H

ws clung to the corners like watchful ghosts. The air felt thick-heavy with old magic and older memories. A low fire crackled

dn't move. I didn't shiver. I just breathed. The silence pressed against my

came-tha

and slow, like it did

ch step was calculated. Careful. It wasn't one of my warriors. Their boots

lies in morning dew. Too clean. Too pure. It didn't belong here

n't s

f cloth brushing cloth. Then I felt her. Pressed against my side. Soft curves met sharp edge

skin, but I didn't hear the words. I didn't car

t feel anything..

like a parasite. I carried it everywhere. Slept with it. Breathed it in. The kind of cold that no f

raid. The night everythi

reams. My pack fought. Some ran. Some begged. Others burned before they even had the chance. I buried ha

was love. Maybe it was hope. Maybe it was every

ll let he

. Not because she stirred s

g the truth. Because I didn't know what to do with my hands anymore unless they were breaking

y body reacted.

les tensed. My breath caught. The ghost

t shat

der a boot heel. S

se sh

y bed. The one who

shimmered like moonlight cutting across still water. Her eyes-gods, those eyes-they held the weight of ev

ached

etched like she was trying to pul

us tightened. Not a bond. A

dn't b

e burned me. My chest rose and fell in heavy

d with more than anger. Grief, sham

't turn. I didn't give her a

hind her like a final goodbye, but I didn't flinch. I

ed under my knuckles. The grain split wide, old veins giving way to r

choed throu

en.

lik

ide me. It didn't r

how

for pride. Not e

led fo

didn't creak or hesitate. It flew open,

through the fog like a bl

s as he ran across the floor. I didn

d?!" he asked

n't a

could

asn't

felt

rt more tha

ally. The cold wasn't just in my bones anymore-it was everywhere. It gripped me, clawed at me from the

g from something

rained and thick with emotion I coul

ween me and the shattered remnants of the table.

han I'd ever heard it, careful, like a

But in spirit. It was like... her soul brushed against mine. Her presence. It was-" I struggled to fin

own my temples, slipping into my eyes. My blood felt like fire and ice at once, burning through my veins and freezing my hear

i. After everyt

ainst the storm inside me. His hand found my shou

was soft, but I could hear t

t. And her eyes..." I couldn't stop myself from swallowing hard. "They looked right through me. Like she was seein

words hang between us, the air

r, creeping in like a

It cracked, the words like shards of glass in my throat. "What if s

y beating of my heart in my chest. Then Kai moved, his ha

te. "Then she ne

. It wasn't even a laugh. More like a jagged brea

this-you've bled for this pack. You've suffered in silence for to

eassuring in a way th

u keep w

answer. I

omething had changed. Something had been set into motion. The bond between us-the one that I'd buri

me. Not

fo