lin'

om a brightly lit gazebo, clashing with the heavy, rich aromas of roasted meat and spun

she gasped, immediately captivated by a

her grip tightening on my arm bef

my arm from her grasp. Pulling the hood of my cloak low over my face, I melted backward into the

emory. It was a path Elara had walked a hundred times. I slipped through a narrow alley, bypa

som grove, its pale petals glowin

e Hardin had first

o stand in the very heart of my past, to look at the ruins of

I stared down at the lake's glassy surface. The reflection staring back

dn't be out here al

lly, and horribly, de

my spine, a phantom pain that e

rd

th the sweeping, shadowy branches of the largest cherry tree. He wasn't wearing his formal Alpha attire; dress

froze. His eyes widened,

us breathed. Why was he here? Was

ing over my face, searching

e was trying to solve a puzzle. Could he see it? Could he sense the echo of the woman he once knew in the way I stood, or the way I l

, choking out the panic. I swallowed it down and

id. My voice

ves crunching under his boots. "Ther

n. I took a deliberate step back, breaking the mag

rate to put distance betwee

to

it still hit me with physical force. My body trembled, my muscles locking up as they fought an order this wolfless

ropping, the oppressive aura instantly vanishing. He sounded almost... regretful,

uffocating, heavy with a history he didn'

answered, keeping my back t

to him. Padilla. I could almost feel the disappointment settling over him. A minor, in

illusion was all the opening I need

I didn't stop. Not even when I felt a faint flutter against my thigh-the distinct sensation

tter. Nothing mattered except gettin