جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 56

The invitation arrives at Ashborn that morning, carried by one of Thane’s messengers and sealed with the crest of his pack. It is not a council gathering, nor another meeting about the Unbound, and for once, there are no ancient records or damaged wards waiting to demand our attention. Thane has simply decided that surviving the sanctuary deserves to be acknowledged, and he has chosen to celebrate it with a feast large enough to bring together Ashborn, Duskmoor, and his own pack. By the time we arrive at the Moonrise grounds, the place is transformed. Hundreds of lanterns hang from the branches surrounding the clearing, their warm light spilling across long wooden tables decorated with silver branches, wildflowers, and bowls of glowing fruit. Music drifts through the air from a group of musicians seated beneath a covered platform, their instruments producing a slow, beautiful melody that seems to settle over the gathering like another layer of enchantment. Wolves from different pack

ROAN The noise of the Moonrise Feast carried deep into the perimeter line, but from where I stood beside the stone boundary marker, it felt like listening to a celebration through thick water. I turned the wooden cup in my hand, watching the reflection of the hanging lanterns ripple across the dark surface of the wine. Across the clearing, the Ashborn banners swayed in the night breeze alongside the crest of Thane’s pack. Everywhere I looked, wolves were laughing, drinking, and tearing into roasted meat. Thane had built an island of light in the middle of a war zone, and right at the center of it stood Sloane. I hadn’t moved closer to the primary tables since the delegation arrived. I stayed near the outer edge of the covered pavilion, close enough to keep the Duskmoor warriors within my line of sight, but far enough into the shadows that I wouldn’t force Sloane to look at me every time she turned around. "You look miserable," Marcus said, stepping up beside me. He didn’t bo

SLOANEThe noise of the hall hit me like a physical wall when I stepped back through the archway, but it felt miles away, muffled beneath the thrum of my own racing blood. My lips were still tingling. The ghost of Roan’s breath against my mouth, the sudden, intoxicating heat of his chest pressed against mine, the way my fingers had tangled into the dark fabric of his jacket—it was all loop-playing in my mind, sharper than the reality around me. It was the wine, I told myself, my hand coming up to touch my bottom lip as if to wipe away the memory. The wine, the lantern light, the exhaustion from the sanctuary. That was all it was. "Sloane? Are you alright?" Thane’s voice pulled me back. I blinked, realizing I had stopped dead in the middle of the floor near the platform. He was watching me with that calm, perceptive gaze, a silver cup poised near his chin. "Fine," I said quickly, forcing a light smile onto my face. "Just... a little flushed from the air." "You look like you've se