**Chapter 32 **
The knock came at dawn.
I was in the kitchen, rebuilding what the full moon had destroyed, Micah's massive frame beside me as we measured cabinets and argued about wood grain. The five were scattered—Jax on the porch tuning his bike, Zane in the garden tending something green, Cole on the phone with a supplier, Knox at the table with maps spread before him, planning.
Damon answered the door.
I felt his thread spike through the bond—surprise, caution, a protective surge that made me drop the measuring tape and move toward the front of the house.
A woman stood on the porch. Young. Maybe twenty. Dark hair cut short, eyes that were hazel, not quite human, her body tense with a fear she was trying to hide. Behind her, a truck idled in the driveway, exhaust curling in the co
