The Mate Bond He Broke
Somewhere beneath the noise, the pack territory began to change—steel giving way to stone, scent markers replacing street signs.
I dragged my fingernails across the window again and again until the skin split.
The sharp pain grounded me—I pressed the bleeding finger to my lips, biting down.
Under the shifting lights, I repeated to myself:
Endure it, Sybil.
Endure it, and the pain will dull.
The car stopped outside the central pack hospital.
As I paid, the driver—who had been silent the entire ride—finally turned to look at me.
“Miss,” he said slowly, choosing his words with care, “I’ve been driving pack roads for thirty years.”