Three weeks passed.
Life in the Moonridge Pack returned to the way it had always been.
Before sunrise, I carried water from the river.
After breakfast, I cleaned the Alpha’s estate.
By afternoon, I washed clothes, scrubbed floors, and prepared meals.
By night, I climbed the narrow stairs to my tiny attic room, too exhausted to do anything except fall asleep.
Nothing changed.
At least…
That’s what I kept telling myself.
But every now and then, I would find myself touching the silver bookmark hidden beneath my pillow.
Whenever the days became too difficult, it reminded me that kindness still existed.
That someone had seen me.
Even if only for a few days.
“Eighteen and still no wolf.”
The words floated across the marketplace as I walked past two older women carrying baskets of v
