Mortimer's POV
Watching Seraphina standing there, her voice as flat as a goddamn sidewalk, I felt a surge of pure powerlessness. It was like throwing a haymaker and hitting nothing but air. My absolute authority as an Alpha was being systematically dismantled by her flawless, unbreakable indifference.
She didn't fight. She didn't explain.
I tried a quiet move—releasing a subtle wave of mate pheromones. I nudged Barton, my wolf, to force a connection and crash into Lily's mind-link, trying to regain control through our primal bond.
But Barton let out a frustrated growl in my head. It was a sound of defeat I'd never heard from him before. "She's locked her mind-link down. Lily... she's refusing to answer. She's actively repelling our touch."
The fear of being completely "disconnected" f
