Kai's Point of View
The scent is faint, but it is there, sharp, metallic, and wrong.
I move low through the trees, my wolf senses straining. The forest is quiet now, too quiet, except for the soft rustle of paws and boots on damp earth. The air hums with tension as Rafael and I move at the front of the group, side by side, with four Lunaris trackers fanned out behind us.
It is midday now, but the canopy above is thick, filtering the sunlight into thin, fractured beams. Everything smells like wet bark, smoke, and blood, the aftermath of the ambush.
“The tracks lead this way,” one of the trackers whispers, crouching beside a shallow print in the mud. He runs his fingers along it, frowning. “These belong to heavy wolves. At least five, maybe even six.”
Rafael nods his head, his eyes shar
