ANMELDENCalebHours pass before any of us realize how late it has gotten.At some point, the nurses stop gently reminding visitors about closing time and simply let us stay.I think they know.Not in words.But in the quiet looks they exchange whenever they pass the room. In the softness of their voices when they speak to Elise. In the way nobody rushes June to leave.They know her time is running shorter.And judging from the heaviness sitting inside June through the bond, she knows it too.Elise spends most of the evening talking.About everything.Absolutely everything.One moment she is complaining about the terrible soup they served her yesterday, and the next she is telling me embarrassing stories about June glaring at people as a teenager until they crossed the street to avoid her.“She once made a grown man apologize to a stray cat,” Elise says proudly.I already know how June must have convinced that man to apologize... I can already picture it.June sighs beside her.“He kicked the
CalebJune sits beside Elise’s bed while the older woman holds her hand between both of hers.I stay near the doorway quietly.Partly because I don't want to intrude and make Elise uncomfortable, because she doesn't know me.Partly because my wolf refuses to relax.My eyes continue scanning the room automatically while June talks softly with Elise. The room itself is small and warm, filled with old books, knitted blankets, and framed photographs lining the shelves beside the bed.But underneath all of it, I can still smell strangers.Nurses.Doctors.Visitors.Too many scents layered together for me to isolate Tanya’s properly.It irritates my wolf immediately.Because she was here.Close to someone who is close to June.Close enough to sit in this room pretending to care while knowing exactly who Elise is to her.What's is her fucking deal! Why is she after June... what the hell does she wants.My jaw tightens slightly, frustration building inside me.Across the room, Elise laughs s
CalebJune does not say anything after I tell her she does not need to fear herself with me.She just steps closer.Then her arms wrap tightly around me.The movement catches me off guard for half a second because there is nothing teasing or sarcastic about it this time. No walls. No distance. She hugs me like this is what she has wanted all along and only now allowed herself to reach for it.My arms slide around her instantly.Naturally.Like there was never any other response possible.I pull her fully against my chest while her face presses against my neck, and the second I feel her relax in my hold, something inside me softens so completely that I almost forget where we are.The alley.The underground fights.The blood still drying across her knuckles.None of it matters right now.Only her.I rest my cheek lightly against the top of her head while my hand moves slowly up and down her back. June says nothing, but she holds onto me tighter for a moment, and I feel the exhaustion sh
CalebThe entire atmosphere inside the underground ring changes the second Beast steps into the cage.The crowd gets louder instantly.Not excited loud.Hungry loud.Like everyone here came specifically to watch someone get hurt tonight.Beast rolls his shoulders once as he enters the ring, towering over most people around him. Up close, he looks even worse. Thick scars run across his arms and neck while old bruises stain his knuckles permanently, like violence soaked itself into his skin years ago and never left.And the worst part?The man looks calm.Not cocky like Carter.Not emotional.Just brutal.June stands across from him completely expressionless, her posture relaxed enough that most people would mistake it for carelessness.I know better.Through the bond, I can feel her focus narrowing sharply.June is gone now.This is something colder.Something dangerous.Around me, people start talking loudly again.“This one’s gonna kill her.”“Fight’s over before it starts.”“She sho
CalebThe energy in the underground ring shifts the second June’s name is written onto the board.Or Phoenix.The shabby guy at the table raises his voice loudly enough for the nearby crowd to hear.“Phoenix versus Carter!”A mixture of reactions immediately spreads through the room.Some people recognize the name.Others don’t.A few men near the ring look June over before laughing openly.“No way that’s Phoenix.”“That girl?”“She’s gonna get flattened.”June does not react to any of it.She simply hands me her bag.Her expression stays completely blank, cold enough that it almost feels detached from everything around her.But through the bond, I feel her.Focused.Sharp.Anticipating the fight already.I take the bag from her while watching her move toward the ring.And unlike every protective instinct I probably should be having right now, my wolf is practically excited.Because we know she can fight.We want to see it.June climbs into the ring without fanfare while the crowd cont
CalebWe leave the apartment building behind after a while, but the image of it stays stuck in my head.Even as I drive through town with June beside me pointing out random streets and shortcuts she used to take, part of me still keeps circling back to those cracked walls and rusted railings.To the realization that she survived there alone.June shifts slightly in her seat and points toward an intersection ahead.“You can turn right here,” she says. “It’ll take us back toward the main street.”I nod once and follow the road.For a few minutes neither of us says much.The silence is comfortable though.With June, silence rarely feels empty.Then an idea occurs to me.I glance toward her briefly before speaking.“Show me your favorite place to eat.”Her brows lift slightly.“To eat?”“Yeah.” I shrug one shoulder. “Your favorite restaurant. Café. Kiosk. Food Cart."She looks out the window again for a second before shaking her head lightly.“I don’t really have one.”I glance toward her
AuroraLucas is sitting close enough that our knees touch when he shifts. Caleb is across from us, relaxed, joking, eating like this is just another morning. If I only look at the surface, it feels normal. Easy.But I know better than to only look at the surface.Lucas lifts his cup, takes a sip, t
AuroraThe sight becomes familiar the moment the car slows.I recognize the open stretch before my mind fully catches up. The last time I was here, everything shifted. I learned that my father loves me in the quiet, clumsy way men like him do. I learned the truth about my mother, not the polished v
AuroraI have been at this for hours.I know because the light has changed. It starts soft, gentle, brushing my skin like it is only passing through. Now it presses down, heavy and bright, sitting on my shoulders like it plans to stay. The morning slips into afternoon without asking me, and the sun
LucasAurora walks toward us before I can get my thoughts in order. I notice the way her steps shorten when she is serious, like she is conserving something. She stops in front of Ryan, tilting her head just slightly, eyes sharp but not accusing.“Your mother?” she asks. “But why?”Ryan swallows. I







