DAVE
Territory Lines
Five days until my sons arrive, and the Prime claws beneath my skin with such force that my bones crack audibly in the pre-dawn darkness. Every heartbeat sends blessed fire through veins that burn like molten gold, divine energy demanding expansion my body can't contain. Kat sleeps beside me in our bed, her breathing labored from carrying three boys, and the Prime whispers constant demands—claim her again, mark her deeper, make sure everyone knows she belongs to you alone.
I ease from bed before I do something unforgivable.
The October cold bites as I step outside, but my skin runs furnace-hot, frost melting from the porch railing where I grip it hard enough to leave indents. The blood crystals surrounding Howling Pines pulse in response to my presence, their fence
