The forest had come alive again. After the harsh cold of winter, the air now shimmered with the scent of moss and wildflowers, damp bark and sunlight. Leaves whispered softly in the wind, hiding the quiet rustle of wolves moving through them.
Crystal padded forward in her human form, barefoot against the soft undergrowth, her senses stretching wide through the bond she shared with Bree. Every heartbeat of the forest sang to her—birds calling above, insects buzzing low—and yet beneath it all was something still. Something wrong.
“Bane, check the western ridge,” she sent through the pack mindlink. “Lizzy, hold your distance with your squad. If something’s out here, we don’t spook it yet.”
A faint affirmation brushed her thoughts—Lizzy’s mental tone light but focused. Her pregnancy had not
