POV: Aria Blackthorn
They threw me into the transport like garbage.
I hit the metal floor hard, pain shooting through my shoulder. Fifty pairs of eyes turned toward me—all glowing with their wolves. All looking at me like I was something diseased.
A human? someone laughed. They actually sent a human to Silvercrest?
Dead within a week, another voice said confidently.
I pulled myself up slowly, ignoring the throbbing in my shoulder. The transport was divided into sections—expensive leather seats at the front where the Alphas sat, regular seats in the middle for Betas, hard benches in the back for Omegas.
I got a corner on the floor near the bathroom. Literally the worst spot in the entire vehicle.
Perfect.
Move, human. A blonde girl with perfect skin and cruel eyes stepped over me like I was dirt. Her friends followed, giggling. I caught her name from their conversation—Seraphina Vex. Daughter of someone important on the Werewolf Council.
She was going to be a problem.
The transport lurched forward. Through the window, I watched the Blackthorn estate disappear. Somewhere in that mansion, Lyanna was probably celebrating. Planning her perfect future as the golden daughter.
I touched my wrist where the silver chains had burned me. The skin was red and blistered. It would scar.
Good. Let it scar. Let me remember what they did.
A shadow blocked my view. My father stood outside the transport, Alpha Marcus Blackthorn in all his cold glory. He walked to my window and tapped once.
The guard opened the door.
A moment, Father said. His voice was empty of emotion.
The guard hesitated, then stepped back.
Father held out a sealed envelope. For when you understand.
I stared at it. Part of me wanted to rip it open, to find some explanation, some proof that the man who'd loved my mother wasn't completely dead inside.
Instead, I took the envelope and tore it into pieces. Let them flutter to the ground between us.
I understand perfectly, I said. You chose her. You always chose her.
Something flickered in his eyes—pain, maybe guilt—but it disappeared quickly. Survive, Aria. If you can.
He turned and walked away.
The door slammed shut. The transport pulled away, and I watched my father become smaller and smaller until he was nothing.
Just like he'd made me feel for eighteen years.
The bathroom attack came on day two.
I'd been listening to conversations, learning who was dangerous and who was just following the pack. The Alphas at the front barely acknowledged anyone. The Betas formed the main social groups. The Omegas kept quiet and tried to stay invisible.
Me? I was below even the Omegas.
I'd heard them talking about Silvercrest. About the integration trials that were supposed to test if humans could survive among wolves. About how no human had ever lasted more than a month.
About how the trials were designed to kill.
I was washing my face when they cornered me.
Three Beta males, all bigger than me, all grinning like they'd found a new toy.
Look what we have here, the leader said. He was tall with brown hair and too much confidence. A little human girl, all alone.
My heart hammered, but I kept my face blank. The bathrooms occupied.
We know. He stepped closer. We're here to teach you your place before we get to the academy. Make it easier for everyone.
The other two blocked the door.
I calculated quickly. Three against one. They were stronger, faster, had wolves that could heal any damage I did. I had nothing but eighteen years of watching pack fights and learning weaknesses.
My place? I asked. And where would that be?
On your knees, human.
He reached for me.
I moved.
My forehead cracked into his nose with every ounce of strength I had. Blood exploded. He stumbled back, screaming. I grabbed his arm, twisted, and used his own momentum to slam him into the sink.
The second one lunged. I went low, drove my knee into his groin, then my elbow into his throat when he doubled over.
The third one hesitated.
I grabbed his shirt and pulled him close. Touch me again, I hissed, and I'll bite off something you can't heal. Wolves regenerate everything, right? Let's test that theory.
And that's when I felt it.
Something strange, like invisible threads connecting me to all three of them. Threads I could grab, pull, break if I wanted to.
The leader's wolf suddenly whimpered. Deep inside him, I felt his wolf submit.
That shouldn't be possible. Wolves didn't fear humans. Wolves didn't submit to humans.
But his did.
He backed away fast, eyes wide with genuine fear. What—what are you?
Surviving, I said flatly.
They practically ran out of the bathroom.
I locked the door with shaking hands and slid down to sit on the floor. What was that? That pulling sensation, like I could reach inside them and yank something loose?
I stared at my hands. They looked normal. But something had just happened. Something impossible.
A soft knock startled me. You okay in there?
I opened the door carefully. A girl stood there—not quite pretty, not quite plain, with dark hair and eyes that seemed to see too much. She was thin, wearing clothes that marked her as Omega rank.
But her fingers sparked with tiny purple flames.
A witch.
I'm Raven, she said quietly, handing me a sandwich. You should eat. Three days is a long time to go hungry just because wolves are assholes.
I took the food slowly. Why help me?
Because I know what it's like to be the thing everyone hates. She glanced toward the front of the transport. Silvercrest isn't what they tell you it is. It's not a school. It's—
A weapon, I finished.
She looked surprised. Yeah. Exactly.
Before I could ask more, the transport crested a mountain pass.
And there it was.
Silvercrest Academy rose from the mountainside like something carved from nightmares. Black stone towers pierced the clouds. Walls so high they seemed to go on forever. Mist swirled around it, and even from this distance, I could feel something old watching from those walls.
Welcome to hell, someone muttered from the back.
I stared at the fortress, at the prison that was supposed to kill me.
But through the rear window, I caught sight of three luxury transports following us. Black vehicles with tinted windows. Important passengers.
And inside my chest, that strange pulling sensation flared again. Stronger this time. Like something inside the academy was calling to something inside me.
No, I said quietly, more to myself than anyone else. Welcome to my resurrection.
Raven leaned close. You feel that, don't you? The pull?
Feel what?
The bonds. Her voice dropped to a whisper. Someone in those transports behind us. Multiple someones. They're already connected to you, and you haven't even met them yet.
Ice ran through my veins. That's impossible.
So is a human surviving Silvercrest. Raven's smile was grim. But here you are anyway.
The transport rolled through massive iron gates that slammed shut behind us with terrible finality.
I touched my chest where the pulling sensation centered, right over my heart.
Three distinct threads. Three impossible connections.
Three wolves already hunting me.