Elijah
I should have been able to focus.
That was the irritating part because nothing on my desk was trivial. Border tensions were escalating. Supply routes needed rerouting. Two packs were circling each other like idiots who mistook pride for strategy. Any one of those things normally would have commanded my full attention.
Instead, I was staring at the same paragraph for the third time, seeing nothing but her face layered over the words.
Violet.
Specifically, the moment she froze outside the meeting room.
I hadn’t needed to turn around to know she was there. The shift in the air had been enough. Wolves sensed disruption instinctively, and hers had been sharp and sudden like glass cracking under pressure.
I remembered how she stood there, shoulders squared, chin lifted in that way
