The wooden practice dummy exploded into splinters under my strike. I stepped back, breathing hard but steady. Six months ago, I couldn’t have scratched it. Now I could destroy it with one blow.
“Better,” Elder Thorne said from his seat under the oak tree. “But you’re still holding back. You’re afraid of your own strength.”
“I’m not afraid,” I protested.
“You are. You spent so long being told to make yourself small that you still do it automatically.” He stood, walking toward me. “An Alpha doesn’t apologise for her power. She owns it.”
He was right. Some part of me still flinched when I felt strong. Still expected punishment for taking up space.
“Again,” Elder Thorne commanded. “This time, don’t think. Just act.”
I faced the new dummy he’d set up. Closed my eyes. Found that silver spa
