The Alpha's forbidden omega mate - Chapter 229: Chapter 229

Rowan POV:
“Let her go, Damien! She’s not yours!”
My voice was a low growl, a challenge to the darkness that clung to him, to the magic that pulsed around him, a power that made even my wolf tremble.
I refused to show fear. I wouldn’t back down. Not when it came to Catrina.
Damien chuckled, a cold, cruel sound that made me clench my fists.
His crimson eyes, like burning embers in the shadows, were fixed on me, filled with amusement and a disdain that made my blood boil.
“You’re in no position to make demands, Rowan Magnus,” he sneered, tightening his grip on Catrina.
She stood stiffly beside him, her silver hair a stark contrast to his dark robes.
She was a prisoner, a puppet in his grasp.
“She’s mine now, Alpha,” Damien continued.
“And you… you’re nothing but a pathetic lovesick pup. You're about to learn a very hard lesson.”
He leaned in, his lips brushing against Catrina’s ear, his voice a silken whisper that sent chills down my spine.
It was a mockery of the love we’d shared, the memories he’d stolen, the future he’d shattered.
“Don’t worry, my love,” he murmured, his eyes flickering towards me with a predatory gleam.
“I’ll take care of him. And then… we’ll be together. Forever.”
Rage, pure and uncontrollable, surged through me.
My wolf snarled, his claws digging into the stone floor, his amber eyes blazing with a fury that could burn down mountains.
“Get away from her, Damien!” I roared, lunging towards him.
My wolf strained at his leash, desperate to break free, to attack, to avenge.
But Damien’s magic stopped me.
An invisible barrier, crackling with energy, held me back. My muscles screamed in protest.
“You’re weak, Rowan,” Damien laughed, his voice a mocking taunt.
“Pathetic. Just like your father.”
His words were a poisoned arrow, aimed at my heart, reminding me of the darkness in my own bloodline, the legacy of cruelty that haunted my family.
“Don’t listen to him, Rowan.” My wolf growled, a low rumble of defiance.
“He’s trying to break you. You’re stronger than him. We can beat him. We have to.”
I staggered back, my body bruised and battered from the fight with the Bloodmoon wolves.
Damien’s magic was already weakening me, draining my strength.
But I couldn’t give up.
Not while Catrina was trapped, her mind enslaved, her soul slipping away.
“Why are you doing this, Damien?” I asked, my voice hoarse, my chest heaving.
“What do you want with Catrina? What’s your plan?”
“I want what’s rightfully mine, Rowan Magnus,” he said, his voice cold and hard, his gaze never leaving Catrina.
His touch was possessive, a violation that made my wolf snarl.
“I want… my mate. My destiny. My power.”
“She’s not yours, Damien,” I growled, my wolf’s anger burning inside me.
“She’s my mate. And you’ll never have her. Not while I’m alive.”
“You’re a fool, Rowan,” Damien sneered.
“A lovesick fool, blinded by a bond that’s already broken. She doesn’t love you anymore. She doesn’t even remember you. Look at her, Rowan. Look into her eyes. She’s mine now. And soon… her power will be mine, too.”
I looked at Catrina. Her face was pale, her eyes vacant, empty.
It was like staring into the eyes of a stranger.
Despair, like a black wave, threatened to drown me.
“He’s right, Rowan. She’s gone. We’ve lost her.” My wolf’s voice was full of defeat.
“Give up, Rowan,” Damien’s voice was a seductive whisper, laced with magic, his words trying to worm their way into my mind, to break my spirit.
“Accept your defeat. Let her go. It’s the only way to end this pain.”
But even as his words, his magic, tried to pull me down, a spark of defiance remained. I couldn’t give up.
I wouldn’t. I had to fight.
For Catrina. For the love we’d shared.
For the future we could have had.
“Remember, Rowan.” My wolf’s voice was a desperate plea.
“Remember everything. Remember the truth. Remember… the weakness.”
As Damien raised his hand, his magic swirling, ready to attack, a memory, vivid and terrifying, flashed through my mind.
The spirit realm.
The battle.
Catrina's sacrifice.
The merging.
And… a conversation with King Korvash. A secret. A vulnerability. A way to…
“He has a weakness, Rowan,” Korvash’s voice, a low rumble, echoed in my mind.
“A vulnerability that stems from his… obsession. His… love for Lyra.”
Lyra. Catrina.
Two souls intertwined.
A love that defied death.
A bond that Damien couldn’t break. A power he couldn’t control.
His love for her… is his weakness.
I struggled to my feet, my body aching, my vision blurry. But a fierce hope was burning in my heart.
“You’re wrong, Damien,” I said, my voice a low growl.
I met his gaze, a challenge in my eyes. “You think love is a weakness? You think you can control it? Destroy it? You’re a fool, Damien. You’re blinded by your own obsession.”
He stared at me, his crimson eyes blazing.
“What are you talking about?” He snarled.
“You haven’t learned a thing, have you, Damien?” I laughed, a harsh, mocking sound that echoed his own cruelty.
I felt a surge of defiance, a strength born of desperation, of love.
“You’re still chasing a ghost, a memory, a love that… never belonged to you. You’re trying to force Catrina to be someone she’s not. She’s not Lyra, Damien. And she’ll never love you. Not the way she loved… me.”
His face contorted with rage, the shadows swirling around him, his magic crackling.
“You dare!” he roared.
“You dare defy me? Mock me? You will pay for this, Rowan Magnus! You and your precious omega! I will destroy you both!”
He lunged at me, his magic a whirlwind of darkness. And as I braced for the impact, a single thought, a desperate prayer, a whisper of hope, echoed in my heart.
Catrina, remember! Please… remember!
I closed my eyes, waiting for the pain, for the oblivion. But instead… I felt a different kind of energy, a warmth, a power, that wasn't Damien’s.
It was a power that felt familiar, a power that pulsed with a silver light.
And then, a voice, a low, fierce growl, a blend of Catrina and Lyra, a voice that made my heart soar with hope, echoed through the ruined palace.
"Don't you dare touch him, Damien!"