The fight was finally over, and the sun was dipping low behind the trees. The world was quiet—but not in peace. Just… in pause.
I hadn’t eaten. Hadn’t slept. I hadn’t had a drop of water in nearly twenty-four hours. We’d fought from four in the morning straight through until now—7 p.m. The ache in my bones didn’t feel like exhaustion anymore. It felt like permanent damage.
We’d lost twenty-five warriors today. Three of them were mated. None of them had kids. That was the only mercy we got.
We’d taken down 684 human attackers—men and women alike. And what did we have left?
Nothing but blood, bruises, and a threadbare sense of survival.
I was working on the tenth injured warrior in a long line when Drake scooped me off the ground like a bride, ripping me away from them.
“Sorry, boys,”
