When the bell stopped ringing, no one moved.
For a moment, the sound still hung in the air like thunder that refused to die. Then the air changed yet again.
The pressure that had been crawling under Lachlan's skin all night suddenly vanished. His ears popped once. The lantern flame steadied. And everything was like a twisted dream they were just waking up from.
Zubair kept his weapon drawn, his shoulders tight as wire.
Elias still stared at the window, waiting for another knock on the door.
Alexei's knife rested in his lap, edge gleaming, unmoving.
Sera sat cross-legged on the bed with Luci pressed against her knee. Her fingers toyed with the wolf's ear, and she looked… almost happy.
There was a flush in her cheeks that wasn't fear or adrenaline—it was satisfaction. Contentment, even.
Lachlan swallowed hard. His nerves felt like stretched glass ready to splinter, but her? She looked like she'd finally gotten some rest.
