The night had fallen deep over the coastal town, wrapping the streets in a hush that only the rhythm of the sea could interrupt. The hotel stood like a quiet sentinel against the dark, its glass walls reflecting the silver sheen of moonlight. Inside, the corridors were dim, the plush carpet swallowing every footstep.Matthew stood at the end of the hallway, his hand lingering against the cold brass of the door handle. The muffled hum of voices came from inside, but he didn’t move yet. For hours, he had been pacing his room, debating whether to confront Tiffany again or let things settle on their own. But the weight in his chest, the relentless churn of thoughts, refused to let him rest.When he finally entered, the soft scent of disinfectant from the clinic still clung faintly to the air. Tiffany was sitting on the sofa, her knees drawn up to her chest, her face turned toward the balcony. The sheer curtains swayed from the ocean breeze that crept in, brushing over her hair. Max sat on

The hotel’s corridors were quieter than usual, the soft hum of the air conditioning blending with the muted sound of footsteps. Matthew walked briskly, his expression a carefully constructed mask, but inside, his mind was a storm. Laura was still in their room, sulking after their earlier argument, and he knew that if he stayed there any longer, the tension would suffocate them both.Downstairs, the lobby was dimly lit, casting warm shadows over the polished marble floors. He didn’t have a destination in mind, only the urge to get away from the four walls that seemed to press in on him. But as he passed by the hotel bar, his gaze caught on something that made him slow down.Tiffany.She was sitting at the far end of the counter, her back straight, her hands wrapped around a tall glass of something clear with ice. She looked… different tonight. Her hair was loose, slightly tousled, her eyes focused on the glass as if it held the answers to questions she wasn’t ready to ask out loud. Ma

The tension inside the Alpha’s office could be cut with a blade. Jared stood near the massive oak desk, his arms crossed over his chest, his golden eyes locked on Kiera as if he could pierce through her very soul. Every flicker of candlelight along the walls cast shadows across his sharply drawn features, making him look even more imposing.Kiera’s heart thudded in her chest, each beat echoing in her ears. She had faced rogues before, endured days of relentless travel, and returned to the pack bruised and battered, but the way Jared was looking at her now made her knees weaken. He wasn’t just angry—he was livid.“I told you,” Jared’s voice was low but filled with danger. “You don’t leave this territory without my permission. And yet, here you are… coming back on death’s door.”“I had to,” Kiera whispered, her voice trembling but steady enough to hold his gaze. “I needed to—”“You needed to what? Throw yourself into the arms of rogues?” Jared cut her off, slamming his palm down on the

The rain came down in sheets over the glass walls of Ravage Inc’s penthouse, blurring the skyline into a smear of gold and black. Lukas stood with his hands clasped behind his back, watching the city like a man staring at prey he hadn’t yet decided how to kill.“Sir,” came the voice of Mara, his chief intelligence officer. Her heels clicked softly against the marble as she approached, a tablet in her hand. “We’ve intercepted another communique between the investors in Dubai and the man they call ‘Leon.’”Lukas didn’t turn around. “And?”Mara hesitated, flicking the tablet awake. “There’s… a pattern. Every single deal Leon touches indirectly targets our supply chain. It’s surgical. Precise. Too precise for a man who’s only been on the scene six months.”Now Lukas did turn. His eyes were sharp, the obsidian glint in them just barely visible in the dim light. “You’re saying he’s not just a rival. He’s… something else.”Mara nodded. “I’m saying he’s not who he says he is. And… we found th

The curtains were drawn, the air still. Lukas sat cross-legged on the floor, the Obsidian Dagger resting in his hands. The chain was warm, almost alive, and each pulse sent a faint vibration up his arms.He closed his eyes.Let me in.The world around him shifted. The marble floor dissolved into cracked black stone, the walls into endless pillars of shadow. Above, there was no sky — only a swirling, endless void.He was inside the Phantom Gate.A voice echoed from everywhere and nowhere at once.You came sooner than I expected.Lukas turned toward the sound. William stood at the edge of a cliff, his white shirt fluttering in a wind that didn’t exist. His eyes were the same — cold, mocking, dangerous — but here, in the Gate, they glowed faintly red.“You’ve been watching,” Lukas said.William smiled. “Always. I see you’ve been busy… sniffing out this ‘Leon.’”Lukas walked toward him, the black stone shifting under his feet like a living thing. “He’s more than Leon. He’s Andrew. Alive.”