Evaline:
The mere thought of my family still being alive sent cold, bone-deep fear ripping through me.
It wasn't relief. It wasn't joy. It was sheer, suffocating dread.
I stared at River like I didn't recognize him. My breath had turned shallow, my chest was rising and falling too fast. But he didn't speak. He just watched me - silent, steady, as if my reaction was some kind of puzzle he was trying to solve.
It was Jasper who finally broke the heavy quiet.
"You should know," he began carefully, "the rumors you have heard… about Alpha River killing every last person in Shadowfang Pack… they were just that. Rumors."
My fingers curled into my palms. "Rumors?" I repeated, my voice cracking. "I saw what you did to Shadowfang Pack with my very own eyes."
