

With each step I took towards the stairs, they became even more agitated.

As we reached the bottom of the stairs, I immediately noticed that the front door was standing wide open, cold night air streaming through and carrying with it scents that made my stomach clench with dread.

“There,” Circe whispered, pointing to the hardwood floor near the entryway.

A trail of dark spots led from the open door toward the back of the house. In the dim lighting, it took me a moment to recognise what I was seeing, but when I did, a cold shiver ran up my spine.

Blood. Fresh blood, forming a clear path across our floors.

“Someone’s hurt,” I breathed, starting to move toward the trail.

Ramsey immediately blocked my path. “Lyla, no. We don’t know what we’re walking into.”

“But if someone’s injured—”

“If someone’s injured, they could also be bait,” Kyren said grimly, his hand moving to his weapon. “This feels like a trap.”

Circe was chanting softly under her breath, “There are definitely people in the kitchen,” she reported. “At least two, maybe three. One of them…” she paused, her frown deepening. “One of them feels familiar.”

“Familiar, how?” Ramsey demanded.