Stephano's POV
The first thing I felt was the silence.
Not the peaceful kind that settles after a storm, but the stretched, stillness that comes when everyone is waiting for something to break. The cave mouth loomed before us, dark and unmoving, as if it might swallow the world whole if it decided to open again.
The pack stood behind me in a wide arc, warriors, healers, elders. No one spoke. Even the wind seemed to hesitate.
Aurora was still inside.
I had learned patience as an Alpha. Learned how to wait while scouts ran ahead, while battles unfolded beyond my reach, while decisions rippled outward long after they were made. But this kind of waiting clawed at something deeper than I imagined. It scraped against the bond until it ached.
I could feel her.
