Lachlan's laugh broke off mid-word.
Zubair's coffee slipped from his hand and hit the table once before the cup rolled and went over the edge.
Elias folded sideways in his chair. The pencil left his fingers and spun across the rug, tapping a leg and stopping.
Alexei's back legs thumped down from their tilt and the chair skidded an inch, cards fanning over the floor like startled birds.
Sera didn't drop so much as pause. The fork slid from her fingers and kissed the plate. Her eyes stayed open. No flinch. No blink.
Luci jerked to his feet with a sound that started as a growl and ended as air. His paws scrabbled once against the rug, claws catching thread, and then the wolf went down hard against Sera's boots.
Silence fell as if someone had closed a door on the world.
Noah moved.
Not fast. Not slow. Without waste.
He crossed to Luci first.
The wolf's chest still moved strong and even.
