KATHERINE POV
Cold air slapped my sweaty face the second I stepped out of the gym.
I sucked in a breath, sharp and bracing, like a bucket of ice water straight to the lungs.
Good.
I needed it.
The path to the pack house wasn’t long — maybe two, three minutes tops — but it meant skirting close to the forest line, past the mudroom entrance, where the warriors usually came in after patrols.
The Moon hung high above me, bright and swollen, casting silver over everything like a divine spotlight.
Had I really spent that much time on the treadmill?
It didn’t matter.
I just pulled my hoodie tighter around me, tucked my chin down, and kept walking, shoes crunching softly against the gravel.
A ruffle.
A shift in the bushes.
I froze instinctively.
And then — they appeared.
Four massive
