The full moon lit the high altar. Pack members formed a ring below while two Guild Wardens brought Caleb up the stone steps.
Wind moved through the open peak and tugged at the ceremonial banners. No member of the Blackwood family stood beside him.
He shivered in the wind and kept his eyes on the runes cut into the altar floor.
The Elder began. “We are gathered under the full moon to witness the severing of a sacred bond.”
He raised the ritual staff over the runic circle. The carved lines brightened around Caleb's knees.
Lily screamed from the crowd.
She forced her way through the onlookers and dropped to her knees at the foot of the altar.
“You can't do this! He is still an Alpha, and I carry his heir. The future of the Blackwood pack is inside me!”
She pressed both hands over her
