andr
tal!" I shouted, turning slowly t
word raised, but the sheer volu
ding, ambush-blocking the path of his betrothed, a
from the elders gathered
man in broad daylight, violating every ancient law
her face burning with shame under the dis
the life of a dying veteran of the King's wars-my grandfather-to cover for
riors who fought the rogue incursions were sacred. Threatening an el
ice cutting through the noise like a bell. "You are no Alpha,
ch, his arrogance shattered beneath the weight of public cond
I said, my voice dropping
y shoulders, and met his w
tkins, accept y
s echoed against
snapped clean off. A sudden, violent backlash of rejected energy ripped through the air. Becaus
tched his chest. His knees buckled, blood dripping from his
ight of original Alexandra's grief vanished,
dirt. He looked up at me, his eyes bloodshot, his pri
id, closing the distance be
p, I swung my right palm acros
against bone echoe
d spraying from his split lip as he co
wolfless girl had just struck down a
rd, scrambling forward to claw at m
y hip with a clean judo toss. She crashed heavily onto the sto
king arms, his mouth full of bloo
eath our boots
gate. It wasn't the sound of market carts. It was the
rom the edge of the crowd. "Th
t just step aside; they threw themselves into
rider wore closed iron helms, black capes, and carried heavy broadswords. They r
rom dark ironwood and reinforced with polished steel plates. The crest carv
King. Eme
tried to scramble to his feet direct
he massive warhorse, easily twice the size of a common mount
feet through the air, crashing through a solid timber awning
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