The east wing of the academy was colder than the rest. Stone floors stretched long beneath Rian’s feet, dimly lit by flickering torches that lined the arched corridor. The Great Hall loomed at the end—tall doors etched with crests of ancient wolf bloodlines, cracked slightly open as though the building itself had grown tired of holding its secrets.
Rian hesitated at the threshold.
This was the last place she wanted to be tonight. Her body still ached from the sparring session with Kael and the brutal ambush in the halls. Bruises bloomed under her shirt like storm clouds across pale skin, and her ribs twinged with every breath. The long walk from the dorm had done little to loosen the tightness coiled inside her. But she swallowed it all down and stepped through the doors.
The Great Hall
