Chapter 66 A Deadly Return

• The heavy wooden table in the council room felt like a prison wall keeping me trapped. My nails tapped against its surface in a rhythm that matched the ticking clock. Every second stretched too long, every minute a reminder that Jade wasn’t here.
• The emotions festering in my chest weren’t mine—or at least they didn’t feel like mine. Anger, disgust, annoyance—they twisted together like a venomous knot, suffocating me. I couldn’t tell if it was my wolf or something else clawing at me from within.
• My mind kept replaying our argument bitterly, like an open wound. If only I hadn’t gotten angry with her. Maybe then she wouldn’t have left without me. Maybe I could have been there to ensure her safety. But no—I had been furious when she told me she was going alone. Furious that she wouldn’t let me tag along. Furious at the walls she always seemed to put up. And now, that anger made everything worse, twisting the knife of regret deeper into my chest.