ELARA POVI wake before the sun breaks over the cliffs.Zane’s still beside me, chest rising in steady rhythm, lips slightly parted in sleep. He looks younger like this. Softer. Like the version of him I imagined when I was sixteen, an omega, foolish and thought a mate could be my rescue plan.That girl is gone and she died the night I ran.But this version of me the one forged through blood, pain, and survival, still watches him breathe.And when I realize our fingers are tangled together, I don’t pull away.Not yet.Zane soon stirs, his eyes open slowly, gold catching the faint light like a flicker of fire.“You stayed,” he murmurs, voice rough with sleep.I don’t answer right away. Because the truth is, I almost didn’t.I almost told him to leave, twice and both times… I couldn’t do it.Instead, I squeeze his hand. Just once.He closes his eyes again like he’s storing that single moment somewhere sacred. Like he thinks it means more than I’m willing to admit.The morning is unusual
ELARA POVThe smoke thickens as the sun drops.Not a wildfire.Not the natural kind.This smoke carries intention. It clings to the trees like a warning, rolls in slow and low, dragging the scent of pine and ash with something worse buried beneath it.Blood.The moment it hits, Elias sends patrols to every ridge line. Amber moves through the inner strongholds like a flame, calm but burning. She seals the eastern gates, and the elders in the high chamber begin chanting the old language, their voices steady as the runes along the cliffs ignite in pulsing light.Everything feels too quiet.Even the mountain holds its breath.I feel it in my bones, like ice crawling along my spine.He’s close.Skull and he’s isn’t circling anymore, he’s watching us, testing us.Waiting for a crack to open and widen.I find Zane on the upper wall just before the last sliver of daylight disappears.He’s standing with his arms folded, eyes scanning the horizon. He doesn’t speak when I approach, but he glance
ELARA POVPredator TerritoryI wake with the dream still clawing at the edges of my mind.It wasn’t just fire.It was burning, feral and wild, the kind that doesn’t warm but devours. I heard trees crack under the heat, saw wolves screaming into the flames with fur peeling from their bones. And through it all, one shape stood still.A man in a skull mask.Watching meMy hand flies to the pendant resting against my collarbone. It’s still warm. The magic hasn’t faded. The wards are holding.But something about the mountain feels off. Too quiet. Like it’s holding its breath.Hyrax? I reach for her silently.She stirs, slow but tense.He’s circling. Like a vulture. Not ready to strike. Yet.I’m out of bed before I finish dressing in my head, pulling a wool tunic over my shift and strapping on my boots. The corridor outside is dim, lit only by the flickering torchlight. The air is cold, dry, still.Too still.I find Zane already outside, standing just beyond the stables, arms folded across
ELARA POVPredator Territory — MorningI wake with the phantom feel of his lips still lingering on mine.Zane is gone. The room is empty. But his presence clings to the air like smoke. On my skin. In my lungs.It’s maddening, how something so soft, so quiet, can unravel me more than a thousand scars ever could.I lift my fingers to my mouth, brushing over the skin he kissed. Last night wasn’t just a kiss. It wasn’t lust. It wasn’t comfort.It was a surrender, a warning and a promise, and I’m not sure which one of those frightens me more.…The high hall is quieter than usual when I sit across from Amber at the long stone table. The morning sun filters in through the carved arches, catching the edges of the tapestries. She has a scroll open in front of her, her tea steaming, her eyes scanning me more than the words.Fresh bread. Dried meats. Mint and elderflower in my cup.None of it touches the strange heaviness in my chest.“You’re distracted,” she says plainly.“I slept fine.” I rea
ELARA POVPredator Territory Later That NightSleep doesn’t come.Not because of nightmares. Not because of unease.But because for the first time in weeks, I don’t want to forget the way tonight felt.The quietness in the ring. The way his voice broke when he said he missed us. The look in his eyes when he realized I wasn’t turning away.The way his hand hovered near my cheek like I was something sacred. Something lost and found all at once.I’m still wrapped in the weight of it when a soft knock lands at my door.Three taps.Light and careful but I already know it’s him.I sit up slowly. My fingers tighten on the edge of the blanket.I don’t owe him anything. Not tonight. Not anymore.But still… I open the door.Zane stands there, holding a mug in both hands. His shirt is clean, though wrinkled and loose like he grabbed it in a rush. There’s a faint line creased along his cheek from the couch cushion. He hasn’t slept either.“I figured…” he starts, his voice low. “If you’re awake, y
ELARA POVPredator Territory — Just Past MidnightI find Zane in the training ring again.After the warning from Skull, everything has been quietToo quiet.The cold mountain wind whips through the trees, carrying the metallic scent of blood, the smoke from the outer guard posts… and him. He’s shirtless, again. Not because he’s training. Not because he’s reckless.Because he’s angry.His fists slam into the wooden post in brutal rhythm, each strike echoing across the quiet grounds. His knuckles are already split, blood staining the old tree.He doesn’t stop. Doesn’t flinch. He just keeps hitting like it’s the only thing tethering him to the ground.But I see the tension in his shoulders. The rage beneath the surface. The pain he’s not saying aloud.And I feel it, burning in my neck.That damned mark reacting to him like it always does. A tug beneath the skin, subtle but insistent.“Zane,” I say as I step into the ring.He doesn’t look at me right away. His fists still. His back rises