Esther’s POV
The sound reached me before the smell: raised voices, echoing off stone like thunder trapped in a canyon. Then pine, rain, and iron, Kevin’s scent, rolled toward the Blood Moon Pack gates like a storm front. My pulse lurched.
By the time I pushed through the courtyard arch, guards were scattering like pigeons. Armor clanked, bows lifted and lowered. In the middle of it all stood Kevin, tall and furious, his Beta flanking his shoulder.
“Where is she?” he barked, voice cracking like a whip. “I’m not leaving without her!”
The soldiers stiffened but didn’t bar his way. Nobody wanted to be the one to stand between two Alphas. The air itself tasted metallic, vibrating with dominance and the threat of claws.
I wove through the ring of uniforms, my heart hammering against my ribs
