Cierra:
The chamber smelled of smoke and silver.
Even after the elders rose from their knees, even after Dominic’s hand slipped from mine, the air didn’t clear. It clung to me, acrid and sharp, like something burned deep into my skin.
I left the council hall under their stares. Some were reverent. Some fearful. More than a few whispered words I caught in passing: blessing… curse… chosen… marked.
I didn’t answer. My wolf padded at the edge of my thoughts, steady and strong, but restless too. Her claws scraped along my bones, not in pain but warning.
By the time I reached my quarters, my body remembered what my will had refused to admit. My legs trembled. My arms ached with every step. I pressed the door shut behind me and leaned hard against it, the cold wood grounding me.
Dominic fol
