Kieran’s POV

The air warns me before the world does. It tightens—like a held breath.

I slow my steps instinctively, fingers brushing the hilt of my blade as I move through the narrow passage behind the eastern storehouses. This path should be empty at this hour. It always is. That’s why I chose it. Quiet routes keep you alive when everyone else is still celebrating survival.

The pack is licking its wounds after the siege. Fires smolder low. Guards rotate. The illusion of safety is ...