CHAPTER 4

Lycus’ POV

I sat up in bed, drenched in sweat, my heart pounding as if I’d just run for miles. The dream lingered, vivid and unsettling, like a weight pressing on my chest. Her face, those violet eyes, the cold glint of the sword in her hand—no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t shake it. She had stood over me, no hesitation, no mercy, and brought the blade down toward my neck.

I dragged a hand through my hair, feeling the dampness there, trying to push away the lingering fear. It wasn’t just a nightmare. It felt like something more. A warning, maybe. Something I didn’t want to acknowledge.

Sleep was impossible now. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw her again—her face, her lips, the cold, hard look in her eyes before she swung the sword. It made no sense. She was my mate. How could she want to kill me?

A knock on the door broke the silence. “Come in,” I called, my voice rough, like gravel in my throat.

The door creaked open, and Knox stepped inside, his sharp eyes immediately locking on me. “You look like shit,” he said, crossing his arms. “What’s going on?”

I sighed, rubbing my face with both hands before leaning forward, elbows resting on my knees. “I had a dream,” I muttered, still trying to make sense of it myself.

Knox frowned, stepping closer. “What kind of dream?”

I told him everything, from the stream to the sword, how she’d come at me like a predator, how I hadn’t even been able to move, frozen as she brought the blade down to my throat. It felt like more than a dream—like some twisted reality I couldn’t escape. I could still feel the chill of the metal against my skin.

When I finished, Knox stood there, silent, his face unreadable. He always had that calm, calculating look about him, like he was weighing every word before he spoke. Finally, he let out a slow breath. “That doesn’t sound like just a dream, Lycus.”

I nodded, feeling the tension in my shoulders. “It didn’t feel like one.”

Knox’s eyes narrowed, and he took a step closer. “The moon goddess might be trying to tell you something. This isn’t the first time a mate’s come with a warning. You know what that could mean.”

I stared at him, my hands tightening into fists. “What are you getting at, Knox?”

He met my gaze, his voice dropping. “I’m saying you need to reject her. If there’s a curse in play, you know how dangerous that can be. The moon goddess is warning you, Lycus. You saw it in the dream. She’s not safe for you. You need to let her go.”

A cold knot formed in my gut at his words. Reject her? The idea tore at me. She was mine—every instinct in me screamed to protect her, claim her. But the dream… it had been so real, too real to ignore.

“I don’t want to reject her,” I said through gritted teeth.

Knox sighed, but his voice stayed firm. “You have to, Lycus. If you don’t, the curse could destroy you. It’s the only way to keep you safe.”