The clearing slowly exhaled after the intensity of training.
Leaves rustled gently overhead, and the sharp edge of combat faded into something quieter—domestic, almost. But the tension didn’t disappear. It simply changed shape.
Lyra glanced once more at Rowan beneath the oak before turning away. “We’re done for now. Everyone clean up. Eat. Then we regroup.”
Marcus didn’t wait to be told twice. “Finally,” he muttered, already heading toward the path that led back to the Alpha house.
Selene lingered a moment longer, her silver eyes sweeping over them—lingering on Adrian, then Rowan—before she turned and followed, her steps as silent as ever.
That left the three of them.
Lyra stepped closer to Rowan first.
“Can you walk?” she asked, her voice softer now, stripped of its earlier authori
