Ares’s POV

The morning air smelled like metal and smoke — sharp, clean, dangerous.

Perfect for what was coming.

It had been four days since Patricia’s warning. Four days since I’d realized Atlas wasn’t waiting anymore. He was gathering, scheming, and preparing to destroy everything that was left of us.

But so was I.

The estate grounds were no longer silent. The sound of boots striking the dirt, the rhythmic crack of gunfire from the training range, and the deep grunt of men ...