The marble lobby gleams under recessed lighting. No rustic wood beams or ceremonial fire pits here – only sleek surfaces and clean lines.
Framed alliance plaques line the walls, logos of allied packs engraved in silver metal, each representing oaths my family has honored for generations. The Bloodridge emblem. The Stoneblood insignia. Together with our Ashvale mark, they form the Trinity Alliance that’s governed our region for generations.
A hush settles over the lobby as I cross the threshold. The head maid, a Vesta from a loyal family lowers her eyes respectfully.
I can’t escape the scent of polished wood and tension that digs into my chest, warning of the confrontation to come. I swallow against the rising ache of dread.
“Alpha Cross,” the maid acknowledges my father.
My mother ha
