Nadia's pov The rations scraped dry down my throat, and with each swallow, the weight on my chest seemed to double. I felt the pain on my arm as my hand throbbed under the bandage, but the ache in my heart was heavier. I leaned back against the chair as I felt a wave of exhaustion.Elara was still chewing quietly, though her eyes weren’t on the food. They were on the door, sharp but alert. She stood there silently pacing around from time to time to look out the windows of the safe house checking to see if anyone was coming close to the safe house and she was at it for a while, restless. “You should rest,” I whispered with a hoarse voice. She turned to look at me as she shook her head. “Someone has to be on the lookout,” She whispered. I gave a faint, bitter smile. “If you keep at it, then we’ll both be exhausted at this rate. We can take turns being on the lookout.” I said to her but the truth was, I couldn’t keep my eyes open much longer. My body was demanding surrender, no matte
Nadia's pov We slowly made our way to the front porch of the safe house. The moonlight barely cut through the thick trees when we reached the old wooden cabin. The old wooden cabin was almost swallowed by vines and years of neglect and the building was already getting old but still stood strong. “This is one of the pack’s safe houses,” I told Elara, I said weakly. My arm still hurt like crazy and we needed to take care of this wound on my arm as soon as possible. During the skirmish I had narrowly escaped the claws of a werewolf that had lunged at me with intent to kill. Narrowly escaping with a deep scratch on my arm. Elara stared at the building with a concerned expression on her face. “You sure this is the place?” she asked as she helped me towards the front porch. “Yes, It borders the outskirts of our territory. I only learned about it when I was digging through the pack’s history and old layouts in the archives. Most people have forgotten it even exists.”Elara gave an unde
Nadia's pov We slowly made our way to the front porch of the safe house. The moonlight barely cut through the thick trees when we reached the old wooden cabin. The old wooden cabin was almost swallowed by vines and years of neglect and the building was already getting old but still stood strong. “This is one of the pack’s safe houses,” I told Elara, I said weakly. My arm still hurt like crazy and we needed to take care of this wound on my arm as soon as possible. During the skirmish I had narrowly escaped the claws of a werewolf that had lunged at me with intent to kill. Narrowly escaping with a deep scratch on my arm. Elara stared at the building with a concerned expression on her face. “You sure this is the place?” she asked as she helped me towards the front porch. “Yes, It borders the outskirts of our territory. I only learned about it when I was digging through the pack’s history and old layouts in the archives. Most people have forgotten it even exists.”Elara gave an unde
Nadia's pov The night was quiet, unnaturally so, the kind of silence that presses into your bones and makes your heartbeat feel loud. We had just cleared the first wave of attacks, our small group battered but unbroken. Two of my men had taken minor injuries, nothing that would slow us down but the tension in the air was palpable. Every rustle, every distant howl made me tighten my grip on my sword.“I want eyes on all sides,” I ordered, my voice sharp. “No mistakes. Not this time.”Elara moved beside me, her presence a steady anchor in the chaos. “Nadia… they’re regrouping,” she warned, her voice low, calm but urgent.I nodded, already scanning the shadows, trying to anticipate the next strike. And then it came the second wave.A mass of fur, teeth, and glowing eyes descended on us from the treeline. Wolves, larger than any I had seen before, their snarls echoing like a chorus of nightmares. The wind carried their stench sharp, raw, wild.“Form up! Circle!” I barked, driving my men
Caeleen pov I arrived at the old trading post just as dusk bled into the woods, shadows stretching like fingers across the ground. The place was quiet, abandoned, yet the walls of the wooden structure groaned faintly in the evening breeze. Perfect for a clandestine meeting no prying eyes, no witnesses.I arrived silently, letting my men stay hidden among the trees, just out of sight. Only Jalen remained by my side, alert but unassuming. Every instinct told me this could go either way: a parley or a trap.A figure appeared at the edge of the clearing. Greg. Alone, as he promised. I studied him carefully the way he moved, the tension in his shoulders, the cautious sweep of his eyes. He approached slowly, hands relaxed but ready, every step measured.“Caeleen,” he said, voice low, wary. “I received your message. I hope your intentions are clear.”I gave a slow smile, letting the shadow of my teeth flash in the fading light. “As clear as day, Greg. We’re here to discuss cooperation, noth
Caeleen pov The fortress felt different tonight. Quiet, subdued, almost too still. Nadia’s absence left a vacuum, and I could feel it in every corridor, every watchful glance that passed me by. Helen walked beside me, silent but alert, her eyes catching every flicker of shadow and movement as if reading the fortress itself.“This is our window,” I said, voice low, reverberating against stone walls that had seen centuries of loyalty and betrayal. “Every whisper, every glance, every command tonight, it bends to us.”Helen nodded, her hand brushing mine, a subtle anchor in the storm of thought. “They trust stability,” she murmured. “And we are the invisible hands shaping it.”I moved to the table where the orders had been prepared. Each sheet bore careful instructions: the reassignment of guards, the discreet promotion of loyalists, the strategic isolation of dissenters. Nothing alarming on the surface, but beneath it all, control shifted with precision.“See this?” I pointed to one set