71. Put Your Shirt Back On

Kael was waiting near the entrance to Ironfang.The second Garrik and I came into view, his eyes locked on me.Head.Shoulders.Arms.Legs.Then back to my face.Like he was checking to make sure every piece of me had returned.Garrik glanced at him.“You look like you were about to shift at any moment.”Kael’s jaw tightened.“You’re late.”I looked toward the sky.

Last Updated : 2026-09-11

72. Balance

Talia’s mouth twitched.Kael stepped around me and grabbed his shirt from the ground.Thank the Moon Goddess.He pulled it over his head, then looked at Talia.Whatever had existed in the training yard disappeared.His face went blank. His shoulders straightened.Alpha.“Talia.”“Kael.”Apparently we were all using first names now.Wonderful.“What are you doing in Ironfang?”

Last Updated : 2026-09-11

73. Kael POV

I had let her shut the door in my face.That was probably the more concerning part.She'd refused to come to training because I hadn't asked.Then, when I did ask, she'd made me wait fifteen minutes.I'd allowed it.Any wolf under my command who spoke to me like that would have spent the rest of the day running the mountain.Lyra wasn't under my command.I wasn't her Alpha.That was all.She'd been right.Annoyingly.Then— I had taken off my shirt.I knew exactly why.Lyra's attention had drifted three times during training. Twice to my chest.Removing the distraction wouldn't teach her anything.Making her fight through it would.Simple.Effective.Training.Nothing more.My wolf stirred.You enjoyed it.I ignored him.The corridor toward the council room was nearly empty. Good.I had an hour before Talia expected me.Enough time to deal with everything else that had happened in that training hall.Lyra had hit me.My side still remembered the impact. Not because it hurt.It hadn't.

Last Updated : 2026-09-13

74. What Prophecy?

The river was the first thing I heard.Not voices.Not wolves.Water.It moved lazily between the mountains, clear enough that I could see the stones beneath its surface. Pines climbed the slopes on either side, disappearing into mist near the peaks.Riven was sitting on a large stone at the edge of the river.His elbows rested on his knees, hands loose between them as he watched the water.He hadn't noticed me.Or he was pretending not to.With Riven, both were possible.I walked toward him.“So this is real.”His head lifted.Violet eyes found mine.Something in my chest pulled.The bond.It hummed between us, warm and content.Happy.And something more that I wasn't going to examine too closely.Riven's mouth curved slightly.“You figured that out.”“I did.”I stopped beside the rock.“What is this place?”Riven looked back at the river.“Somewhere I come to think.”“You?”He glanced at me.“I think.”“I assumed you mostly stood in shadows and said concerning things.”“Only when I'

Last Updated : 2026-09-14

75. Balance and Power

I woke with Riven's words still in my head.Anyone who knows the prophecy.I stared at the ceiling.“What prophecy?”Jack twitched his ears from the box of hay on the floor.Apparently, Dream Riven wasn't going to answer me any more than Jack.Ugh.I rolled onto my side and pulled the blanket over my head.It still smelled like Moonshadow.Like Darian.For a few minutes, I considered staying there.Then I remembered Kael expected me at training.No.Kael had asked me to come to training.There was a difference.Unfortunately, I'd said yes.***Kael kept his shirt on today.Thankfully.It made training considerably easier.Not easy.Just easier.He still knocked me onto the ground more times than I cared to count.“Again.”I pushed myself up.“You know, eventually you're going to have to learn another word.”“Again.”Apparently not.I attacked.He moved.Of course he moved.But this time I anticipated it.I shifted before he did, avoided the hand reaching for my arm, and managed to sta