Chapter 76 The Blood Between Us

• Seren’s POV
• They pulled us out of the dungeon at dawn, chains biting into my wrists as cold air rushed over my skin. I hadn’t slept. None of us had. The darkness below had pressed in too tightly, heavy with the knowledge of what was coming. When the doors opened and light flooded in, it felt less like freedom and more like exposure, like being dragged into the open to bleed where everyone could see.
• Kael stumbled beside me, his weight sagging slightly toward mine. I could feel how weak he still was, how much effort it took him just to stay upright. Every instinct in me screamed to turn toward him, to shield him, to do something, anything, but guards flanked us too closely, hands gripping weapons, eyes sharp and waiting. Alpha Thorne walked ahead of us, shoulders squared, posture rigid with contained fury. My mother followed, her face pale but resolute, her chin lifted like she refused to let this city see her fear.