Penelope POV
"Drink this before you collapse, Governor," Axton said.
He shoved a steaming mug of black coffee directly into my space. The dark liquid sloshed against the ceramic rim. I did not look up from the tablet screen glowing against my desk.
"I do not have time to collapse," I said.
My voice sounded flat. Dry. The Western Border headquarters smelled of stale paper, wet concrete, and the heavy, metallic tang of pack politics. It was suffocating. Every hour brought another contract, another threat, another operational failure that required my signature to fix.
Inside my skull, Aria stirred. Her presence was a cold, sharp blade scraping against my consciousness. She was not resting. She was watching through my eyes, waiting for a vulnerability.
"You have exactly five minutes befo
