Chapter seventeen: the fire in my veins

Freya's pov 

The fires on the ridge were too many to count.

The sky glowed red as if the land itself had caught fire. Wolves stood in rows across the hills—lean, scarred, their eyes empty. Rogues. Outcasts. Warriors trained to kill without mercy.

And leading them was Kade.

He wore no armor. He didn’t need it. His strength was in his presence—steady, cruel, certain. And next to him, tall and silent, stood Riven. My brother, but Still under Kade’s control.

Still lost.

Finnick stepped beside me, his hand at his side, ready to shift. “We don’t have enough fighters,” he said quietly. “If they strike tonight, we fall.”

“They won’t strike,” I said, watching Kade closely. “Not yet.”

As if he heard me, Kade lifted his hand in greeting. Not a wave.

A warning.

Then he turned and disappeared over the ridge.

Back at the camp, the mood was heavy. Warriors sharpened blades. Scouts returned with bruises and torn clothes. The elders gathered in silence.

I stood beside the fire, watching it flicker.

“I need to talk to them,” I said.

“To the pack?” Finnick asked.

“No. The elders.”

They were waiting for me already, seated beneath the stone arch that marked the center of the Whiteclaw grounds. They watched me like I was a stranger.

One of them stood. Elder Braan. Old, tall, with sharp yellow eyes.

“We followed you into one battle,” he said. “But now, this war spreads. Kade’s army grows. And you—” he paused, “—you bring the blood of the Nightfang. A cursed line.”

I felt the words like claws.

“I didn’t ask for this blood,” I said calmly. “But it’s mine. And it’s powerful. And it’s ours—if you stop fearing it.”

Another elder growled. “We lost three scouts last night. That’s on your family, girl.”

Before I could speak, Finnick stepped forward.

“She’s not the threat,” he said, his voice sharp. “Kade is. And if you keep blaming the wrong people, you’ll lose more than just scouts.”

There was silence. A long, heavy silence.

Then Elder Braan leaned forward.

“There’s a spy among us,” he said. “And they’ve been feeding Kade every move we make.”

I froze.

“What?” Finnick said.

Braan nodded. “Our traps are disabled. Our runners don’t return. Someone here is helping him.”

The elders looked at me.

“No,” I said, heat rising in my chest. “You think it’s me?”

“We don’t know,” Braan said. “But we know it started when you came back.”

Finnick stepped in front of me. “Enough.”

I was shaking.

Not with fear. With anger.

“I’ll find the traitor myself,” I said. “And when I do, you’ll know where my loyalty stands. I searched through the night.

Talked to guards. Walked the edges of the forest. Checked every watch point.

Nothing.

Until I got to the southern ridge.

There, lying in the grass, I found a trail—small footprints, light. Someone who moved like a healer, not a fighter.

And then I saw her.

Thalia.

Once my friend. The one who helped me when I was alone in the woods.

She was crouched beside a tree, whispering into a carved stone. A communication rune.

I stepped forward. “Thalia?”

She jumped, turning fast, eyes wide with panic.

“Freya—I didn’t know you were—”

“Who are you talking to?”

“I… I didn’t mean to…” She dropped the rune.

The truth was already written on her face.

“You’ve been helping him,” I whispered. “Kade.”

Tears filled her eyes. “He promised me protection. A home. A place where I’d matter. I was nothing here, Freya. Just another nameless wolf.”

I shook my head. “You lied to me. You put everyone here in danger.”

“I had no choice—”

“There’s always a choice.”

Her eyes darkened. “So you’d rather I die a nobody in this pack that treats us like dirt?”

I stepped closer. “I’d rather fight for change than sell my soul.”

She backed away. “You think you know everything now because of your powers. But you don’t. You’re just like me. Forgotten. Until now.”

She dropped something on the ground and ran.

I let her go. Not because I forgave her but because I had bigger things to face, i picked up what she left. A blood-marked scroll.

One word was written in red:

RIVEN.

And beneath it: He doesn’t remember you. But he will when it’s too late.

Back at camp, I handed the scroll to Finnick.

“She told me Kade is planning something worse than war,” I said. “He’s not just coming for land. He’s coming for me. For my blood.”

Finnick didn’t speak. He just looked at me for a long time.

Then he said, “There’s something I haven’t told you.”

I turned slowly. “What?”

“I sent scouts to the north two days ago. They found something buried beneath the ridge. An altar, Blood-soaked, and Ancient. It’s not from any known pack.”

“What kind of altar?”

He met my eyes. “One used for bloodbinding. Rituals that turn wolves into weapons.”

I felt sick.

“That’s what he did to Riven,” I said. “He bound him.”

Finnick nodded. “He’s not just trying to win a war. He’s building an army he can control.”

I stared out at the dark trees. My brother was one of them now, but maybe… maybe not forever, i would get him back or die trying.

But as I stood there, something sharp filled the air.

A howl. Different and Higher.

Warning.

I turned to the gate—and saw it swing open.

A single wolf stumbled inside, Bleeding and Barely standing.

He dropped something at my feet before falling to the ground.

A silver pendant.

Carved with the Nightfang crest.

My family’s crest, My real family. The scout looked up at me with shaking eyes.

“They’re not all dead,” he whispered.

“What?”

“The Nightfangs. The line lives. They’re in hiding. And they’ve sent for you.”