Alysse’s POV
The battlefield hadn’t moved.
But everything had changed.
The war wasn’t about packs anymore.
It was about us.
Me.
Sebastian.
Katherine.
And somewhere beyond all of this—
Wren.
Katherine stood a few feet away from me, her presence calm but… heavy. Ancient. Watching.
Studying me.
“You’ve grown fast,” she said quietly.
I crossed my arms slightly, meeting her gaze.
“I didn’t have a choice.”
A faint smile touched her lips.
“No… I suppose you didn’t.”
There was silence between us.
Not hostile.
But not comfortable either.
“You love him,” she said suddenly.
Not a question.
A statement.
My chest tightened.
“Yes.”
“And yet…” her eyes softened, but there was something deeper beneath it, “you’re not his only bond.”
Wren.
The name didn’t need to be spoken.
“I’m
