I watched her sleep for a long time.
She lay curled in the hollow of a fallen tree, her silver fur rising and falling with each slow breath. The blood had dried on her muzzle, dark and flaking. Her paws twitched occasionally, as if she were still fighting, still running. I stayed close, my hand resting on her side, feeling the steady beat of her heart beneath my palm.
The mind-link had fallen silent. She had spoken her name, and then the bond had gone quiet. But I could still feel her presence, warm and alive, humming through the bond like a quiet melody. She was still there. She was still mine.
I thought about what I had seen in the clearing. The bodies. The blood. The way she had stood among them, fierce and untamed. My wolves. They had tried to kill her. They had tried to take her fr
