Elena
*****Silverfang Territory — War Hall, Nightfall*****
The silence after Lucian’s declaration didn’t fade.
It followed us.
It clung to the corridors as warriors parted for us, eyes lowered, steps careful. No one spoke. No one dared. The kneeling in the courtyard had ended, but the damage hadn’t. Power like that didn’t disappear just because the moment was over.
It rewrote things.
I could feel it in the way the walls hummed faintly beneath my skin. In the way my heartbeat no longer felt like just my own.
I hated it.
The war hall doors shut behind us with a heavy thud. Torches flared along the stone walls, casting long shadows across the council table. Lucian leaned against one of the pillars like he owned the place, which, judging by the looks on the elders’ faces, he basically
