The pack gates opened with a groan, their heavy timbers pushed back by warriors who had been waiting all day for the Alpha’s return. The Northern Forest Pack gathered in clusters along the dirt path, faces pale in the torchlight, eyes wide with both relief and dread. Whispers rippled through them like wind rustling dry leaves.
She survived…
That’s the girl they call cursed…
But she came back breathing fire.
At the head of the procession, Lucian strode in wolf form, massive and black as night, his coat glistening with the sheen of battle. His amber eyes burned like twin flames, locked forward, every step a declaration that he had returned victorious. Flanking him were warriors of the Alpha King—taller, broader, and dressed in armour that bore the sigil of the Moon Court. Their presence
