Eli
I crouch in the shadows by the supply shed, heartbeat too loud in my ears. Frost bites through the thin soles of my boots. My makeshift satchel, a square of stolen canvas patched with leather, rests against my thigh, weighed down with the few things I’ve hoarded.
Patrol lights sweep the far side of camp. I wait, breath held, until the beams drift away, until I hear the low murmur of bored wolves and the crunch of boots fading toward the western path.
It’s just after midnight. Patrols are thinner now, the gaps between watch points wide enough to slip through if you’re desperate… or crazy.
My wolf whines softly inside me. It knows what I’m about to do. The bond hums, a slow burn in my chest. He’ll feel it, my wolf warns. He’ll know.
“I don’t care,” I whisper. The sound fogs in the
