เข้าสู่ระบบAthena's POV Dimitri keeps staring at me. For a few seconds, neither of us says anything. Then I see it. A familiar hint of a smile curves at the corner of his lips I know that smile. I used to love that smile. There was a time when I believed it belonged to me in a way no one else could understand. It was the smile I yearned for. The one that made something warm spread through me whenever I caught it after saying something that amused him. Dimitri rarely smiled, which made every small curve of his lips feel like something precious. Something I was lucky enough to receive. For a moment, I simply look at him. Some part of me waits. I wait for that familiar feeling to wash over me, the warmth that used to come whenever Dimitri looked at me like this. I wait for my heart to recognize him the way it once did. Nothing happens. There is only coldness. A deep, quiet coldness that comes from discovering there is nothing left inside you where something once lived. And suddenly, I
Athena's POVMy eyes are closed as I lean against the tree trunk, and as if by some built-in instinct, I continue rocking Augustus, the same slow, wordless hum I've carried him with since the night he was born.I stop humming when the familiar feeling washes over me.I know this feeling belongs to only one person.Dimitri.I have always been able to sense him, not because he moves loudly or announces himself, but because I learned the particular shape of his presence early, the weight of his footsteps, the way everything around him seems to respond differently than it responds to anyone else, a subtle shift in the air itself. My wolf registers him the way she always has, that low, unmistakable pull of recognition that hasn't changed no matter how much else between us has.My eyes open, and my lips part with a low sigh as I feel him walking toward the clearing.Toward me.I don't turn around.Augustus has gone completely still in my arms, asleep now, his face pressed against the warmth
Athena's POVAs I near Dimitri's room, my feet suddenly stall.The unmistakable scent of Gemma reaches me first, sharp enough to cut through everything else that is registering my senses. I know that scent immediately, lingering fresh enough that I understand she's been here recently, and a moment later I catch the sound of her moving somewhere further down the hall, toward his wing.My wolf stirs at the recognition.She doesn't growl. She doesn't bristle the way I half expect her to. There's no anger in her at all, which somehow unsettles me more than anger would have.Something quieter settles inside me instead. Something closer to exhaustion than to hurt, a kind of resignation that's been building slowly over the past year, layer by layer, until it's become simply part of how I understand my life now. Gemma exists in his life, a life I don't have any right on.Maybe I shouldn't have come here at this hour.Augustus shifts in my arms, pulling my attention away from the thought befor
Athena's POVAugustus is cranky tonight.He is in one of those moods where he wants nobody except me.His mama.The moment anyone else comes close, his little face changes. His hands reach for me, and his body presses closer as though he is not happy to share my attention even for a moment.I have a feeling it has something to do with my injury.Augustus catches on to my feelings more than people realize. He is still so young, but he notices when something about me changes. My wolf has been trying her best to calm him, sending him the reassurance she can through the bond, and he settles for a while.Then he looks at my injured arm.His little mouth turns down.And the fussing starts again."Yes, sweetheart," I murmur, shifting him carefully against me. "Mama got hurt."He pats my palm with both of his tiny hands.I look down at him."Yeah, I got hurt."His fingers close around mine."I got hurt and now you are being silly."He makes a small unhappy sound and presses his face against m
Dimitri's POVI stand in the infirmary for a moment after she leaves.The door closes behind Athena with a quiet sound that seems louder than it should.The doctor busies himself with clearing the instruments from the tray. The nurse strips the paper from the bed and gathers the used supplies. Neither of them looks at me.They have enough sense not to bother me.For a few seconds, I simply stare at the closed door.I can still picture her walking through it.Her injured arm held close to her body.Her face composed.Her steps slightly slower than usual, but still carrying the same certainty she brings into everything she does.Thank you for your help, Alpha.The words remain in my mind.Polite.Distant.As though I am a stranger who happened to be there when she needed assistance.I turn away from the door.The corridor outside the infirmary is quiet. Late afternoon light comes through the windows at the far end and falls across the stone floor in long, thin rectangles. I walk through
Athena's POV"Wolves are showing remarkable improvement. I am really satisfied with the way things are progressing. But we just have to pray that until we are fully prepared, those mutts don't plan anything."I wipe the sweat from my forehead with the back of my hand and lift my left hand to shield my eyes from the blistering sun. The afternoon heat has turned the training field into a furnace, and every wolf here is covered in sweat and dust. Even after days of training, the fighters are still pushing themselves harder than they did when we first arrived.Reese nods and offers me a bottle of water.I shake my head."I'm fine."He takes a long drink himself before pouring some of the water over his head. He closes his eyes as the cool water runs down his face and neck, then exhales."I meant to ask you, when did you first face those mutts?"I look toward the fighters for a moment before answering."Asher and I went on a hunt toward our southern territory. While hunting, we decided to







