Elena’s POV

I’d always thought I was clever enough to slip away. I’d lived my whole life convincing myself that no cage could hold me, no Alpha could outwit me. But sitting in the dingy motel room with Venessa pacing like a caged wolf, I felt something I hadn’t in years.

Fear.

Not the sharp, quick kind that makes your blood rush and your heart pound. No—this was heavy. Slow. Like a weight pressing on my chest, squeezing tighter with every breath.

Kael was coming.

I didn’t know how, I didn’t know when, but I could feel it. Like his shadow was already creeping into the room, filling the corners...