The pain pulled me out of the darkness, a dull throb in my head spreading through my entire body like a slow fire. I opened my eyes with effort, my blurred vision slowly focusing on the cold, damp stone walls surrounding me. I was in a cell, the silver chains burning my wrists, a constant sting that made Sigvar growl in my mind, furious but powerless.
The air smelled of mold, earth, and wolves—the scent of Bloodhowl, the place I had sworn to leave behind. My shirt was torn, dried blood stuck to my skin, and every movement was agony, reminding me of the beating Mara’s captors had given me. The Gamma and the others had been brutal, their blows a punishment for a crime I hadn’t committed. But Mara had planned it all: the meeting at the cemetery, the offer, the screams. It was a trap, and I h
