Chapter 204

Jaxon POV

Dawn had barely begun to stretch its pale fingers across the horizon, yet the corridors of the Tower already hummed with activity. Pack members moved like shadows, glances darting between them. I could feel it before I even reached the balcony: something had shifted. 

I stepped onto the balcony, fingers trailing along the cold iron railing. The wind whipped my hair into my eyes, carrying with it the forest’s damp scent. Beneath me, the courtyard stretched wide and empty except for a few early risers stretching their limbs, eyes sharp and scanning. The scene was deceptively calm. Calm, I had learned, was the prelude to chaos.

Elvira arrived without fanfare, her presence soft but insistent beside me. She rested her hands on the railing, leaning slightly forward, the morning light catching in her hair and highlighting the faint line o