ELLIE’S POV
The forest was quiet, but my mind never was. Shadows of the past, echoes of betrayal, and the sharp sting of loss pressed against me, yet beneath it all, a fire burned brighter than ever. Each day, each moment of survival and training had sharpened my senses, strengthened my wolf, and honed my mind. I wasn’t just a girl from Moonshade anymore. I was becoming a force no one could ignore.
I spread the crude map across the moss-covered table in the old training hut, my claws tracing the lines of our territory. The glow of a lantern painted the inked markings in warm gold, highlighting the positions of patrols, weak points in the border, and the likely routes of spies.
Jovani crouched beside me, leaning over my shoulder. His eyes flicked between the map and mine with precision,
