ISABEL POV

As I stirred from a fitful sleep, my eyes fluttered open to the harsh light of dawn filtering through the window. Blinking away the remnants of sleep, I glanced around the empty room, my heart sinking at the absence of Alpha Xavier. Where could he have gone, I wondered, my mind racing with a jumble of anxious thoughts.

The night had been one of the most difficult I had ever endured, a restless blur of tossing and turning as I struggled to find solace in sleep. Each time I closed my eyes, my mind was flooded with worries and uncertainties, the weight of our impending battle pressing down...