I made my rejection clear.
But it didn’t matter.
They came anyway.
I returned from patrol, boots still caked in dust and ash, only to find them waiting outside the Outpost gates—four shadows I had no use for anymore: my father, my mother, Rafe… and Tristan.
The Ashveil Pack’s core.
They lit up like they’d found something they’d lost.
“Kiera! You’re back!”
Tristan stepped forward first, before Rafe could block him.
“Long time no see,” he said softly.
He looked wrecked. Bloodshot eyes. Shaky hands. The kind of desperation that used to stir something in me.
Now, it just made me tired.
“We’re over,” I said flatly. “Why are you here?”
His mouth twitched, trying to hold something in.
“I didn’t agree to that. It was just a fight.”
“I don’t need your permission to leave.”
I didn’t r
