Chapter 16

• SARA'S POV
• I watched my grandfather leave the dining room first. The chill he carried with him vanished, and what settled in its place was heavy. Not grief, not fear—something worse. Alpha Bastien remained seated across from me, but his presence had already consumed the space. The moment Luna Dayo left, the air shifted. The candlelight suddenly felt dimmer. The shadows on the walls stretched longer.
• I stared down at my half-empty plate, pushing the last bite of bread across it with my fork. Every instinct screamed at me to stand up and leave, to slip out while I still could. I knew the signs. I had learned how to read the room early in this house. You had to, if you wanted to survive it.