***VERA***
My wolf stirred restlessly under my skin, hot and uneasy. Catalina’s words had landed wrong—sharp and heavy, pressing down on me until I could barely breathe. I wrapped my arms around myself the moment she left, palms running up and down my sides, a weak attempt to calm the tremor crawling under my skin.
The weight of everything happening around me felt unbearable. My legs gave out, and I stumbled into my room, collapsing into the chair. I buried my head between my knees, breathing hard. “I wish I could just disappear,” I whispered to no one. My hands trembled, not out of fear this time, but out of the deep ache that came with being constantly dismissed—always the one people looked down on. I clutched them together tightly, as if I could hold myself from breaking apart.
Then,
