Chapter 13 — The Price of Protection
Morning breaks with steel in the air.
Not sunlight—tension.
Lyra feels it the moment she wakes. The den is too quiet, the kind of silence that means the pack is already moving, already preparing.
Kael is gone.
Her heart stutters.
She sits up carefully, cradling the baby closer to her chest. The bond hums faintly, steady but distant. Alive. Alert.
Relief washes through her—but it doesn’t erase the fear.
A soft knock sounds at the stone entrance.
“Lyra?” It’s Mara, the healer. “May I come in?”
“Yes,” Lyra answers.
Mara steps inside, her expression grave. “The Council has summoned Kael.”
Lyra stiffens. “For what?”
“For breaking Rite protocol. For shielding you. For allowing the child to be born without formal sanction.”
Lyra’s grip tightens a
