Ella's POV
The world felt too loud.
Ivy's blood was still on my hands. The traitor's shadow still haunted every corner of the pack. I couldn't breathe in the war room. Couldn't rest in my quarters. Couldn't think without my mind spiraling.
So when Remo found me sitting on the cold stone steps outside the east wing, staring out into the trees like they might offer answers, he didn't ask questions.
He just held out his hand.
I took it.
And we left.
No guards. No council. No whispers or wounds or wolves.
Just us.
The forest swallowed us in its dusk-drenched arms, branches overhead catching the light like scattered silver. The deeper we walked, the softer everything became — birdsong low, wind brushing leaves like lullabies.
We didn't speak for a long while.
That was the thing about
