Chapter 163: Protect Hazel
*~Caspian’s POV~*
The pack and I were outside, finishing the final touches for the ceremony. Decorations were going up, security had been doubled. We were doing everything in our power to make sure this day went perfectly.
Cayden had a gut feeling—that something bad might happen today. And when Cayden has a gut feeling, we listen.
So we were on high alert.
The omega wolves helped Mother with the floral displays while Leon coordinated the outer gate patrols. As beta, I had to make sure everything stayed tight while our alpha—my brother—prepared himself for the ceremony.
That was when something hit me.
A small thud bounced off my chest.
I looked down. A pebble? No. Not a rock—a piece of folded paper.
I picked it up.
One word was scribbled across it:
Rooftop. Now.
My brows drew together. I glanced around. No one looked suspicious. I was about to signal Leon but hesitated. Why involve him yet?
Something told me I needed to handle this alone.
I lifted my gaze toward the rooftop—and caught a shadow disappearing just out of sight.
Without wasting another second, I moved. I leapt onto the ledge and pulled myself up the upper wall, landing silently on the rooftop.
There—two figures. Cloaked.
"Who are you?" I barked. "And what are you doing here?"
One of the figures took a slow step forward.
"I must be losing my mind," I muttered. "Coming up here alone to meet cloaked strangers in the middle of pack territory."
The figure on the left pulled down her hood.
And I froze.
"Hazel?" I whispered.
"No," she corrected sharply. "Lilith."
My chest tightened. Lilith...?
"You still haven’t recognized the face of your mate?" she said bitterly. "I’m disappointed, Caspian."
She stepped closer. That’s when I noticed her face—scratched, bruised, torn like something had mauled her. Deep gashes ran across her cheek and brow, and... she wasn’t healing.
"What happened to you?" I asked, my voice cracking. "Why aren’t you healing? What’s wrong with your face?"
Her eyes met mine, wild and desperate.
"Hazel is in danger."
My blood ran cold.
"This isn’t my real body," she continued, panting. "My actual body is chained to a chair. I only managed to get here with a spell—this is just a shadow of myself. But I had to come."
I stepped toward her, gripping her shoulders. "What do you mean she’s in danger? Who’s threatening her?"
But I already knew the answer.
"Jonathan," she said, confirming my worst fear. "He’s coming. Today. During the ceremony."
"How did you—? What are you even talking about?" I asked, stepping back. My mind spun. "Is this some kind of joke? A prank? Where have you been all this while, Lilith? You vanished. Hazel and the babies were missing, and you—you were nowhere to be found. You didn’t show your face, not once. And now you suddenly appear out of thin air on the very day your daughter is naming her children?"
Lilith’s expression broke—anguish clear in her swollen, wounded face.
"I know," she whispered. "Believe me, Caspian... I wanted to stay away. But I made a mistake. A terrible mistake."
I clenched my fists. "What mistake?"
Her gaze locked onto mine, intense. "Remember that day—the day black blood dripped from your eyes?"
My chest tightened. I remembered it. Too well.
"I awakened something that day," she said quietly.
I turned slowly toward the second cloaked figure—forgotten until now. She hadn’t spoken. Hadn’t moved. But as my eyes met hers, she pulled her hood down.
My breath caught.
Red hair. Not as wild as Aurora’s—but close. Softer, more matured. Her face was older, more regal, but the resemblance was there. Clear. Obvious.
Even a blind man could tell she was blood. She looked like Aurora.
"What... what is going on here?" I muttered. "How? Who is she?"
Lilith’s voice came next, gentle but heavy. "I brought back my Crescents."
I turned back to her. "What do you mean, brought back?"
"That day," she said, "when the black clouds formed... and black blood rained from the sky—it wasn’t just weather. That was the day of awakening. The day I resurrected them."
"Them...?"
"The Crescents. All of them. And because the babies—your children—shared a piece of their power with you, you carried Crescent blood in that moment. That’s why you cried black. That’s why all Crescents cried black that day."
My heart thundered. "And now... one of them wants Hazel?"
Lilith nodded solemnly. "He claims he’s Hazel’s true mate."
"What?!" I snapped, voice rising. "Hazel has true mates. Me. Cayden. Our brother. We’re her mates!"
She looked away. "I made that happen."
"What?"
"You wouldn’t understand. It’s... complicated. A long story. One I can’t afford to unpack right now. But we don’t have time."
Her voice shook now. "The spell I used—it won’t hold much longer. This is just a shadow of me, Caspian. My real body is somewhere else. They’ve chained me. I’m awake, I’m conscious, but I can’t escape. I risked everything to send this projection."
"Who chained you?" I asked urgently. "Where are you being held?"
Lilith’s eyes darkened. "I can’t say. If you try to come for me, you’ll walk into a trap. Even your whole pack couldn’t stand against what’s guarding that place. My Crescents... they are not like your wolves. You’d be slaughtered."
"Then what do we do?" I asked, voice tightening.
"You hide her."
"Hazel?"
She nodded. "They’ll come for her tonight. And they won’t stop until she’s theirs."
Rage simmered under my skin.
"No," she said before I could speak again. "I don’t want you to just protect her. I want you to bring them down. Every last one of them. Do you understand me, Caspian?"
My jaw clenched. "Yes."
"So... do you have a plan?" I asked, my voice low, uncertain.
Lilith nodded. "Yes. There is a plan. But I won’t lie to you, Caspian—I don’t know how accurate or successful it’ll be."
I stayed silent, listening.
"My plan," she continued, "is to inform you first—so you and your brothers can stay alert. Then I’ll go back... try to break the chain spell holding me. If I can free myself before the ceremony starts, I’ll return and switch places with Hazel."
"Switch places?" I echoed, blinking.
"Yes," she said firmly. "I’ll wear Hazel’s gown—the same one she’s already dressed in. I’ll take her place, and they’ll take me instead of her."
My eyes widened.
"I’ll pretend to be Hazel," she continued. "We have the same face, same height, same scent. Even the same powers, though she’s a natural-born Crescent and I was spell-made. But I can mimic her long enough. Just enough to fool them."
My jaw clenched. "And what if they figure it out? What if you get caught?"
Lilith gave a sad, almost serene smile. "Then that’s the sacrifice a mother makes."
I stared at her. The bruises on her face. The blood still dried at her temple. She was already halfway gone, and yet here she was, offering herself again.
"When will you be back?" I asked. "When do you plan to switch with Hazel?"
"That’s the part I can’t promise," she said, shaking her head. "That’s why I said I don’t know how reliable this plan will be. It all depends on how quickly I can weaken the spell binding me."
Suddenly, the other Crescent—Aurora’s look-alike—stepped forward. "In thirty minutes," she said. "Jonathan and others will begin moving. They’re already preparing to head out. We have to act fast."
We all turned to her, urgency crashing over us.
"If Lilith’s prison is far," the other Crescent continued, "then the distance will weaken the magic on the chains. It’ll give her a better chance of breaking it. Once she’s free, we’ll make our move and head directly to the High House."
Lilith turned back to me. "Is that a good plan?" she asked.
I took a deep breath. "Yes. It’s risky... but it might be the only way."
"Then make sure everything goes smoothly," she said, her voice sharp. "Only tell the ones you trust. Just Cayden and Aurora. No one else. Not even the guards. We can’t risk a single slip."
I nodded firmly. "I’ll handle it."
Lilith and the other Crescent locked eyes with me one final time—then vanished into the wind.
I jumped down and rushed straight to Cayden’s chamber.
He was seated regally before a tall mirror, dressed in an opulent king’s robe laced with silver and encrusted with diamonds. He looked every bit the Alpha—calm, powerful, composed—as the maids moved around him, adding finishing touches, brushing down his sleeves, adjusting the folds of his collar.
The moment he saw me in the reflection, he turned slightly, his eyes narrowed.
"Wrong time, brother," he said coolly. "As you can see, I’m being glamoured. Not exactly ideal for conversation."
"This can’t wait," I snapped. "We need to talk. Now."
He turned fully, his expression sharp. "Of all the times in the world, you choose now?" He scoffed. "I’m sorry, but I’m quite busy—"
"It’s about Hazel," I interrupted. "And the figure. I think it’s connected to what you’ve been sensing."
His face immediately changed. The edge in his voice dropped. He turned to the maids. "Leave us."
They hesitated. He didn’t repeat himself. One look, and they bowed quickly, retreating out of the room. We waited until even their heartbeats faded down the hallway.
Cayden stood slowly. "What did you find out?"
"I saw Lilith."
His eyes widened.
"She used a spell to send a projection of herself to the rooftop. Said her real body is chained somewhere. She came to warn us."
"Warn us?" Cayden echoed. "Yes," I said. "Someone is coming. For Hazel."
His breath caught. I saw it—the realization clicking in his eyes.
"So that’s why that figure came to me," he muttered. "He told me he was coming to take something that belongs to him."
His jaw clenched.
"He meant Hazel."