_Kayden's POV_
I called the pack to the south clearing at dusk. The air smelled of pine and wet earth. The moon was high in the sky. It hung like a pale coin over the trees. We moved as one pack. Their faces were lit by torch fire. They watched Leah on the stretcher. She lay wrapped in thick blankets. The IV drip still ran at her arm. She looked calm. She looked very fragile.
The doctor had protested against bringing her out. His hands trembled when he spoke. “Alpha, she could deteriorate,” he warned. “The cold, the night, the open air...she will not tolerate it in this condition.”
I turned to him. “I know. But the Seer says that the moon is the key. The ritual must be done beneath the moon. We need to take the risk since there is no other way.”
Fred stood by me. He had gathered the r
