“Three sites,” Rafe confirms, moving to her makeshift desk without invitation. He pulls a folded paper from his jacket, spreading it across her keyboard. “Here. Here. And—“
“The north ridge,” she finishes, tapping a spot on the map that matches one of her markings. “I tracked the resonance before I came to Ash Hollow.”
My jaw tightens. “So you were in our territory before I caught you.”
She doesn’t look up. “Yes.”
Just like that. No explanation. No apology.
Rafe’s eyes flick between us, calculating something. I don’t like it. Don’t like how he reads the air, how he stands—not challenging my authority, but not acknowledging it either.
“The fracture points create a pattern,” Lyanna says, moving to the map. Her fingertips trace invisible lines between the marked locations. “Three points, then five, now seven.”
“Sequential. Deliberate,” Nova murmurs.
“Deliberate,” Rafe agrees. “Not just random breaches. He’s creating something.”
My pulse kicks up. I cross my arms, holding my position by the door. “Creating what?”
“A net,” Nova says, glancing up at me for the first time. Her eyes are sharp, focused. “Each fracture point releases energy, anchors magic. They’re thin spots in reality.”
“They seal themselves after discharge,” Lyanna adds. “But the echo remains.”
Rafe leans over the map, his broad shoulders blocking part of my view. “That pattern it’s tracking movement.”
Something cold slides down my spine. “Whose movement?”
No one answers. The silence stretches just long enough for me to hear my own heartbeat between my ears.
“His energy signature doesn’t remain in the land,” Rafe finally says. “It follows scent trails.” He looks directly at Nova. “Your scent trails.”
The room goes cold. My hands curl into fists at my sides.
“He’s not tracking your land,” Rafe continues, voice flat. “He’s tracking her.”
Nova doesn’t flinch. Doesn’t react at all. Like she already knew.
“How long?” I ask, the words scraping my throat.
“Since before I arrived,” she answers, still studying the map. “I came here because the signature was strongest near Ash Hollow. I thought I was following him.”
“He was following you,” Lyanna confirms quietly.
The pieces click together with sickening clarity. The timing of her arrival. Her refusal to explain. Her constant movement along our borders. She wasn’t just investigating—she was trying to draw him out. Using my territory as hunting grounds.
My wolf surges under my skin, claws scraping at my control.
“Everyone out,” I say, my voice dropping to something barely human. “Now.”
Rafe straightens, his expression neutral. “We need to—“
“Out,” I repeat. “Lyanna. Take him to the main lodge. I’ll be there in ten minutes.”
Lyanna hesitates, eyes flickering to Nova, then back to me. She nods once and guides Rafe toward the door. He goes without protest, his movement deliberate. Calculating.
The door closes behind them. The room shrinks further with just the two of us.
“You knew,” I say. My voice sounds hollow in my own ears.
