The first howl shattered the fragile silence.
It was close too close.
Selene froze, every muscle in her body tensing. The night pressed in around them, thick with fog and the scent of blood and pine. Somewhere beyond the trees, the Council’s hunting party moved like ghosts.
Lucian’s hand closed around her wrist, his grip firm but steady. “They’ve tracked us faster than I expected,” he said under his breath.
Kael stirred weakly from where he leaned against the cabin wall, his wound still seeping blood. “They’ve got hounds. Once they’ve got the scent, there’s no hiding.”
Lucian’s gaze flicked to the window, scanning the black treeline. “Then we stop running.”
Selene turned on him. “You can’t be serious. There are too many—”
He cut her off, voice low and lethal. “They’ll corner us even
