RAVEN POV
The pack gathering was already in full swing when I arrived.
The old grounds near Hollow Creek barely looked the same. String lights were wrapped around the trees, glowing softly against the dark. Long tables overflowed with traditional food pack dishes I remembered from when I was a kid. A bonfire burned at the center of the clearing, its flames crackling as wolves gathered around it, some in human form, others already shifted.
Music drifted through the air, mixing with laughter and conversation.
It looked warm.
Safe.
Almost magical.
And still, every instinct in me wanted to turn around and leave.
“There you are.”
I flinched slightly as Mom appeared beside me, relief written all over her face.
“I was worried you’d changed your mind.”
“Margaret strongly encouraged my a
