Page 25 of Howl For A Kiss
Damon grabbed the phone before it could ring again, his thumb hovering over the answer button. Every instinct screamed at him to ignore the call and to protect the fragile trust he'd built with Elena over the past two days. But his conscience—the same one that had documented every pack law abuse for fifteen years—wouldn't let him prioritize his deception over her safety.
He answered on the fourth ring.
"Lena."
"Finally." Her voice carried the sharp edge of urgency. "We have critical intel."
Damon's grip tightened on the phone. "What did Zoe find?"
"She's cracked a significant portion of the ancient records Elena retrieved. The genetic experimentation at the Granite Ridge facility—it's not the entire Council behind it. Just one elder."
"Which one?"
"We've narrowed it down to either High Elder Thorne or Elder Isolde. But Damon, there's some other news."
His wolf stilled, recognizing the gravity in Lena's tone. "Go on."
"Elena needs to hear this directly. Is she available?"
Damon glanced toward his bedroom door. "Give me a minute."
He went to Elena's bedroom, his combat boots silent against the hardwood floors. Her door stood slightly ajar from when he'd checked on her earlier, and through the gap, he could see her curled beneath the quilted blanket, her blonde hair spilling across the pillow like liquid gold.
Beautiful. Even in sleep, she takes my breath away.
Damon knocked softly on the doorframe. "Elena."
She stirred but didn't wake up. He tried again, louder this time.
"Elena, wake up. Lena's on the phone with intel about the ancient records."
Her eyes snapped open, instantly alert in the way of someone accustomed to danger. Those light blue eyes focused on him with laser intensity.
"The records?" She sat up quickly, her fitted white top shifting to reveal the curve of her collarbone. "What did they find?"
"Lena wants to tell you directly." Damon moved into the room, noting how Elena's presence immediately calmed his restless wolf. "I'm putting her on speaker."
Elena swung her legs over the side of the bed, her pants wrinkled from sleep. "Do it."
Damon sat beside her on the mattress, close enough to catch her scent—something wild and clean that made his wolf rumble with satisfaction. He placed the phone between them and tapped the speaker button.
"Lena, Elena's here."
"Elena." Lena's voice filled the bedroom. "I hope you're sitting down for this."
"I'm listening." Elena's tone carried the crisp authority that made her such an effective leader.
"Zoe's translation revealed that only one Council elder has been orchestrating the genetic experiments for a very long time. We've narrowed it down to either High Elder Thorne or Elder Isolde, but we need more evidence to determine which one."
Elena's jaw clenched. "Tyler died for this intel. We're going to find that evil person responsible for all of this and make them pay for their sins."
"Good. But there's more I wanted to tell you because I have a hunch about something." Lena's excitement was palpable even through the phone. "So, Zoe is absolutely brilliant with ancient texts—she cracked the second part of the Lunar Prophecy a month ago, and just last week, I managed to decode most of the third part myself."
"The Lunar Prophecy?" Elena asked, her curiosity piqued.
"You've never heard of it?" Lena sounded surprised. "It's an ancient four-part prophecy about restoring harmony between the human and shifter worlds in our territories. The first part spoke of Maya, Kieran's mate. The second referenced Zoe herself."
Elena leaned forward. "What does the third part say?"
