59. My Pack (Lexi POV)

I sat in the dimly lit security office, disconnected fragments of what had just happened swirling through my mind. Courtrooms were supposed to be places of justice and order, but I had witnessed a raw exhibition of primal power led by Clay. My boyfriend? The term felt inadequate, almost juvenile, for the potent male figure he had become in that room.

When he'd read that paper, his eyes scanning over the text, I had felt it—an almost imperceptible shift in the atmosphere. It was as if the air had thickened, charged with an energy so intense it was palpable. And then I saw the way the wolves in the room started to physically diminish, their shoulders hunching, eyes downcast. Some seemed to cower, shrinking into their own forms as if trying to escape the oppressive weight of Clay's energy. A select few others seemed intrigued, as if the shocking transformation somehow drew them in.

My eyes had darted to Luke, expecting to see him similarly subdued, but he was different. I caught a flicke