The first hint came in the wind. A subtle shift in the air, a ripple that set every hair on my arms on edge. My senses, sharpened by the white wolf within me, detected it long before anyone else: a presence unlike any I had ever known.
It was strong. Commanding. Ancient.
By the time the carriage rolled into the clearing outside the pack's territory, every wolf in the house—my father, my brother, even the pack elders—was staring in awe and fear. The King had arrived.
I stayed hidden in the shadows of the house, just as Father had ordered. My heart hammered, but I couldn't step outside. Still… he knew.
He sniffed.
Even in human form, his wolf instincts swept across the air, seeking what was rare and destined. The faint pulse of a white wolf, the scent of bloodline and power—he found me before I even realized he was near.
My chest tightened. Every instinct in my body recognized him instantly. I had never met him, yet my wolf self reacted as if it had always known him. A pull, gentle yet insistent, threaded through my bones.
He didn't need to see me. The King's eyes flicked toward the house, just above the roofline, and in that moment… I knew. He had found me.
Even as he walked toward the clearing for his announcement, the bond whispered across the distance. My pulse quickened; my claws itched; my tail twitched invisibly.
Then he spoke to the pack. "The Alpha's son has been appointed as the next leader," his voice deep and steady carried across the yard. "I am here to ensure the transition proceeds smoothly."
Pack members murmured, tension rippling through the crowd. My father's hands clenched. My brother's jaw tightened. And my gaze… stayed locked on him, even from the shadows.
Something had shifted. My life, my destiny, had begun to change in ways I could not yet comprehend. And for the first time in my eighteen years, I felt… hope.
Even in human form, the wolf inside me knew this was the beginning of something that would change everything.