The valley had never held this many wolves not in Aurelia’s lifetime, not in her ancestors’. Their eyes glowed like scattered embers beneath the trees, silent, watchful. The air itself seemed to pause, listening for a command that had not yet been spoken.
Aurelia stood at the center of the gathered packs, mud rising around her boots from the night’s rain. Kane remained at her right, Lysandra at her left two forces that had once been enemies, now bound together by necessity. Lightning split the sky, throwing silver stripes through the clouds, as if the heavens themselves weighed the coming choice.
Kane stepped forward first. “The Crimson Council believes they’ve cornered us,” he said, voice carrying across the valley. “They believe fear will break you. That the bonds they forged make them
