Chapter 28. A Luna Who Won’t Kneel

The ballroom shimmered with soft gold and crystal, casting the illusion of warmth where there was none. Beneath the lanterns, wolves of every rank and bloodline moved like silk across the gleaming marble floor—each watching without seeming to watch.

At the far end, Kaelen stood among the elders, his frame tight with tension. He listened to their chatter, nodded at the right moments, even managed a polite smile here and there, but anyone who knew him well could see the tension wound through his frame. His gaze kept straying to the doors.

He had told himself the amulet would hold. That she would be fine.

But the image of blood on a guard’s sleeve—the first time his Luna had ever lost control—still shadowed the back of his mind.

And then the doors opened.

Every head turned. Silence rippled across the room like wind over still water.

Mira stepped inside.

Except not Mira—at least, not entirely.

She moved with the elegance of royalty and th