CHAPTER 26

The courtyard stood frozen in time. No one moved. No one breathed. The air was still. It was thick with tension and disbelief. Zayne remained on one knee, gasping through the remnants of that strange pain that had overtaken him only moments ago. There were beads of sweat on his forehead. His brows were furrowed in confusion. His jaw clenched tightly.  Eva was beside him. She had one hand gently braced on his shoulder while her other hand hovered in the air as if unsure where to go next—toward him, or Zoe. Her heartbeat thundered in her ears. “What?” Eva whispered. She was sure she’d heard wrong. Zoe had found her real parents? Where? How? Weren’t they dead? Killed by werewolves, of this pack. Zoe spoke up again,“A couple came to our border just minutes ago. They asked to see the Alpha. They say...” She hesitated. She looked at Eva with a soft expression.  “They say their daughter was stolen from them years ago. And they’ve tracked her here.” The words dropped like stones in th