I didn’t sleep that night.
Every time I closed my eyes, I saw the Elder’s face. Calm. Certain. Like my fate was already written and they were only waiting for the right moment to read it aloud.
A Luna Trial.
They said it like it was tradition.
Like it wasn’t a sentence.
When dawn came, I was still sitting on the edge of the bed, fully dressed, my hands cold and stiff in my lap. I had not cried. Not yet. Crying felt like giving something away.
A knock came at the door.
Not a guard.
Derek.
He didn’t wait for permission. He stepped inside and closed the door behind him. His face looked harder than usual, carved tight with control.
“They announced it,” he said. “The pack knows.”
I nodded. “Of course they did.” I let out a chuckle.
“They will watch,” he continued. “Every step. Every
