Aurora's POV
I woke with the taste of ash in my mouth.
For a few seconds, I lay perfectly still, staring at the shadowed ceiling, trying to remember where I was. The sensation lingered, burning and bitter,like I had been breathing smoke in my sleep. My heart beat too fast, each sound echoing in my ears.
Deephowl.
Alpha chambers.
Safe.
The words did little to calm the tight feeling in my chest. It felt hollow, like promises spoken into wind, scattered before they could become a reality. I wanted to believe them, but something deeper, instinct, perhaps, or the mark itself - whispered that safety was an illusion we told ourselves to sleep at night.
My mark pulsed faintly beneath my skin, not in pain, but in awareness. I pressed my palm over it, feeling heat answer immediately, as if it had been waiting for me to wake. The rhythm didn't match my heartbeat. It was slower, heavier, like something ancient counting down to a moment I couldn't see but was racing toward me anyway.
