Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Zara Fen POV

We reached the border just before dawn.

Silvercrest ended without ceremony. No guards. No warnings. Just a narrow road that dissolved into forest and unfamiliar land. Emily slowed the car and pulled to the side, the engine idling softly.

“This is it,” she said.

I looked back once.

The faint lights of Silvercrest were already gone, swallowed by distance and darkness. My chest tightened, but there was no relief in leaving. Only exhaustion and the steady burn of the bond beneath my skin.

Emily turned the car back onto the road and drove forward.

The trees grew taller as we crossed into Dawnridge territory. The air felt heavier here, dense with unfamiliar scents. Wolves watched from the shadows as we passed. Not hostile. Not welcoming.

Aware.

When the road finally opened into a clearing, I saw the pack settlement.

Stone buildings clustered between tall pines. Fires burned low in metal pits. Wolves moved openly through the space, some in human form, some partially shifted. Conversations paused as Emily parked the car.

Eyes turned toward us.

I stepped out slowly.

Every instinct screamed that I did not belong here.

Emily joined me, placing herself slightly in front of me without thinking. “Stay close,” she murmured.

A man approached from the nearest building, broad shouldered and alert, his expression guarded. His gaze flicked from Emily to me and hardened.

“You weren’t expected,” he said to Emily.

“I know,” she replied. “I need to speak with the Alpha.”

The man’s eyes returned to me. “And her?”

“She’s with me.”

Silence stretched.

“She crossed the border without permission,” he said carefully. “That makes her a problem.”

Emily didn’t hesitate. “She was banished.”

That changed the air.

Not for the better.

The man exhaled slowly. “Wait here.”

He turned and walked away.

The murmurs started almost immediately. Low voices. Curious glances. Some wolves watched openly now, their attention sharp and assessing. I kept my head down, my shoulders tight, my hands clenched at my sides.

Emily leaned closer. “Dawnridge isn’t Silvercrest,” she said quietly. “But they don’t offer shelter lightly either.”

My stomach twisted.

Minutes passed. Then the air shifted.

Pressure settled deep in my chest, instinctive and undeniable. Conversations died mid sentence. Wolves straightened, posture changing without thought.

Someone was coming.

A man emerged from between the buildings.

He was tall and powerfully built, his presence solid rather than overwhelming. Authority clung to him, not loud, not threatening, but absolute. His gaze moved across the clearing once before settling on me.

I felt it like a weight.

“Zara Fen,” he said.

Hearing my name spoken so evenly made my pulse jump.

“Yes,” I answered.

“You were rejected by Alpha Lir,” he said. It was not a question.

“Yes.”

“And banished from Silvercrest territory.”

“Yes.”

He studied me for a long moment. His expression did not soften. It did not harden either.

Judgment waited behind his eyes.

“Dawnridge does not shelter refugees,” he said. “We do not take in wolves broken by other packs.”

Emily stepped forward. “She isn’t broken.”

His gaze never left me. “That remains to be seen.”

The honesty stung more than cruelty would have.

He turned slightly, addressing the gathered wolves. “Clear the area.”

They obeyed immediately. No hesitation. No protest.

When the space was empty, his attention returned to me.

“If you remain here,” he said, “you do not come as a victim.”

I swallowed. “Then what do I come as?”

“A risk,” he replied plainly. “Until proven otherwise.”

The words landed cleanly.

“You will not be protected,” he continued. “You will not be favored. And if your presence endangers my pack, I will remove you myself.”

Emily inhaled sharply. I shook my head, stopping her before she could speak.

“I understand,” I said.

Something flickered briefly in his eyes.

“You will face the pack at dawn,” he said. “They will decide whether you stay.”

My throat tightened. “And if they decide against me?”

“Then you leave,” he answered. “Immediately. No escort. No protection.”

Cold spread through my chest.

He turned away. “Prepare her.”

Emily exhaled slowly once he was gone. “That went better than it could have.”

I didn’t answer.

The bond burned steadily beneath my skin, unbroken and unforgiving. Silvercrest had rejected me. Dawnridge had not accepted me.

I belonged nowhere.

Emily guided me toward a small stone building at the edge of the settlement. “You’ll stay here tonight,” she said. “Rest if you can.”

Rest felt impossible.

As the door closed behind us, one thought settled heavily in my mind.

If the pack rejected me tomorrow, there would be no place left to run.