Chapter 221

** Ryder’s POV ** I feel it the moment I cross the threshold. The bond tightens, sharp and alert, and my wolf lifts his head inside me like he’s just scented a deer on the breeze. The cabin feels different, steadier somehow, but also charged, like the air itself is holding its breath. Parker feels it too. I see it in the way his shoulders square, the way his gaze flicks instinctively toward the stairs. Remy doesn’t bother pretending. His eyes glow faintly as he scans the space. “She’s awake,” he says quietly. I know what he means. He’s not talking about physically; he means spiritually. She feels different again, like she did when her gifts first started to wake up. I move quietly up the stairs, my boots silent on the wooden floor, and my every instinct tuned toward one room in particular. The door is closed, but the bond hums from behind it, warm and whole in a way it’s never been before. I knock once, softly. “Come in,” Paige’s voice answers. I open the door, and the sight hits me ha