Mated To The Hybrid Prince - Chapter 109: Chapter 109

(Zion’s POV)
I stepped into Durelia’s restaurant, the scent of fresh pastries and rich coffee clinging to the air, and nodded once at the hostess who led me toward the private booth at the far end.
I should’ve canceled. I didn’t even know who I was meeting.
Lucien had cornered me this morning in my office, rambling about how Lurixia; one of the companies we might work with in the future, had requested a quick face-to-face. He said he had too much on his plate, and I was already swamped. When I reminded him I was the CEO, not a glorified stand-in, he gave me that look. The one that said “Just this once. Do it for me.”
For brotherhood, I sighed and agreed.
Still, my instincts were on edge.
As I approached the suite’s door, the air shifted.
There she was, sitting with her back straight, nerves humming around her…
My mate.
My entire body locked on her. She just stood up as I got to the table, her eyes were glassy with unshed tears.
For a second, the world paused. My breath hitched. She looked like she’d been waiting for me… but also like she couldn't bear to see me. Then she moved shakily and turned away.
“Hey-”
She rushed past me, fast, barely breathing. Her heels clicked urgently, and her guards moved in sync.
The glass doors opened, and just like that she was gone— again.
I stood there frozen, breath caught in my throat.
It wasn’t until I lowered my gaze to the table that I saw the name cards:
Zion Dimitrois.
Opposite: Lily Pison.
Pison.
As in King Pison; the ruthless ruler. And Lily… the same name Lucien had asked about in the car weeks ago.
It all collided in my chest.
She was my mate.
My Lily. The Lily!
I dashed out of the suite, heart pounding as I shouted for my driver to find her convoy. “Track that woman down, any SUV she came in, trail all of her envoy.”
We drove in tense silence, weaving through traffic. I clenched my fists as I spotted the last SUV of her convoy making a right turn. We followed, inch by inch, street after street until we finally reached a familiar school compound.
I remembered this place. The scent. The laughter.
It was where her kids hugged me.
The car hadn’t even stopped before I was out, following her scent into the hallway.
Then I saw her.
She stepped out of a room, phone pressed to her ear.
I moved faster, my heart racing.
Then she froze… her hands trembled.
Her phone slipped from her hand and cracked on the floor. Her knees buckled, and I lunged forward, catching her before she hit the ground.
She collapsed into me, shaking.
“Our kids…” she gasped. Then quickly corrected herself. “My kids. They’re missing.”
I tightened my arms around her. Her pain wrapped itself around my ribs like barbed wire.
The headmistress emerged, face pale. We exchanged a look.
I called Lucien immediately.
Within minutes, he arrived after her friends came.
I learnt their names were Aria, Dev and Tobe. They didn’t say anything to me but their eyes screamed one thing: You don’t belong here.
Lucien tried to keep things under control. “We’re splitting up,” he said.
Lily, of course, chose Tobe; one of her male friends.
I nodded tightly, jaw clenched.
Lucien told me to go with Dev.
Great.
The Dev barely looked at me as we got into the car. He started the engine and didn’t say a word.
The silence was brutal. Every comment I made about where we should look was met with either a grunt or complete silence.
At one point, I turned to him. “What the hell is your problem?”
He swerved and parked hard.
“I don’t like you,” he said flatly.
I scoffed. “It could’ve been mutual, but you barely exist to me enough to be hated.”
He stared at me, then ignited the car again. “Fine. Let’s just find the children.”
We started at an indoor arcade; neon lights, kids screaming with joy, the scent of popcorn thick in the air. Dev showed the twins’ pictures. The staff tried to help, but nothing.
Next, a petting zoo nestled in a quiet park. There were ponies, goats, rabbits…We combed through every enclosure, even the playhouses. No luck.
Last was the city’s interactive children’s museum. They weren’t there. I felt nothing but cold.
And then as we drove back into the city… Ragnar roared inside me.
“I smell blood. My blood.”
I bolted upright in my seat. “Stop. I can smell them.”
Dev turned sharply. “Where?”
I closed my eyes, focusing. “Park by the lake.”
He didn’t hesitate.
We got there in five minutes, didn’t even park properly. We Just jumped out and ran.
I didn’t need to look hard… There they were.
Two small figures on a bench, whispering, swinging their feet, like they were waiting to be found.
Zeus looked up first.
“Daddy!” he screamed.
They both shot up and ran.
I dropped to my knees as they slammed into me. Zeus and Lamia, they were safe.
They clung to me, and I clung tightly back. Dev jogged up beside us, panting. I felt his hand brush over Zeus’s back, a soft gesture despite all his edge.
The kids didn’t want to let go, so I carried them both to the car.
They curled up beside me in the back seat.
I brushed their hair gently “Who brought you here?”
“Uncle Tobe,” they both replied, almost in a sing-song way.
I glanced at Dev in the mirror.
The Tobe was the one Lily went with on that search. He had been with Lily.
How was that possible?
But something in my gut said these friends of hers could be trusted. Still, I would watch them carefully.
Dev pulled up at their mom’s place. It was large and pretty decent. We followed after Dev, the kids clinging to me like their life depended on it.
The moment they saw their mom, they broke free and rushed into the crying woman’s embrace. The house was filled with a lot of faces, including her friends. Lucien was there too.
However when she asked her kids what happened, they said the same thing. “Uncle Tobe took us to the park.” Zeus said, and Lamia muttered “He wanted us to play hide and seek, but he left us and came home.”
Then they pointed and said “He didn’t find us. Uncle Dev and Daddy did!”
While Tobe’s face was pale; he looked genuinely horrified, my mind kept resounding the word “Daddy.”
They had referred to Dev as Uncle Dev, and then me “Daddy.” They even called me Daddy when they saw me in the park.
I opened my mouth to speak when Lily’s phone rang. She answered and put in on speaker.
The voice was cold and deadly “You were lucky today. Next time, it’ll be you finding their corpses. Now, stay away from Zion. He’ll be your doom.”
The room went still.
Her friends were livid. Dev stepped forward, already dialing something on his phone.
And me?
My entire being surged with rage. Ragnar snarled inside, begging to tear someone apart.
I growled low in my chest, eyes blazing.
Without a word, I stormed out and Lucien followed, calling after me.
But I didn’t stop.
Whoever wanted me away from Lily hadn't discouraged me, but made me curious.
I would find out why.
And if those kids are mine…
Goddess help anyone who tries to take them from me.