In the silvery waterfall of moonlight, Jonathan Aztec, my second in command, holding rank as Beta of the Northridge pack, was something to behold. His powerful shoulders seemed to carry the waning gibbous, and the shadows that devoured the vast grounds of Battleridge manor granted him a wide berth.
He was a superior specimen. He was a male worthy of the ranking he'd been bestowed. But like all creatures, he wasn't born perfect, and his character flaw was a fault that bled out into the night like a severed artery: Concern.
It charged the air between us, a thick blanket that settled against the lungs like a boa-constrictor's loving embrace.
"What did you find?" I asked. The perverse silence that had entombed the dilapidated courtyard, screaming so loud it rang through my ears like a twisted lullaby, was shattered upon his approach. His boots smacked against the waterlogged ground, echoing in a way that spoke of his failures before he'd even opened his mouth. 
"Nothing,"
.......
"Until I can figure out what's going on, nobody finds out about the boy. Understand?"
"Understood."
"You're not going to ..." The pause that followed dragged out. "He's just a baby, Sterling."
"You're dismissed."

The Littlest Light

As I sat on the lip of the bath, staring straight ahead at the busy mosaic of white and blue that made up the walls, there was nothing in particular on my mind, and in a way, that was a blessing.

With no consistent thought process jumping behind the wheel, it gave a sense of detachment. As though my body was there, a physical weight that I couldn't rid myself off, no matter how hard I tried, but my consciousness was skinny-dipping through the clouds.

And that was both a beautiful and terrible thing.

It was hard to say how long I had been here. I was dimly aware of the numbness that enveloped my body, a chill that seemed to get worse and worse until it resided in the centre of my chest as a gaping crater of frost.

Chapter68