Freya’s POV
The smell of breakfast and the friendly murmur of the wolves around me finally convinced me that maybe there really was a place for me in this world. Jax sat beside me, and his mere presence, along with the warmth flowing through our bond, chased away every lingering trace of fear. I was absentmindedly turning the little carved wooden wolf the boy had given me between my fingers when the fragile bubble of peace shattered.
A sharp, hysterical scream cut through the noise of the dining hall from the staircase above.
“Where is she?! Where are you hiding that half breed w***e?!”
The voice was shrill, filled with poisonous hatred and furious accusation.
The conversations stopped instantly.
The clatter of plates fell silent as every head turned toward the entrance.
A young wom
