NEUTRAL POV.
The courtyard of the Big House buzzed with low murmurs and shifting feet. The air was thick with smoke and dust from the fires still smoldering beyond the walls. Asher stood at the center, arms crossed over his chest, feeling the weight of a pack trying to heal — and the cracks left behind by betrayal.
Humans and wolves alike had gathered: warriors with bandaged arms, healers with tired eyes, even some of the townspeople who had refused to flee when the blood moon rose.
Akira was the first to step forward, wiping her soot-streaked hands on her trousers.
"We've cleared the eastern fields," she reported, voice steady. "The livestock's been accounted for. No major losses there."
"And the wounded?" Asher asked, his voice carrying over the crowd.
"Recovering," she said. "Some
