The window opened from the outside.
Arvella had exactly two seconds to react — two seconds between the cold night air rushing in and the hand that clamped over her mouth. In those two seconds, Astraea screamed inside her, a raw, primal howl of warning that shook the foundations of Arvella's consciousness. In those two seconds, violet light flared in Arvella's eyes and the floorboards beneath her cracked.
But it wasn't enough.
Rowan's magic hit her like a wall of dark water — thick, suffocating, designed specifically for this purpose. He'd spent eighteen years perfecting this spell, testing it on every captive supernatural in the Cult's sanctuary, refining the dosage until he could drop a fully shifted Alpha in three seconds flat.
Arvella didn't have a chance.
The dark magic poured ove
