Aria
I stared at Alpha Elias, his face carved with lines that looked older than I remembered. His eyes carried too much, regret, pain, secrets. When he sighed, it filled the whole room, heavy and tired.
“Aria,” he said quietly, “you are the one who will save them.”
My heart stilled in my chest. “Me?” The word slipped out like a broken sound. “I don’t… I don’t think I can. Ravencrest is too powerful.”
He looked at me then, his gaze steady though it flickered with sadness. “ I knew Magnus Blackthorn was never going to kill the younger ones. He doesn’t operate that way. Ravencrest wants more than land. They want numbers. They want to expand their pack, their strength. And the easiest way to do that is by taking the young.”
I felt my stomach twist.
“The older wolves, your parents include
