Rory's POV

The first sound was a growl.

Low, gruff, shaking the air like a warning bell.

I froze, my books slipping from my arms onto the cold stone floor. The courtyard, usually empty after dusk, was alive with stress so thick it choked my breath.

Kael’s eyes burned gold, his jaw clenched, his body shaking with the kind of control an animal holds right before it snaps.

Across from him stood Lucien, silver hair catching the moonlight, lips curved in a cruel smirk. His fangs ...