The night air was cool against my skin as I stood by the ledge overlooking the valley. The Sanctuary sat nestled within the cliffs like a fortress carved from stone and moonlight. I should've felt safe.
But my instincts had sharpened.
Something was watching me.
I wasn't alone—and I didn't mean Kane this time.
"Why are you up here?"
His voice was lower than usual, soft enough to give me chills. Kane emerged from the shadows as if he belonged to them, his movements too quiet, too smooth to be entirely human.
"Couldn't sleep," I admitted. "I keep feeling… something."
He nodded slowly, approaching until we stood side by side. "You're not imagining it."
"You feel it too?"
"The pack has been on edge since the night you arrived. The old magic is shifting. You're waking something in the land, Elara."
I crossed my arms, my fingers grazing the mark on my wrist. "You mean my bloodline."
"I mean the Moonveil," Kane said. "Your family didn't just lead a pack. They guarded a gate."
I turned toward him. "What kind of gate?"
"A veil between our world and the ancient wilds—where spirits roam and monsters sleep. It was sealed by blood. Your blood."
My breath caught.
"So, if I die…"
"The veil could tear."
Silence stretched between us. The stars above looked like frozen fire.
"And your pack?" I asked. "Do they want me dead or alive?"
Kane didn't answer right away. "They want peace," he said eventually. "But peace and fear rarely live in the same house."
I looked at him. "And what do you want?"
Kane met my gaze. "To protect you."
The answer came too quickly. Too quietly.
I didn't trust it—and yet I wanted to.
"Why?" I asked.
"Because I've seen what happens when leaders die and no one is left to carry their legacy. I was twelve when my father was ripped apart during a raid. I was next in line. I didn't have time to grieve. Only time to survive."
His voice was distant, but not cold.
"I know what it means to inherit something too big for your bones."
I nodded, and for a moment, we were just two people standing in the shadow of old ghosts.
Until the howl cut through the air.
It was sharp. Long. Not one of ours.
Kane stiffened. "Stay behind me."
Another howl. Closer.
Then silence.
A heavy, crawling silence that felt like breath held too long.
Kane's radio crackled to life on his belt. A woman's voice came through—sharp and strained.
"They breached the perimeter. One injured. Unknowns. Fast."
"Unknowns?" I asked, already running after him.
Kane grabbed my wrist. "No. You stay here."
"No way. I'm not some ceramic doll you can keep in a tower."
His eyes flashed. "This isn't about pride. It's about survival. You haven't shifted. You're vulnerable."
"I don't care!"
"Then I do," he snapped. "Elara, if they take you—if they kill you—this entire pack falls. The veil cracks. It's not just about you anymore. Do you understand that?"
My breath caught.
He wasn't being cold. He was afraid.
For me.
"Fine," I said finally. "But I'm not hiding. I'll train harder. Fight better. But don't ever ask me to sit still while people bleed."
He stared at me like he was seeing something shift behind my eyes.
"Deal," he said at last. Then he turned and shifted mid-stride, bones snapping and fur blooming across his back in a seamless blur of motion.
He was gone in seconds.
And I stood alone, heart racing, knowing the war had just begun.
Later, the halls of the Sanctuary were eerily quiet. I crept through the corridors toward the infirmary. I needed to see who'd been hurt.
When I arrived, I found a young wolf—barely older than me—bandaged across the chest. He was unconscious. His scent was strange. Like something had infected him.
"You shouldn't be here," said a voice behind me.
I turned to see Maren—the pack healer. Her eyes were tired but watchful.
"I had to know."
She softened slightly. "His name's Rael. He was scouting the eastern ridge when they attacked. They weren't wolves."
"What then?"
"Hybrids," she said. "Part-wolf, part… something else. Tainted. Like they were built, not born."
I swallowed hard. "Why now? Why show up tonight?"
Maren looked me over like she was weighing whether or not to speak.
Then she said, "Because your blood is calling them."
My blood. My legacy. My curse.
"They're hunting me," I whispered.
"No," she said. "They're hunting what you could become."
That night, I returned to my room, my hands trembling.
I could still hear the howls.
But it wasn't fear that kept me awake this time.
It was the terrifying thought that Kane might be right.
I wasn't ready.
But I would be.
Even if I had to rip the wolf out of me with my bare hands.