The Lycan King's Outcast Omega (by Cara Anderson) novel Chapter 83

Dawn hasn’t quite broken when I wake with Sage curled against my chest, silver–blonde hair spilling across my arm. The mate bond hums with contentment despite the residual tension between us. Last night, after our confrontation, after tears and explanations and careful steps toward reconciliation, she let me hold her. Let me press kisses to her face, her throat, anywhere I could reach, and I have a very long reach, while whispering all the things I should have told her months ago.

“You’re staring,” she murmurs without opening her eyes.

“Can’t help it.” I trace her cheek with my thumb. “You’re beautiful in the morning light. I’ve never seen anything more stunning.”

She tries to maintain her stern expression but the bond betrays her pleasure at my words. “Sweet talking won’t get you completely forgiven.”

“No?” I nuzzle her neck where my mark should be, will be someday. “What about this?”

Her breath catches. “Still angry with you.”

“I know.” I press a kiss to her pulse point. “You have every right to be. But you’re still mine, and I’m still yours, and I’m going to spend however long it takes proving that to you.”

“Mmmm.” She stretches like a cat, finally opening those violet eyes. “You’re very sure of yourself this morning.

་་

The bond tells me she’s enjoying my attention despite her protests. My beast preens at her response, at being allowed to pamper our mate after days of distance.

“Let me take care of you,” I murmur, reaching for the brush I noticed on the small table. When she nods, I start gently working tangles from her hair.

The simple intimacy of the moment catches in my chest. This is what I denied us both with my silence – these quiet moments, this easy togetherness.

“I can feel you brooding,” she says softly.

“Just thinking about all the mornings I wasted not doing this.” I gather her closer. “All the times I should have told you exactly what you mean to me.”

She turns in my arms, expression serious. “Then tell me now.”

“Everything,” I breathe against her lips. “You mean everything.”

This time, she can’t hide the smile stealing across her face.

Later, as she tends the wounded, I watch in silent awe as the morning sunlight filters through the small window, catching glints of silver in Sage’s hair. After last night’s conversation and this morning’s peace, something has shifted between us. Not completely healed, but… softer. The mate bond hums with cautious hope instead of pain.

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Chapter 83

+25 BONUS

“The infection patterns match,” she tells Pine Valley’s healer, showing her how to mix specific herbs for when she’s no longer here to administer her own healing touch. “Just like the attacks on our pack.”

I can’t keep my eyes from drifting to her while discussing defense strategies with their Alpha. His territory maps spread before us show the attackers‘ entry points – too precise to be random.

“They knew exactly where our wards were weakest,” he explains. “Struck during shift change, when we had minimal patrols.”

“Just like at Silver Crown,” I note. “And the other territories reporting attacks?”

He nods grimly. “The timing, the coordination… someone’s feeding them information about pack defenses.”

The implications chill me. These aren’t mindless beasts attacking randomly. This is organized, strategic. Someone is targeting packs systematically, using inside knowledge.

“We’ve lost three hunting grounds,” the Alpha continues. “Can’t spare enough warriors to patrol them properly, not with so many injured.I can’t risk sending men out into those fields when those creatures could be lying in wait for them. My pack could starve if something isn’t done.”

His pack’s struggle hits hard. They’re proud wolves, uncomfortable asking for help, but these attacks leave them little choice. How many other small packs face similar situations?

Sage joins us later, her face troubled. “The wounds are evolving,” she says quietly. “Getting harder to heal. Whatever’s causing these mutations is getting stronger.”

The mate bond carries her concern, her frustration at not being able to heal everything completely. I resist the urge to pull her close, settling for letting my hand brush hers over the maps.

“Show me,” I encourage, and she points out patterns in the attack sites that match reports from other territories.

“Here, here, and here.” Her finger traces lines that form an unsettling pattern. “The warriors who can speak at all tell me they’re not just attacking. They’re testing responses, learning pack behaviors.”

“Building toward something bigger,” I finish her thought. The mate bond makes our connection stronger now that we’re working through things. “But what?”

“Whatever it is,” Pine Valley’s Alpha says, “we can’t face it alone. None of us can.”

His words crystallize something that’s been forming in my mind. No pack can handle this threat individually. Not even Silver Crown with all our resources.

We need unity. We need shared knowledge. We need….

“A gathering,” I say suddenly. “Not just of healers or warriors, but all high–ranking pack members. At Silver

Crown.”

Sage’s eyes meet mine, understanding dawning. “Share information, combine resources…”

But I see what she doesn’t say. She knows it’s necessary, these are no longer random attacks we can heal as we go. It will take every Alpha’s cooperation to make our kingdom safe. Even Blackthorn’s.

2/3

Chapter 83

+25 BONUS

Cassius will come. And on the heels of Daphne’s departure and the trauma she caused my mate. I reach out to give her hand a squeeze, offering my reassurance.

“You’ll be safe. We’ll face this together.” I whisper for only her to hear before turning to Pine Valley’s Alpha.” Would your pack support such a gathering?”

“Absolutely.” His relief is palpable. “But the politics… getting all packs to agree…”

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