Lorenzo
The courtyard was empty when I returned, the torches extinguished, the ring bare beneath the pale sweep of moonlight. Tomorrow, it would be filled again—wolves pressed tight around the edges, their eyes sharp, their judgment heavier than steel.
And in the center, it would be her.
And me.
The thought sent a shiver of anticipation through me, my wolf prowling just beneath my skin. He wanted her in every way—wanted to mark her, bind her, end this long, burning struggle with one bite, one claim. But I held him back, grinding my teeth, forcing the restraint I had lived by for weeks now.
Not yet.
This trial was not about possession. It was about awakening.
If I took her before she saw herself clearly, before she understood what she was becoming, it would be nothing but a hollow vi
