POV: Lucian
The first sign of trouble comes three days after Jasper's arrival. Lucian walks into the main hall for the evening meal and finds Direwolf warriors clustered on one side of the fire. Jasper sits alone on the opposite side, eating in silence.
The division couldn't be more obvious.
Lucian grabs his food and sits beside Jasper. The warriors' conversations stop. Eyes turn toward them. Hard. Unfriendly.
"You don't have to do this," Jasper says quietly. "Sitting with me just makes them hate you too."
"Let them," Lucian says. Takes a bite of roasted meat. "You're here because I brought you. I'm not abandoning you now."
One of the warriors stands. Kael, the same guard from the border. Tall. Scarred. His hand rests on the knife at his belt.
"That man doesn't deserve to share our
