Then Lucas stepped forward, eyes like stormclouds about to break. "You're not debating the bond. You're debating her right to love more than one of us. You're not afraid of imbalance. You're afraid of evolution."
"You dare speak—"
"I dare because I was there," Lucas said, low and deadly. "I shifted beneath the Moon. I felt the bond fuse us together. And I would die before I see her cut apart to make you comfortable."
Cassius moved up beside him. "If you move to separate us, you'll lose more than an alpha. You'll lose the wolves who are tired of pretending that strength only comes in pairs."
Athena raised her chin. "So what will you do, Elders? Strip the Moon's mark from me? Deny what burns on my skin?"
Lysara leaned back, her expression unreadable.
Tamren finally exhaled. "The bond cannot be undone. We cannot argue with what is sacred. But know this: the world will watch you. And if you stumble, they will not wait to strike."
