LOGINDARIUS’S POVThe city below us was completely silent, buried under a thick blanket of gray morning mist that softened the sharp neon edges of the Manhattan skyline.I stood by the floor-to-ceiling glass walls of the penthouse master suite, my hands resting flat against the cool pane. The storm had finally passed, leaving nothing behind but the steady, quiet rhythm of the morning sun breaking through the clouds, painting the sky in long streaks of pale gold and lavender. The heavy silver-plated revolver sat on the mahogany dresser behind me, its cylinder empty, its purpose finally fulfilled. The primary backup drive was plugged into the private network console on the wall, its blue status light glowing with a steady, peaceful hum that told me our world was secure.The ledger was perfectly balanced. The debts were paid. The throne belonged to us.A soft, breathy sigh came from the massive bed behind me, the sound instantly catching my ears and making my wolf rumble with a deep, contente
IRIS’S POV"He isn't going to trial, Agent Davis."My voice was a quiet, cold blade that sliced through the loud hum of the emergency sirens outside. I stood firmly at Darius’s side on the wet marble floor, the remaining fabric of my green silk dress dripping water onto the glass shards. My hands were still blackened and raw from holding the grounding wire, the skin stinging fiercely as the freezing wind swept through the ruined entrance. But I didn't let my shoulders slump. The silver wolf inside me was resting, her golden eyes watchful, keeping a steady stream of defensive heat running through my veins.Agent Davis looked up from his digital tablet, his brow furrowing as his tactical officers finished clamping heavy steel cuffs around my father's uninjured wrist. Two medics were working on Ronan’s shoulder, their hands covered in white gauze that was quickly turning a dark, heavy crimson."The federal government has three active warrants for his arrest, Ms. Calder," Davis said, his
DARIUS’S POV"Hold it steady, Iris!"I lunged across the wet marble, my boots throwing up a spray of water and glass shards as I slammed my body against the black industrial crate. The smell of hot copper and ozone was suffocating. Through the smoke, I could see Iris’s face, tight with agony, her silver talons digging into the raw blue wire as three hundred volts of grounding current tore through her fingers. Her grey eyes were bright with a blinding, golden alpha light, her jaw clenched so hard a drop of blood trickled down her chin.Seven seconds.The digital timer on the demolition box was frozen, its green light pulsing erratically as the system struggled to read the spoofed bio-signature.My hands flew to the side panel of the machine, my fingers ripping away the protective plastic casing to expose the central data receiver. My father hadn't just wired this box to blow; he had linked the detonator’s internal hard drive to the tower’s primary administrative network. If the bomb we
IRIS’S POVThe vertical shaft was a dark, hollow throat that smelled of burning copper and grease.Darius went down the iron rungs first, his broad shoulders easily clearing the narrow steel frame as he guided my feet from below. My bare skin scraped against the cold metal, the tatters of my emerald silk dress catching on the rough bolts as we dropped through the floors with a frantic, rhythmic speed. Above us, the forty-fifth floor was already a roaring furnace, the orange light of the fire leaking through the cracks of the maintenance door and casting long, dancing shadows over our heads."Five floors down, Iris!" Darius’s voice came up through the darkness, a low, gravelly hum that stayed perfectly steady despite the smoke thickening around us. "Hold the line!"Every time the building groaned, the vibration traveled straight through the metal rungs into my palms. My silver wolf was completely focused now, her heightened senses tracking the distant, mechanical countdown echoing up f
DARIUS’S POVThe digital console let out a long, low chime that vibrated through the metal desk.The black progress bar on the main monitor broke into a thousand pieces, the red deletion script completely dissolving as the gold light of the Calder crest locked the files into place. The secondary backup vault let out a loud mechanical groan, the heavy magnetic seals releasing with a series of sharp pops that echoed through the smoke-filled server room. The steel door swung open an inch, revealing the cold, brightly lit interior of the data core where the physical drive sat perfectly safe."It’s secured," Iris panted, her shoulders sagging as she leaned against the shattered glass of the junction box.Her human face was pale, covered in fine gray soot, and the long claw marks on her bare shoulder were still pink and tender from the healing process. The emerald silk of her dress was mostly gone, hanging in wet shredded ribbons that barely covered her golden skin, but her grey eyes were b
IRIS’S POV"On three," Darius whispered, his fingers curling around the iron latch of the maintenance hatch.The heat radiating off the metal panel was intense, warming the skin of my bare arms as I crowded behind his massive shoulder. The narrow shaft was thick with the chemical stench of the welding torch and the unmistakable, oily smell of burning plastic. My silver wolf was scratching violently at the surface of my mind, her instincts demanding a direct path to the throat of whatever enemy was trying to melt our future."One," Darius counted, his muscles swelling beneath his wet leather coat."Two."I tightened my grip on the iron rung of the ladder, my silver talons extending slightly from my fingertips, ready for the impact."Three."Darius didn't just push the hatch. He hit it with the full weight of his alpha strength, his shoulder driving the steel door outward with a violent, earsplitting crash. The metal panel flew off its hinges, slamming directly into the back of the near
IRIS’S POV"Take off the dress, Iris."The words were soft, but they carried more weight than the mountain pressing down on us. Darius stood in the center of the nursery, his gaze dark and heavy. He wasn't looking at the security cameras or the legal documents on the glowing laptop. He was looking
IRIS’S POV"Is that him?"My voice was a whisper, lost in the roar of the wind as the helicopter hovered near a jagged peak in the Swiss Alps. Below us, a stone house clung to the side of the mountain like a stubborn bird. It was a place of gray rock and dark wood, surrounded by a sea of white snow
DARIUS’S POV"You look like you just crawled out of a grave, and frankly, the grave would have been cleaner."Miller was standing by the open bay of the transport helicopter, his face a mask of worry that he was trying to hide behind his usual sarcasm. He looked at my shoulder, then at the blood on
IrisI stood there in the center of the server room for what felt like an hour, though I knew it had only been seconds, my chest heaving up and down while I tried to remember how to breathe. The rush of energy that had kept me moving was fading away now, leaving my hands shaking so violently that I







