Cassandra’s POV
The hall was suffocating.
Every stare was sharp, every whisper like a knife against my skin. I sat as straight as I could on the chair they’d given me, my crutches leaning against its side, my hands locked together to hide their tremble.
One of the elders, a tall man with a harsh jawline, took a step forward, his gaze dropping deliberately to my leg. His lip curled.
“Tell me, girl,” he began, his voice loud enough to echo across the hall, “if a mere bruise takes you weeks to heal… how will you ever protect this pack as Luna?”
A ripple of murmurs followed his words, sharp, cruel.
Heat burned in my cheeks, shame wrapping around me like chains.
Another elder, an older woman with thin lips, tilted her head. “Humans are fragile. A child could topple her, and she would fal
