Madeleine's POV Immediately I heard the order, I ran ad fadt ad my legs could carry me. Straight into the dark forest. The forest floor tore at my bare feet, sharp stones digging into my skin, but I didn't stop. Could not stop. Every instinct shrieked at me to run, screaming past the pain blooming across my soles. I knew what happened to wolves who dared to defy an Alpha, especially one like Damon. Disobedience wasn't just frowned upon; it was corrected, painfully, permanently. I swerved, memories of forgotten herbs rising to the surface. Earthroot, wild mint, moonpetal—each one a faint scent-masker, a minor distraction. I brushed against them, crushing them underfoot, hoping to scatter my own overwhelming terror scent, to confuse the hounds that would surely be unleashed. A futile effort, maybe, but I had to try. Behind me, the low growls started, then the unmistakable cracking of bones, the tearing of muscle as bodies shifted. They were transforming, spreading out, forming a livi
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