LOGINAUTHOR'S POVRed emergency lights flickered to life.The backup generators hummed violently, casting the ruined ballroom in the color of fresh blood. Overturned tables, shattered crystal, and torn silk littered the polished floor. Pack guards shoved the panicked guests toward the exit doors, screaming for order.Sean knelt in the center of the carnage. Sweat drenched his face. His tuxedo jacket lay abandoned in a puddle of spilled wine.He drove the heels of his hands into Tracy’s chest."Come back," Sean gritted out.He pushed again. Her pale, lifeless body jerked upward with the force of the compression, but her eyes remained half-open, staring blankly at the vaulted ceiling. Blood stained her lips and the emerald silk of her dress.Dr. Evans slid across the hardwood floor, dropping a heavy black trauma kit onto the ground. The physician’s white shirt was torn at the shoulder, a casualty of the frantic mob."Move!" Evans shoved Sean’s hands away."Her heart stopped!" Sean grabbed th
TRACYGolden bubbles burst against the roof of my mouth. The vintage champagne went down smooth, carrying the sharp, crisp taste of total victory. Setting the empty crystal flute onto a passing silver tray, I wiped a bead of condensation from my thumb. Surviving this political shark tank without showing a single ounce of weakness was my only objective tonight. So far, the sharks were bleeding, and my lungs felt perfectly clear."He is going to run straight to the High Council," I noted.Sean adjusted the cuffs of his midnight-blue tuxedo. Standing beside the towering champagne fountain, his broad shoulders easily shielded me from the surging crowd. "Let him run. Begging politicians won't refill his bank accounts. Without money, Chandler is just a loud stray.""You bought his entire debt portfolio." Smiling, I leaned closer to be heard over the sweeping string orchestra playing in the corner. "How did you even manage that in under a week?""I used Sam Zach's banking connections." Sean
TRACY Crystal chandeliers dripped from the vaulted ceiling of the Grand Hotel ballroom.A string quartet played a frantic, sweeping waltz in the corner, but the music barely pierced the dense, oppressive wall of Alpha auras clashing in the room. Hundreds of the region’s most powerful shifters wore custom tuxedos and glittering gowns. The smell of roasted duck, expensive perfume, and pure, predatory tension filled my lungs.Every single eye tracked us.Walking beside Sean, the crowd literally parted. His dominance wasn't a suggestion; it was a physical force. Men lowered their gazes. Women stepped back. Walking through this room with Chandler used to mean keeping my head down, making myself invisible so I wouldn't embarrass his fragile ego. Tonight, wrapped in emerald silk and anchored by the most feared man in the territory, I stared directly back at them."Elder Thorne is glaring at you from the ice sculpture," I noted, grabbing a glass of sparkling water from a passing silver tray.
TRACYTHE NEXT WEEKSilk squeezed my ribs like a vice.Sarah yanked the corset strings again, bracing her knee against my lower back. Sharp pain flared across my spine. The heavy, humid July heat bleeding through the apartment windows didn't help. Surviving the Silver Moon Gala tonight meant projecting absolute, untouchable power, but right now, breathing felt like an Olympic sport."Hold still." Sarah tied a vicious knot at the base of my spine. "You want to look like the lead developer of a billion-dollar AI or a charity case?"Gasping, I gripped the edge of the mahogany vanity. "I want to keep oxygen flowing to my brain. Loosen it.""Not a chance." Sarah stepped back, clapping dust from her hands. She wore a bright yellow cocktail dress, her hair pinned up in elaborate curls. "Alpha Sean’s entire pack is going to be there. The regional elders. Chandler. You need armor tonight, Tracy. This dress is your armor."A heavy knock rattled the bedroom door.Marcus, Sean’s lead security gua
SEANThe damp chill of the mountain air finally began to numb my bare shoulders, but the woman resting her head against my chest was perfectly warm. Wrapped tightly in my oversized flannel shirt, Tracy looked peaceful, her breathing even for the first time in days. My shirt engulfed her small frame, the hem reaching her knees.I stroked her hair, my fingers tangling in the dark strands. The raw, physical bond we had just forged felt deeper than any legal mark. She had trusted me with her body while she was at her weakest, and I had proven I could control the monster inside me to keep her safe.A sharp, high-pitched electronic shriek shattered the quiet night.Tracy jolted upright instantly. Her smartphone, sitting face-up on a flat rock near our discarded clothes, flashed a violent, piercing red. The digital alarm echoed loudly over the steady rumble of the waterfall."What is that?" I asked, sitting up and reaching for my combat pants."The mainframe," Tracy whispered, her face turni
AUTHOR'S POVThe scream shattered the tension in the room.Tracy slammed her laptop shut. The loud crack echoed over the blaring alarms outside. She stood up, her fists clenched at her sides. Her breathing was ragged, her chest heaving, and the dark circles under her eyes looked stark against her pale skin."Shut the fuck up! Both of you!" Tracy pointed a shaking finger directly at Sam. "I am not your partner, Sam! I am your employee! You ambushed me with the press today. You touched me without asking, and you used my face to inflate your stock prices!"Sam blinked, his arrogant posture faltering. "Tracy, I was just trying to build the brand—""You built a target!" she yelled, her voice cracking. Pivoting on her heel, she turned her furious gaze on me.I braced myself."And you!" Tracy stepped forward, jabbing her index finger hard into my chest. "You storm in here with armed guards like a warlord! You command me to drop my life's work! You don't ask what I need. You just issue orders
TRACYWhite-hot shame burned a hot, painful path up my neck. My throat tightened with held tears, but the heavy, crushing weight of his strong anger forced my shaking legs to obey. Walking to the dark corner, my back pressed flat against the cold stone wall.The wait felt very planned and mean. Ch
TRACY The night brought zero comfort to the cold room they called my bedroom.Its thin walls gave zero protection against the cold, loud wind coming through the broken window frame.My sick body failed me long before the winter chill could settle into my skin.A high fever started just after two i
TRACYThe sheer brute force of his heavy hand connecting with my jaw lifted me entirely off my feet. I crashed backward into the wooden nightstand, splintering the sharp corner, before hitting the floor in a tangled heap. A high-pitched, deafening ringing exploded in my left ear. The warm, metalli
TRACYThe heavy, reinforced tires of the black SUV crunched violently over the gravel driveway, shattering the oppressive silence of the Gaunt pack estate. The vehicle slammed to a halt with bone-jarring force. Before my trembling fingers could even press the release button on my seatbelt, the hea







