Romance

  Lily&#39;s Perspective
  The phone rang as I was staring into a stone-cold cup of coffee, my mind a tangled, useless knot. Ethan sat across from me, gripping a useless investigative report, his knuckles white.
  When the unfamiliar male voice came through the speaker, introducing himself as &quot;Liam Thornton, of the Northwatch Sentinels,&quot; and stating, &quot;Aurora is with me. She&#39;s safe and being returned,&quot; my ceramic mug slipped from my hand and thudded onto the thick carpet. Dark coffee bloomed into an ugly stain, but I barely registered it.
  *Safe? Aurora is safe?*
  A wave of dizzying, overwhelming relief crashed through the dam of anxiety I&#39;d built over days. I shot to my feet, my voice sharp and trembling, unfamiliar even to me. &quot;Where is she?! Let me talk to her! Now!&quot;
  &quot;She&#39;s right here. Tired, but physically okay. Just a moment, ma&#39;

  Brett&#39;s Perspective
  Yeah, things have been pretty good lately.
  Don&#39;t get me wrong, my old life had its perks. School, homework, those &quot;meaningful&quot; summer camps my parents loved, even sneaking out for a street race… they had their moments. But compared to *now*? They were nothing.
  Now, it feels like I&#39;ve been rebooted. No—like I&#39;ve started actually *living*. Living like a wolf, not some domesticated, declawed dog taught to follow &quot;rules.&quot;
  Yard time is the best. Sunlight—even the weak kind filtering through razor wire. Cold air. Rough concrete. And the guys—no, the *wolves*. We shove, we roar, we fight over half a crumpled cigarette or an extra scoop of mush. The wet thud of fists on flesh, the sharp *crack* of teeth snapping near an ear, the raw, gritty smell of sweat, blood, and dirt… it gets my blood pumping faster than any music, any cologn

  Aurora&#39;s Perspective
  When the wheelchair passed through the final airlock door and emerged from the building disguised as an ordinary industrial park warehouse, the sudden influx of light made me squeeze my eyes shut.
  It wasn’t the harsh, unforgiving fluorescent glare of the lab. It was sunlight. Afternoon light, warm and golden. It bled through my closed eyelids, painting the world a warm, glowing orange.
  Next came the air. *Oh God, air!* Not the chilled, metallic, sterile taste of the recycling system. Real, outdoor, moving air. It carried the scent of sun-warmed asphalt, of freshly cut grass from a distant lawn, even a faint oily tang of exhaust—smells I usually rolled my eyes at, but which now smelled like heaven.
  I opened my eyes wide, gulping in huge breaths. The cool air, warmed by the sun, hit my lungs and made me cough, but a huge, almost idiotic grin spread across

Lily&#39;s Perspective
  The phone rang as I was staring into a stone-cold cup of coffee, my mind a tangled, useless knot. Ethan sat across from me, gripping a useless investigative report, his knuckles white.
  When the unfamiliar male voice came through the speaker, introducing himself as &quot;Liam Thornton, of the Northwatch Sentinels,&quot; and stating, &quot;Aurora is with me. She&#39;s safe and being returned,&quot; my ceramic mug slipped from my hand and thudded onto the thick carpet. Dark coffee bloomed into an ugly stain, but I barely registered it.
  *Safe? Aurora is safe?*
  A wave of dizzying, overwhelming relief crashed through the dam of anxiety I&#39;d built over days. I shot to my feet, my voice sharp and trembling, unfamiliar even to me. &quot;Where is she?! Let me talk to her! Now!&quot;
  &quot;She&#39;s right here. Tired, but physically okay. Just a moment, ma&#39;am.&quot; The man, Liam, sounded infuriatingly calm, almost businesslike.
  Then, I heard her.


Chapter 262