Killian's POV
Silence hung between us like a loaded gun ready to fire.
Thornevale brushed past Lyra, planting himself right in my face. His features twisted into something lethal, eyes cutting through me like daggers.
"In war," Thornevale started, his voice heavy with the weight of someone who'd lived through hell, "your allies are everything. They know your moves, your instincts, even what you're thinking before you do. You've been assigned as Miss Cooper's knight. That means total commitment to keeping her alive and making her stronger."
My teeth ground together. The words felt like shackles around my neck, tying me to something I'd never asked for. "Cooper isn't even a high alpha," I snapped back, letting my frustration bleed through. "The whole damn system's broken if she gets a knight."
"She has no right to one."
