The forest lay in eerie silence, the kind that pressed against the ears until Lena could hear nothing but the thud of her own heartbeat. The tension from moments ago still clung to the air, a living thing coiling around them.
Dominic stood just a few feet away, golden eyes locked on her, his stance still taut from the fight he’d been seconds away from finishing. Across from him, Kael’s posture mirrored his — a predator at rest, but only in appearance. The air between them was thick with unspoken threats.
Lena’s pulse raced. She had done something — she knew she had — reaching into bonds she hadn’t fully understood and yanking on them until both Alphas stopped moving. It hadn’t been conscious. It hadn’t been safe. But it had worked.
Kael’s lips twisted into a smirk that didn’t reach his
