Chapter 43

FORTY-THREE

T he world was swallowed by darkness. Emma’s last thought, a frantic prayer to survive, was dashed as the explosion’s shockwave consumed the lab.

But it wasn’t the end. Emma could feel a strange warmth, an undeniable presence anchoring her to life. The crystal. It pulsed inside her chest, as if it were alive, a powerful, tethering force wrapping around her. Her mind raced through a haze, fighting to comprehend what had happened, where she was, and whether they’d survived.

She forced her eyes open, the world slowly coming into focus—shattered glass, jagged edges of concrete, and the distant echoes of collapsing metal. The air was thick with smoke, and the ground trembled beneath her.

“Lucas?” Her voice was a hoarse whisper.

She felt him before she saw him, his presence solidifying through their bond. He was close. She could hear his breathing, shallow but steady, and then the comforting sound of his voice. “I’m here.”

His hands found hers in the darkness, rough but gentle. There was a reassuring warmth to his touch, and his panther strength held her steady as they both tried to make sense of the destruction surrounding them.

“How...” Emma started, her voice faltering as she struggled to push herself upright.

Lucas’s grip tightened on her hand. “The crystal. It protected us.” He sounded as dazed as she felt. “I felt it, Emma. It shielded us all from the worst of it. Even as dust, it’s powerful.”

One of the enforcers stood, debris falling off him like an avalanche down a mountain. Another climbed from beneath crumbled concrete, then another and another. The entire force emerged from the ruins.

The crystal—her brilliant grandmother’s crystal—had saved them.

Slowly, they staggered to their feet, digging their way out of the wreckage of the collapsing lab. The ground beneath them still trembled, but the immediate danger had passed.

Zayne and Victor emerged from the smoke, both bloodied but alive. Zayne’s face was grim, his sharp gaze scanning the surroundings. “We need to get out. This place is still coming down.”

Victor let out a sigh when he saw Emma and Lucas. “You two all right?”

Emma nodded, though she could still feel the pounding in her skull. “We’re alive.”

Lucas moved them through the rubble as best as he could.

The explosion had consumed the lab, leaving nothing but scorched earth and smoldering ruins in its wake. Emma’s last memory before the blast was of Malcolm’s triumphant sneer, twisted with the madness of a man willing to destroy everything rather than face defeat. Now, as she and the others emerged from the rubble, his absence was an undeniable weight.

The air was thick with the acrid stench of burnt machinery and singed earth. Emma coughed, her lungs struggling to expel the oppressive smoke. Lucas’s steady arm supported her, his strength an anchor in the chaos.

“Is everyone accounted for?” Lucas asked, his voice hoarse but firm.

Victor nodded, his face smudged with soot but otherwise composed. “Zayne and I checked. No survivors from Malcolm’s forces. If any of his enforcers made it out, they’ll scatter without him. He’s gone.”

Emma’s chest tightened at those words. Malcolm’s death should have brought relief, but instead, it left a hollow ache. She thought of the lives he had manipulated and destroyed, the pride members who had suffered under his experiments. Justice had been served, but the cost was immeasurable.

As they moved farther from the wreckage, the harsh sunlight cut through the smoke, revealing the devastated landscape. Trees on the perimeter of the lab were charred, their leaves reduced to ash. A strange quiet blanketed the area, broken only by the occasional groan of settling debris.

Emma glanced back at the ruins, her heart heavy. “He really believed he was saving the pride,” she said softly.

Lucas stepped beside her, his expression unreadable. “He was wrong,” he said after a long pause. “Whatever his intentions, the damage he caused... It’s unforgivable.”

Emma nodded. The faint hum of the crystal’s energy buzzed in her chest, a comforting presence even in its diminished state. She still didn’t fully understand its power, but she knew it had played a role in saving them. It wasn’t just a relic; it was a symbol of something greater.

Love.