LOGINCalebBy the time we get back to the Academy, the sun is already dipping lower in the sky.Everything moves fast after that.Too fast.Warriors take over as soon as we reach the gates. The girls are carried inside carefully, wrapped in blankets, voices kept low so no one startles them. Some of them are barely conscious. Some cling to whoever is closest like they are afraid they will disappear if they let go.I hand June over to no one.I carry her myself.Her weight rests against me, light in a way that does not sit right after what I just saw her do. My arms tighten around her without thinking, like if I loosen my grip even a little she might slip away.“She needs the doctor,” Jake says beside me, his voice calm but firm.“I know,” I answer, already moving.But I do not take her to the infirmary.Instead, I take her to my place, away from the Academy... away from everyone.And right now, I do not want her anywhere crowded.The door pushes open with my shoulder and I step inside, head
CalebI barely register the blood on my hands anymore.All I see is her.June lies in my arms in her wolf form, her body still except for the faint rise and fall of her chest. The cave around us fades into the background, the broken bodies, the smell, the noise of the others moving behind me.She is warm. Too warm. Her fur is damp beneath my fingers, thick with blood that is not all hers.“June,” I say quietly.No response.My arms tighten around her as I pull her closer, lifting her head slightly so it rests against me. Her body feels heavy now, like whatever strength had been holding her up before is gone completely.“Hey,” I murmur, softer this time, my voice meant only for her. “Come on.”Nothing happens.I force myself to focus.Her breathing is there.Faint.Her heartbeat too.Faint but there.That is enough.I shift slightly, adjusting her in my arms, one hand coming up to brush through the fur along her neck, slow, gentle. My fingers sink into it, as I hold on to her.“June,”
CalebTanya’s weight feels like nothing and everything at the same time.She is too light.Too fragile.Her head rests against my shoulder, her breath shallow, uneven, like every inhale is a fight she is losing. My arms tighten around her without thinking as I move through the trees, careful with every step.I cannot run.Not the way I want to.Not the way I should.If I push too fast, her body will not take it... it will worsen whatever injuries her small body is carrying. I can feel it in the way she shifts against me, in the way her fingers twitch weakly against my shirt.She is barely holding on.“Stay with me,” I murmur, my voice low, meant only for her.Her lashes flutter, but she does not answer.My jaw clenches.I push forward, weaving through the forest, my senses stretched in every direction. The path back feels longer than it should. Every second stretches, heavy with urgency.June.The thought hits hard.I push it down.She is strong. I have seen it with my own eyes. I hav
JuneOnce they transform, I notice it immediately.The smell hits me harder now. Rot. Filth. Something sick curling beneath it all, thick enough to choke the air. It clings to them, seeps out of their skin, their breath, their very presence. My nose wrinkles on instinct, a low rumble building in my chest before I even realize it.They are like me.But they are not.Their fur is nothing like mine. It hangs in uneven clumps, matted and patchy, streaked with dirt and old blood. Their bodies look wrong, too thin in some places, too jagged in others, like something inside them has been breaking for a long time. Their eyes shine with something feral and empty.They look ugly.Not just in form.In something deeper.My wolf does not hesitate.I launch at the closest one.The world narrows the moment I move. The others blur at the edges, their shapes and sounds fading into the background. There is only him now. His scent. His movement. The way his body shifts as he braces for impact.He expect
JuneThe moment I saw that man touching that girl, something shifted inside me.It is not just anger.It is not just instinct.It feels deeper than that, like something buried inside my mind suddenly snaps.One second I am June, thinking, feeling, holding on to control. The next, that part of me begins to slip.Not disappear.Not completely.But it moves back.I can feel the rush of heat in my chest, the sharp rise of my breath. But it all feels distant, like I am stepping backward while something else steps forward.I can still see.Still feel.But it is distant.Faint.It is like watching through fogged glass. Shapes blur at the edges. Sounds stretch and dull. My thoughts try to form, try to make sense of what is happening, but they cannot keep up. Something stronger is rising, pushing past them.My wolf.She comes fast. Too fast for me to slow her down. The anger and the need to protect twist together inside me, building until they drown everything else. Thoughts blur.Details f
JuneThe footsteps grow louder.Each step crunches against leaves and small stones outside the cave, echoing faintly through the opening. The sound sends a sharp wave of alertness through my body.I remain pressed against the stone wall in the darker corner, my eyes locked on the entrance.My breathing slows.Calm.Focused.Because whoever this is… I already know they are not here to help.There is no way Caleb could return this fast. Even if he ran the entire way back with help, it would take longer than this.And if it were Caleb…I would have felt it.Something inside me always reacts to his presence. The same strange pull I felt earlier. The same quiet warmth that follows whenever he is near.Right now I feel none of that.Only danger.My muscles tighten as I prepare myself.Every part of my body coils with readiness.The familiar strength bubbling beneath my skin grows stronger. My wolf stirs eagerly, sensing the threat before it even appears.Then a shadow crosses the cave entra
MikhailPressing my nose against Rose's hair, I take a deep breath. After Sophia, her scent is the only one that can help calm me down. My wolf's fury dulls to a low, simmering growl, the primal need to protect finally sated with my mate and pup in my arms."Shh, Rose. I've got you," I whisper hoarse
SophiaI can sense Mikhail’s emotions before I even see him. It’s like a wave crashing over me, a blend of raw anger and frustration simmering beneath the surface. I feel it prickling through our bond, hot and unsettling, making my own pulse quicken.To feel someone else's emotions so intensely feels
MikhailMerope bursts into the room, her movements quick and purposeful, with Alexei close on her heels. Instead of coming inside the room, he stands at the door and watches Sophia with a pained expression.Beneath the pain, I can sense his anger. His wolf flashes in his eyes, and he is angry that som
Sophia I shift slightly, propping myself up on one elbow so I can look at him. He still looks lost in his thoughts, but knowing him, I know he is alert and ready to take down any threat if it appears.His guards are never down... even while sleeping, there is alertness about him. It's like his mind i







