The fortress hadn’t slept. Not truly. Even as the crimson moon faded from the sky, its eerie light leaving a memory etched into every retainer’s mind, the whispers of something greater—something ancient—echoed through the halls. Kaelin stood alone on the highest terrace, the icy wind lashing at her cloak, her eyes fixed on the empty horizon where the moon had last burned red.
She couldn’t shake the feeling. The prophecy. The slaughtered pack. The blood symbols. It all pointed toward something vast and terrible.
Behind her, the heavy footfalls of the Alpha King approached.
"You should rest," Theron said, wrapping a fur-lined cloak around her shoulders. "You haven’t slept since yesterday."
Kaelin leaned into his warmth, but her voice was tense. "How can I rest, knowing what’s coming? I w
