The room Elena chose wasn't one of the grand ceremonial halls. It was smaller, more intimate, a private council chamber on the second floor of the pack house. Wooden panels lined the walls, and morning light filtered through tall windows, casting long shadows across the floor.
In the center of the room, Elena had drawn a circle in salt and ash. The white and gray powder formed a perfect ring, maybe six feet in diameter, with symbols I didn't recognize marked at cardinal points.
"This is old magic," Elena explained as she worked, her voice quiet and reverent. "Older than pack law, older than the Council itself. The bond rejection ritual dates back to the first wolves, when the Goddess herself walked among us."
I stood near the window, wrapped in a simple dress Luna had brought me- soft g
