Athena

The following morning brought a chill I wasn’t prepared for. The mansion was quiet, the twins still asleep, and the first light of dawn barely illuminating the halls. My muscles ached from yesterday’s mission, though not as much as my mind. Every detail from the borderlands replayed in my head—the rival alpha’s gaze, the patrol patterns, the subtle signs that indicated the pack wasn’t as united as it seemed.

Beauty sat across from me in the breakfast hall, her hair ...