Ava's POV
The courtyard was chaos.
The sound of bones snapping still echoed in my ears, mingling with the guttural roar that had ripped free from Diego’s chest when his human skin gave way to the monster beneath. His Lycan form towered above everyone — massive, dark, and twice the size of any wolf I’d ever seen. His eyes burned molten gold, seething with rage and something primal that made even the bravest of my father’s men recoil.
I couldn’t breathe.
Every nerve in me was pulled toward him, toward the terrifying majesty of what he had become. He was feral, unstoppable, and yet—he was Diego. Diego, whose eyes softened when they met mine, whose presence burned like a secret fire in my chest.
He didn’t stay.
With one earth-shaking leap, he bounded past us and vanished into the trees
