The north mark had the pack on edge; the council room smelled of old wood and newer fear. Men clustered at the walls, voices low and dangerous. When I entered with Thorn, all eyes snapped to us like drawn knives.
“She drew him,” someone hissed. “Each mark proves it.”
The accusation landed with a weight I could feel in my bones. I wrapped my arms around myself as if I could hold every shard together. Thorn’s jaw tightened; whatever he intended to say settled behind his teeth.
"Let Korrin come take her," spat one of the men, his face flushed. “Better than our tombs.”
With the awful serenity of a storm, Thorn moved. He had the man against the wall in one motion, with raw force, heat, and threat. "I'll make you regret saying anything at all if you say his name again with hers." The room to
