"You were absolutely going to patrol." He tugged her toward the makeshift dance floor. "Five more minutes won't hurt. Let them see you happy, Maeve. Let them see their lioness celebrating."
He had a point. She let him pull her into the flow of dancers, his hand settling at her waist while hers found his shoulder. They moved together easily, the bond making their steps synchronize without thought.
"Remember the Harvest Festival?" he murmured against her ear. "When we were barely old enough to shift?"
"You stepped on my foot." She tilted her head back to meet his gaze. "Three times."
"I was nervous." His grin turned boyish. "You were so beautiful it made me stupid."
"Was?" She raised an eyebrow.
"Are." He spun her, pulling her back close. "Currently. Presently. In this exact moment making me forget why dancing in public is a terrible strategic position."
She could feel his awareness never fully leaving the perimeter, the same way hers tracked exits and potential threatseven as she relaxed into his arms. Two alphas learning to balance protection with presence.
The song shifted to something slower, and more couples joined the dance floor. Maeve caught sight of Callum twirling Cora with exaggerated flourish, earning her delighted laughter. Emmett swayed with Katniss near the edge, her head tucked against his shoulder. Even Lucien had been dragged from his usual shadows by Moira, the panther shifter's expression caught between resignation and contentment.
Hollow Oak at peace. Her town, her people, her responsibility.
And now she had someone standing with her, sharing the burden, offering strength when hers faltered.
"I love you," she said quietly, just for him.
Dante's eyes flashed gold, his lion rising to meet hers. "I love you too, Cub."
They danced through two more songs before Maeve's instincts finally overrode her desire to stay. She pulled back slightly, her gaze sweeping the square with new urgency.
"What is it?" Dante's hand tightened at her waist.
"I don't know." She scanned the crowd, the tree line, the shadowed alleys between buildings. "But something's wrong."
She sensed his instant alertness, his lion snapping to attention. He didn't question her instinct, just moved with her to the edge of the dance floor where they had better vantage.
The children still played. The music still soared. Lanterns bobbed overhead like captured stars. But underneath the celebration, Maeve felt wrongness building like pressure before a storm.
"Hector's too quiet," she said. "The rogues confessed nothing. He has alibis for everything. He's letting us think we won."
"Which means he hasn't played his real hand yet." Dante's voice dropped to barely a whisper. "Maeve, if he's not here?—"
"Then where is he?" She met his gaze, seeing her own realization reflected in his eyes.
A scream cut through the music.
Not here in the square, but distant. From somewhere beyond the town's edge where the Veil thinned and gave way to wilderness.
Every shifter in the gathering went still, heads turning toward the sound. The music faltered and died. Children pressed against their parents, the enchanted fireflies dimming with the sudden shift in energy.
Maeve's lioness roared to the surface, every protective instinct firing at once.
"That came from the eastern border." Emmett appeared at her side, Katniss already pulling out her phone to coordinate. "Near the old mill."
"Decoy." Dante's hand found hers, squeezing once. "Has to be. Draw our forces away from the square."
"Or it's real and people need help." Maeve's mind raced through options, scenarios, risks. "We can't ignore it."
"We won't." Callum pushed through the crowd, Cora at his heels. "Emmett, Ryker, and I will check the mill. Dante stays here with Maeve and the majority of our fighters."
"Callum—" Maeve started.
