The gunfire tore through the forest like thunder.
Leaves exploded from branches as bullets ripped through the darkness. The quiet mountains that once held nothing but wind and distant wolves now roared with violence.
Elara ducked instinctively as a shot slammed into the stone gate beside her.
Fragments of rock sprayed across the ground.
"Holy shit!"
Luca was already firing back, his rifle steady despite the chaos.
"Get behind the wall!"
Marco dropped beside the gate pillar, breath coming fast.
"This is a damn ambush!"
Another flash of muzzle fire burst from the treeline.
The night lit up in violent bursts of orange.
Alessandro's hand closed around Elara's arm.
"Inside. Now."
She shook her head.
"I'm not—"
"Move."
His voice wasn't loud.
But it carried the absolute command of an Alpha whose patience had ended.
She hesitated only a second before stepping behind the stone pillar beside Marco.
The bond between them was still silent.
