Aria's POVThe applause.It didn’t even sound like applause anymore. It hit me like a wave—a thick, crushing roar that rolled over my head and swallowed me whole.The clearing was packed. Hundreds of wolves were cheering, stomping, vibrating with happiness… but somehow everything around me felt muted, far away, like someone had shoved cotton into my ears.Or maybe my ears were actually ringing. It was that sharp, high-pitched sound—thin and painful, like glass right before it cracks.It was too much.All of it.Lucian and Lyra.The second their hands touched—just a simple, polite motion—the air shifted. Something invisible but violent swept through the space, brushing over skin and bone. It wasn’t physical, exactly, but it slammed into me anyway: a deep, aching sting right in the center of my chest. Recognition. Loss. Both. Neither. Something in between, sharp enough to bruise.I blinked hard. Get it together, Aria. Breathe. Smile. You’re her mother. You’re supposed to look proud.Whe
Last Updated : 2025-11-28 Read more