The order came before the bodies were cold.
Horns sounded across Blackthorne territory—three long, rising calls that meant only one thing.
Evacuation.
I felt it ripple through the bond the moment Kael issued it. The decision weighed on him like a blade pressed to the spine—necessary, brutal, irreversible.
From the shattered remains of his chamber, I watched wolves pour into the courtyards below in frantic motion. Mothers grabbed their children. Elders were lifted onto stretchers. Warriors ran in every direction with shouted commands and clashing steel.
Snow fell harder now, thick and blinding.
War was no longer quiet.
“They’re moving the civilians out through the southern ravine,” Rowan said, blood streaked across his armor as he entered. “Frostclaw scouts were sighted along the eas
