The silence stretched between them, thick and charged. Laura stood her ground, refusing to back down despite facing four of the most powerful Alphas in the territory.
Zephyr rose from his seat, his movements fluid like water. He stepped toward a wooden chest tucked in the corner of the room that Laura hadn't noticed before.
"Since you're so determined to prove yourself," he said, his voice soft yet carrying throughout the chamber, "perhaps you'd be willing to face a different kind of challenge."
Lucian's head snapped toward him. "What are you doing?"
Zephyr ignored him, opening the chest and pulling out an ornate wooden box. It was small enough to fit in his palm, its surface covered with intricate carvings that seemed to shift in the torchlight.
"This is the Riddle Box," Zephyr expla
