se

d. Freedom was jus

rypted burne

screen, a cold dread pooling in my stomach. I

one was devoid of any warmth. "The Matriarch noted your failure to RSVP t

las

ances tonight. If you and Alpha Jace do not walk through the doors of the Blackwood Keep by seven o'clock, she

ing the words made phantom silver burn against my skin, a visceral

oked out, my voice tremb

ckers would hunt me down before I crossed the

consciousness into the Pack's

-link. *I need you to come with me

re you insane, Elyse? Elder Marcus froze my accounts! I am dealing with a fin

unfiltered terror through the bond. *She will drag me back to the Bl

pha instincts recognized the genuine, primal fear radiating from me. He

we arrive at seven, and we leav

haky breath, praying we could just ma

formal black gown, shivering as the draft from the heavy front door seeped into my bones. Outs

Ten minutes until

-floor landing. She wasn't using the mind-link; she

iggled, the sound dripping with fake innocenc

floorboards. Jace's bedroom

k Doctor!" Jace bellowed, his Alpha aura explo

g with perfectly calculated tears. "You have a Luna! I can't just wait ar

heer force of it making my own knees buckle slightl

e only sound was the violent rattli

-link c

any guilt. *The Elders just called an em

d meetings on the night of the Winter Solstice. It was a pat

lack leather briefcase sat exactly where I had left it, th

ver bond tied me to Jace Silvermoon withered and died

or. The freezing wind instantly bit into my skin, but I didn't stop. I walked out int