Serenity's POV
The world fractures into wind and instinct the moment my paws hit the earth.
I don’t look back. I don’t need to. Darian’s scent floods the trail behind me—pine, stormlight, and something raw with fear. He shifts fully, the thunder of his wolf form shaking the ground with a rhythmic, violent power. The sound is a physical pressure against my spine, a reminder of the sheer strength he has always held in reserve. His snarl rolls across the night like a warning I refuse to heed, a low-frequency vibration that rattles the very marrow of my bones.
Serenity, stop!
His voice slams into my mind link—too loud, too desperate, echoing with the authority of an Alpha but the panic of a man who sees his heart walking out into a minefield. I seal my thoughts behind a wall so tight it hu
