Mag-log inš Arria POVThe moment we reached the border premises, a guard stepped forward.His gaze found Aron first.His eyes widened in surprise, and he bowed immediately.
š Arria POVThe way Melanieās entire behavior changed the moment Aron appeared felt like a slap.I knew she had chosen to go to him on her own, but I could have tried harder to convince her otherwise.Instead, I had let Fenrirās opinion make me hesitate.And today, I had helped him bring Aron back.But the straight-backed, detached woman who stepped away from me wasnāt the Melanie I knew.This was someone who had been hurt far more deeply than either Fenrir or I had realized.āWill you or Fenrir take charge?ā Mel asked.Her voice was so official.So polished.So unfamiliar that for a moment, I didnāt even realize she was speaking to me.āMelāāāYouāre doing perfectly,ā Fenrir interrupted, answering her before I could. āKeep going. Weāre ready to leave whenever the group is.āMelanie simply nodded.Then she turned away and started giving instructions.I watched her move through the group with absolute composure, seemingly unaffected by the fact that her mate, already back in human for
š¦ Melanie POVTwo days on the road should have been exhausting.For some of us, it probably was.But no one complained.No one caused trouble.And somehow, despite the size of the group, we had managed to stop for another break without turning it into chaos.Oakcrest was still about four hours away.Close enough to feel real.Far enough that I had no desire to start counting every remaining minute.I was sitting near the edge of the resting group when I heard it.A distant rumble.Heavy.Fast.Approaching.My head lifted immediately.Alaric.Relief came first.Fenrir was back and on time, which could only mean one thingāAron had been safe and sound wherever he had chosen to hide.So when the massive black wolf appeared in the distance, carrying Arria on his back, some of the tension I hadnāt realized I was holding finally eased.Then I heard another set of paws following not far behind.For one ridiculous second, I thought someone was chasing them.Then I almost laughed at myself.Ch
š Fenrir POV Alaric refused to give me control back when we sensed Aronās presence. He had been angry for too long. He wanted to make sure Aron understood one thing clearly. He was still alive because Alaric had allowed it. That was the other reason I needed Arria here. To keep him calm enough not to spiral. The first was that yesterday I had been restless the entire time I was away from her. So here we were. And when Alaric roared threateningly at Aron, I watched. Carefully. That was why I saw it. Not the performance. The truth beneath it. He wasnāt afraid. Not of dying. If anything, it seemed to cost him more to keep playing the role Melanie had forced him into. To live. For her sake. He had miscalculated that part. I knew for sure he had done what he believed was necessary to make her resent him, to make it easier for Melanie to sever their bond. But it was Melanie. With anyone else, it might actually have worked. With her... I almost smirked. Aron and I w
š Arria POV The farther Alaric carried me away from the others, the harder it became to ignore where we were actually going. Aron. Or at least the place where Fenrir believed we would find him. I had agreed to bring him back to Oakcrest. Not willingly. Not happily. And definitely not because I had forgiven him. Justā I can manage. That was what I had told Fenrir. Because over the past few months, something had become increasingly difficult to ignore. When it came to Aron, mine seemed to be the only experience that had been entirely negative. My parents had trusted Aron with the pack, with the secret of my heritage, and with me. That was a lot already. Then there was Fenrir. Even furious with Aron because of what he had done to me, he still trusted his word without the slightest hesitation. I had tried asking him about it once. āHe ruined your life,ā Fenrir had answered. āWhatever he may have done for me does not erase what he did to you. You have the right to judge h
š Arria POVEveryone who was able to shift was in wolf form.Those who couldnāt were either riding on the back of another shifted pack member or traveling by car.Damian and Adelaida were also put in cars. Different ones, of course, to keep Adie from feeling press
Chapter 6 The whip lay coiled on the stone bench beside Aron. For a moment, no one moved. The evening air felt colder than it should have been. The courtyard walls trapped the silence, pressing it down over all of us. I wanted to scream. To tell them how unfair it all was. How none of it had ev
5 days later When I arrived, the yard was empty. The laughter that usually greeted me was gone. Inside, the children were sitting in rows behind desks while an instructor stood in front of the room. āExtra lessons,ā one of the caretakers explained when she noticed me standing by the door. āThe
In the days that followed, changes began to appear everywhere. Patrols along the borders doubled. Training sessions started earlier and ended later. Warriors who had once joked with one another in the yard now moved with a sharper focus. At first the pack welcomed it. Strength always brings comfo
The pack was left in the hands of the Beta family. Again. And I was left to think about what to do from now on. There was a huge possibility that I would never be truly a werewolf. In fact, according to our history 18th was the last threshold. My parents' obsession with believing I had a wolf w







