A loud sound echoed through the pack walls—sharp and cutting. Mira jerked up instantly, standing to her feet.“That’s the training bell!” she announced, her eyes bright.Aria blinked, still adjusting to the rhythm of the pack’s routines. Before she could move, Mira was already tugging her arm. “You’re not skipping this one,” Mira said firmly.“She’s still recovering,” Lira countered. Aria sighed but stood to her feet. She adjusted her cloak over her shoulders and stepped out. Mira and Lira walked with her on both sides. The twins fussed over her health the entire walk—adjusting her cloak, scolding her for walking too fast. In a brief moment, they were at the Shadows training hall. Warriors were already gathering, murmurs rising as the hall filled with wolves and anticipation.Aria’s gaze swept instinctively across the hall. But Kael wasn’t there.The realization pressed on her chest, heavier than she expected. He was always here, commanding, watching, present. His absence left
Aria’s lashes fluttered against her cheeks as she stirred awake. When she opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was Kael.He was seated near the edge of the bed, shoulders tense, gaze fixed on her as though he hadn’t allowed himself to blink in hours. The faintest shift of relief flickered across his face when her eyes met his.“You’re awake,” he said, brushing a strand of her from her face. His voice was low and steady. Aria blinked once in affirmation as she tried to sit up. Before she could say anything else, he rose and stepped to the door. “Healer.”The Nightfang healer entered almost immediately, she had been waiting at the door for hours. She moved fast, setting her satchel down by the bed. Kael didn’t take his eyes off Aria even as the healer worked.“How do you feel?” the healer asked, her fingers pressing gently against Aria’s wrist, gauging her pulse.“Better than the first day,” Aria responded, her throat still dry. The healer gave a small smile. “That’s improvement,
Kael stepped out of the bathroom, steam trailing behind him, the damp ends of his dark hair clinging to his temples. The faint scent of cedar and smoke still clung to his skin. Aria sat upright on the bed, her knees drawn close, her fingers twisting the edge of the blanket. She should have looked away. She told herself to. But her gaze caught him and refused to let go.His chest rose and fell steadily, droplets of water sliding down across the ridges of muscle, down to where the towel clung low on his hips. Strength radiated from him, but it wasn’t that which grounded her in place. It was the scars.Long jagged lines ran across his torso and shoulder—marks of battles she could only imagine. His scars. They carried weight, each one carved deep into his skin. Her chest tightened. She could feel the heaviness of them, the burden of what he must have endured.“Lyra,” his voice was low, cautious.She blinked, realizing she’d been staring too long. “I… sorry, I didn’t mean to…”Kael’s lip
Selene flinched as her father’s hand slammed against the table for the third time in this young night. The sharp crack echoed through the chamber, the force rattling the items on the table. “Reckless!” Beta Darian’s voice thundered, sharp and cold. “You stained this family’s name with your foolishness.”Selene’s throat tightened. She opened her mouth, but Lucan shot her a look that warned her to stay silent.Darian’s eyes burned into her, every muscle of his face carved deep with fury. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done?”“I was only…” “Only what?” he barked the words so loud her chest jumped. “Only running into danger without second thought? Only dragging shame across the title of my house? You, Selene, my daughter, behaving like a spoiled pup who thinks the world bends to her obsession!”Her lips trembled. She pressed them together, holding back the sting in her eyes. She hated this, the sound of his rage, the weight of his disappointment. When she was little, she used to run
Aria paced the length of Kael’s chamber, her arms folded tight against her chest. She had eaten what the maid had brought earlier, though her stomach still twisted with unease.Her gaze drifted, almost unwillingly, to the window. She strolled there and rested her body on the window frame, allowing the wind wash over her. The night was heavy, the courtyard dim. Then a torch flickered. Aria stretched to look out the window. And there he was again. The same scarred man from silvermane. “Why does he keep coming back?” she asked, though there was no one to answer. Aria stood still, watching closely. Then she noticed a shadow was cast over him. Someone else was there, opposite him but she couldn’t see the other person. They seemed to be in an argument. The scarred man’s gestures were sharp, angry, his head snapping back as if refusing whatever the other had said.Aria leaned closer, her breath caught in her throat.“Whenever this man was here, it meant no good. And now he’s been frequ
The dining hall buzzed faintly with the sound of cutlery scraping against wooden plates. Wolves ate quickly and quietly. The smell of roasted meat, sweat and broth all mixed in the air. The Elites table was quiet too. Beta Darian and General Throne ate quietly. Lucan and Kael were absent. Laura leaned closer to Selene, her voice barely above a whisper. “Lucan has been acting strange. He hasn’t been himself since the training,” she said, her voice convincing. Selene arched a brow, smirking faintly as she cut through her meat. “Strange how? You’re imagining things, Laura.”Laura’s pressed her lips together, a flicker of worry darting through her eyes. “No, it’s more than that. He left abruptly during training this afternoon…”“I saw that,” Selene said before Laura could finish. “No, Sel. Lucan skipped dinner. That’s unlike him. And I haven’t seen him since he left in the afternoon,” Laura added quickly, her voice rising slowly. Beta Darian shot her a warning look from across the ta