Chapter 6: Cutting Memories (Kira POV)

The other wolves backed up, forming a loose circle. I could feel their anticipation, their curiosity. Most of them probably expected me to fail spectacularly.

Vera didn't give me time to prepare. She came at me fast, a testing strike that I barely dodged. My wolf surged, wanting to shift, wanting to meet the threat with teeth and claws. But I shoved her down, relying on human reflexes instead.

Bad move. Vera's next strike caught me in the ribs, pulling the blow at the last second but still hitting hard enough to drive the air from my lungs. I staggered back, and she followed up with a leg sweep that should have taken me down.

Should have. But years of foster care had taught me how to fall, and I rolled with it, using the momentum to create distance. When Vera came at me again, I was ready. I couldn't match her strength or training, but I could be unpredictable.

I went low when she expected high, slipped past her guard, and landed a solid hit to her kidney. Not enough to hurt her but enough to show I could find openings.

Vera grinned. " You fight dirty."

"I fight to survive."

"Same thing." She reset her stance. "Again. And this time, try using that bond. Your charge is standing right there. Pull on his abilities."

I glanced at Dante. He was watching with that unreadable expression, but through the bond, I felt his surprise. He hadn't expected me to land a hit.

"I don't know how," I admitted.

"Figure it out. That's what Blood Heirs do, they adapt, they take what they need." Vera came at me again, faster this time.

I tried to focus on the bond, on that thread connecting me to Dante. It was always there, a constant presence, but I'd been treating it like background noise. Now I reached for it deliberately, pulling…

And suddenly I was faster. Not werewolf-fast, but faster than I'd been a second ago. I dodged Vera's strike, countered with one of my own, and felt strength in my arms that wasn't entirely mine.

Dante's strength. His speed. His muscle memory from years of combat training.

It was intoxicating and terrifying in equal measure. I could feel him resisting, trying to pull back on the bond, but I was already moving. I went three rounds with Vera, each exchange showing more confidence, more control. I wasn't winning—she had decades of experience on me—but I wasn't getting my ass completely handed to me either.

Finally, Vera called a halt. "Good. Raw, but good. You've got instincts, and you can access the bond under pressure. That's more than most guardians manage in their first week."

She turned to address the assembled pack. "This is Dante's new guardian. Anyone who wants to test her does it through proper channels. No 'accidents' in the hallways. No friendly sparring that turns lethal. She's under the Alpha's protection until she proves otherwise. Clear?"

A murmur of acknowledgment ran through the group. I caught a few hostile stares, but most wolves just looked curious now. I'd passed the first test.

Dante moved to stand beside me, his presence steadying through the bond. "Good work," he said quietly. "But next time, ask before you raid my abilities. That's supposed to be voluntary."

"You resisted," I said. "I felt you trying to block me."

"Because having someone else puppeting my body is deeply uncomfortable. We'll need to practice this, establish boundaries." He paused. "But you did well. Vera doesn't compliment easily."

It was the closest thing to praise I'd gotten from him, and I hated how much it mattered.

The rest of the training session was a filled with exercises designed to help me control the bond, pulling abilities without warning, learning to shield my thoughts, establishing the mental boundaries that would keep us from drowning in each other's emotions. By the time we finished, I was sweating and shaking and desperately needed food.

Dante led me to a private dining room, apparently heirs didn't eat in the communal cafeteria. The food was elaborate: eggs cooked three different ways, bacon, fruit, pastries. I fell on it like a starving wolf.

"Slow down," Dante said, amused despite himself. "You'll make yourself sick."

"Haven't eaten like this since... ever, actually." I grabbed another pastry. "Foster care isn't exactly known for its gourmet meals."

Something shifted in his expression. "You really were alone. No pack, no family. Just... surviving."

"That's what rogues do."

He studied me with those pale eyes. "How did you manage it?"

I shrugged, uncomfortable with the scrutiny. "Stubbornness, mostly. And I had my foster brother, Leo. He's human, but he knew what I was. Kept my secret."

"Is he safe? Now that you're here?"

The question surprised me. "I don't know. Why do you care?"

"Because you care. And through the bond, that makes him a potential liability." He said it matter-of-factly, without malice. "If someone wanted to get to you, to control you, they could use him."

Ice crawled down my spine. "You think someone would…"

"Kira, someone has been systematically targeting the pack hierarchy for two years. I think they're smart and patient and willing to do whatever it takes. And I think a human who knows about werewolves is a loose end they might want to tie up."

I pulled out my phone, pulled up Leo's contact. No new messages since last night. "I should warn him."

"You should stay away from him," Dante countered. "The more distance between you, the safer he is. Contact draws attention."

"I can't just abandon him…"

"You already did when you accepted the guardian bond. Everyone from your old life is a risk now." His voice gentled slightly. "I'm not trying to be cruel, Kira. I'm trying to keep you alive. And that means cutting ties."

I wanted to argue, but I could feel through the bond that he was speaking from experience. He'd cut ties too, probably more than once. Being an heir meant everyone around you was either a tool or a target.

"After breakfast," Dante said, changing the subject before I could spiral, "we're going to try accessing Adrian's memories. Sage has prepared a workspace for you."

"How does it work? The memory access?"

"I don't know. Blood Heir abilities aren't exactly well-documented. The last one the packs knew about was killed before I was born." He pushed his plate away. "But theoretically, you absorbed some of Adrian's essence when you touched him. That essence carries his final moments, what he saw, felt, experienced before death. You just need to... replay it."

"Just replay the murder of your cousin. No problem."

Dante's expression went distant. "He was ambitious. Smart. Always jockeying for position within the pack hierarchy. Made him enemies."

"You think someone in your pack killed him?"

"Someone is using the murders to destabilize all three packs. Adrian was Silvercrest. The victim before him was Ironclaw. Before that, Nightbreeze. Someone wants us at each other's throats."

"Civil war."

"Exactly. And if the packs turn on each other, humans will notice. The treaty that keeps us hidden will shatter. Either we expose ourselves and face human retaliation, or we tear ourselves apart trying to maintain secrecy."

I thought about Leo, about the thousands of humans in Callahan City who had no idea they lived alongside predators. "What happens if the secret gets out?"

Dante's smile was grim. "War. Real war. Humans have numbers and technology. We have speed and strength and centuries of experience. It would be bloody on both sides, and no one would win."

"So we stop the murders. Prevent the civil war."

"We try. But Kira?" He met my eyes. "If we fail, if this escalates… you need to understand something. My father will choose the pack. He'll do whatever it takes to maintain order, even if that means sacrificing pawns. And you're a pawn."

He stood, signaling the end of the conversation. "Come on. Sage is waiting."