LOGINHis voice was soft when he asked, “Are you mad at Daddy?”My breath caught.I didn’t answer right away. I just held him tighter, brushing my lips against the top of his head, breathing in the familiar scent of shampoo and dreams.“No, baby,” I said finally, my voice barely above a whisper. “Just sad
ELENAHe said it. Just like that."Because I was a coward."And for a moment, I didn’t breathe. Didn’t blink. I just stared at him, this towering Alpha, folded in on himself like the weight of everything he’d done was finally more than he could bear.It wasn’t what I expected. It wasn’t defensive. I
DEREKI was more nervous than I had ever been in my entire life.And that included some truly horrible moments. Moments when life and death had been in the balance.Worse than when Aiden had been in the hospital, his little body limp and pale against white sheets, machines screaming at me that I mig
ELENA"I’m strong enough to travel," I said.The words came out firmer than I expected. My voice still felt like it didn’t quite belong to me—too quiet, too dry—but I forced strength into it anyway.My mother narrowed her eyes at me across the hospital room, arms folded, posture stiff with tension.
ELENAThe first thing I felt was cold.Not the kind of cold that settled into your bones. Not the chill of snow or wind. It was sterile, dry, antiseptic. The kind of cold that came from machines humming, filtered air, fluorescent lights. A hospital.I blinked slowly, and the world came into focus in
DEREKToday was going well.Which, lately, felt like a miracle.The meeting room was warm with early sunlight, and the Stormfang delegation finally looked less like they wanted to skin me and more like they might—possibly—listen. The Icelandic pack had been guarded since our arrival, especially with
ELENAThe rain had finally stopped, but the sky was still bruised, heavy with the kind of gray that never really lifted. Damp air clung to the stone paths of Moonstone like a second skin, the scent of wet pine and distant smoke threading through the quiet. I stood near the edge of the terrace, the
ELENAI’d barely slept the night before. My head still throbbed from the press conference, the way Derek had held my hand in front of the cameras like we were still something, like we were united. Like I wasn’t still carrying the weight of all the things inside me that he’d shattered.The shrapnel h
I hesitated, then moved to the sideboard and poured another drink. He probably didn’t need it, but a controlled Derek didn’t suit my purposes. The bottle sloshed too loudly in the stillness.“Here,” I said, kneeling slightly to offer it to him.He took it without looking. Our fingers touched. No spa
DEREKThe world narrowed to teeth and fury.Erebus was in control now—no hesitation, no strategy, just raw instinct. He tore through the rogues with savage efficiency, blood and fur flying, jaws snapping, claws ripping. This wasn’t the ballroom. This wasn’t ceremony or restraint.This was war.And E







