The evening before the deadline, Caleb knelt on the granite steps of Guild headquarters.
Cold had reddened his hands. He kept his head down as Guild employees passed through the bronze doors above him.
His coat hung loose on him. When I approached, he lifted a worn velvet box in both hands.
The skin beneath his eyes was gray from missed Moonsilver doses. His Alpha scent had thinned to almost nothing.
“Serena, I was wrong.”
Inside lay a bracelet made from cloudy glass stones. The setting tried to imitate moonstone.
The velvet lining had worn bald at one corner. A street vendor's paper price tag was still tucked beneath the hinge.
“You always said you wanted one.” His words came too fast. “I should have listened. Lily was a mistake. The pack, the villa, the money, none of it matters w
