Kael Ravenwood woke with his claws half-out.
It took him a full second to realize he wasn’t shifted — that the pressure ripping through his chest wasn’t physical, but something far more dangerous. His wolf surged beneath his skin, pacing violently, slamming against invisible restraints that had held firm for years.
Too close.
Too close to the surface.
Kael forced a slow breath, then another, grounding himself the way he’d been trained to since childhood. Stone walls. Cold air. Control.
It barely helped.
The sensation hadn’t come from a dream.
It had come from her.
Somewhere across Silvercrest Academy, something had moved — not loudly, not explosively, but with enough presence to make his wolf react like it had sensed a rival Alpha step into its territory.
Which was impossible.
Ar
