CHAPTER 84
MARCO
THE THREAD BETWEEN WOLVES
I felt it the bond moment I stepped past the threshold of my room, the wards thinning just enough at the edges for my wolf to taste freedom. Not Callie’s bond, hers was deeper, brighter, threaded through my chest like a second pulse, but this one was older, rougher. Recognition. Pack-adjacent. Familiar teeth and blood and stubborn resolve. It was Matteo’s.
My wolf lifted his head inside me, ears pricked, attention snapping sharp. The pull wasn’t emotional. It was directional. A line drawn taut through stone and spell and arrogance. And it wasn’t moving.
I moved slowly, deliberately, letting my steps match the rhythm of the estate. Guards walked patterns like clockwork. Wards hummed in predictable waves. My father believed in systems. He belie
