Willow’s POV
The morning sunlight streamed through the curtains of my hotel room, casting long shadows on the floor. I barely noticed it. My mind was consumed by the whispers I had overheard the day before, the fragmented details about Axel and his deteriorating condition playing on a loop in my mind.
Axel was dying.
Even now, it felt unreal to connect the vibrant, overconfident man I once knew with the lifeless figure those hushed voices had described. I had to find out the truth. I threw on my disguise, dark sunglasses, a long hoodie, and a scarf wrapped tightly around my hair, and stepped into the crisp morning air.
As I walked toward the pack's main grounds, my heart pounded in my chest. I stayed to the edges of the bustling pathways, avoiding direct eye contact. The voices of t
