VelariaI stood by the window of our room, watching the early morning light stretch across the pack grounds. The air was calm, almost too calm, as if the land itself was recovering from everything that had happened. Wolves moved about their duties in the distance, slower than usual, more aware, more careful. There were still guards posted at every corner, still patrols running through the night, but the tension had shifted. It was no longer panic.It was healing.Behind me, I heard movement. Soft. Familiar.I didn’t turn immediately.I just stood there, letting the silence breathe between us.“You’ve been up for a while,” Valentino said, his voice low, steady, still carrying that calm authority that had never left him—even when everything else had been falling apart.“I couldn’t sleep,” I replied, not bothering to hide it.That wasn’t new.Sleep had become something that came in pieces now. Short, shallow moments instead of rest. Every time I closed my eyes for too long, I saw it agai
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