The Pack (Completed Series)

Chapter 17 - Aria

I was already awake when the knock came.

Three sharp raps on the door, no pause before Kael's voice followed. "Up. Now. We're starting."

I groaned into my pillow. My muscles still ached from yesterday's drills, and my head felt like it had been stuffed with cotton. But when I cracked the door open, Kael was already halfway down the hall, tossing me a bottle of water over his shoulder.

No explanation. No warm-up.

The training yard behind the house was drenched in pale morning light. Dew clung to the grass, soaking through my sneakers. Kael stood with a pair of padded gloves, motioning for me to come closer.

"Defense," he said. "Fast. You block, dodge, or you hit the ground."

I didn't have a chance to argue before his first strike came. My instincts flared—wolf just beneath my skin—but she didn't quite break free. I ducked, stumbled, caught myself. His hits weren't brutal, but they were relentless. My arms burned. My legs screamed.

An hour later, Kael stepped back, breath steady, like we hadn't just been locked in nonstop motion. "Good. Ryker's turn."

I almost told him no. Almost told him to shove it.

But Ryker was already there, leaning against the fence, eyes sharp. "Speed drills. You need to be faster than the enemy."

He made me run the perimeter of the yard again and again, his voice cutting through the air whenever I slowed. "Push! You think they'll give you a break when you're running for your life?"

By the time he called it, my lungs were on fire. My shirt clung to my skin, hair plastered to my forehead.

Elias was waiting near the trees. No pads. No stopwatch. Just that calm, steady gaze that made my heartbeat slow and race at the same time.

"Breath control," he said softly. "If your wolf rises in panic, you lose control. That's when they can catch you."

I wanted to tell him I was too tired to think, but then his hands were on my shoulders, grounding me. He walked me through slow, deliberate breaths, teaching me how to draw the wolf up without letting her take over completely. The air between us felt electric.

By the time the sun began to sink, I was beyond sore—I was raw. Every muscle throbbed, my stomach churned, and my wolf paced restlessly beneath my skin.

And yet... part of me felt stronger.

Part of me felt dangerous.

As I sank onto the porch steps with a glass of water, I caught the three of them standing together by the fence, voices low. They didn't see me watching. But I could see the tension in their stances, the weight of whatever they weren't saying.

I wondered if they could feel it too—that the Blackfangs were closer than ever.