I waited until the pack house fell silent before slipping from my room. Three days had passed since Marshall's public humiliation of me, three days of pretending to accept my fate while Silver retreated further into the recesses of my mind. The wolfsbane was working—I could feel her fading with each passing hour.
My fingers trembled as I gathered the few belongings I could call my own. A small bag with clothes, a photograph of my parents, and the silver pendant my grandmother had given me before she died. "For strength when you need it most," she'd whispered.
I needed it now.
The hallway stretched before me, moonlight filtering through the windows. If I could reach the eastern border, there was a path that led to the neighboring territory. Maybe there, I could find help—someone who could reverse what Marshall had done to me.
"Going somewhere, Luna?"
I froze at Beta Roberto's voice. He stood at the end of the corridor, flanked by two warriors whose faces I recognized but whose names I'd never bothered to learn.
"I need some air," I said, trying to keep my voice steady.
Roberto's eyes flicked to my bag. "With all your possessions?"
Two more warriors appeared behind me. I was trapped.
"Alpha Marshall anticipated your attempt to leave," Roberto said, stepping closer. "He's ordered you be returned to your quarters. For your protection, of course."
"Protection," I echoed hollowly.
"He worries about you, Luna," one of the warriors said, not meeting my eyes.
I didn't resist as they escorted me back to my room—the small guest room I'd been relegated to while Kiara took my place in the Luna suite. Roberto stood watch outside my door as another warrior locked it from the outside.
"Your morning supplement is on the nightstand," Roberto informed me through the door. "Alpha Marshall insists you take it promptly at dawn."
Of course he did. The wolfsbane that was killing Silver, delivered with the same tenderness he'd once shown when giving me real supplements.
* * *
"The entire pack will participate in training exercises today," Marshall announced at breakfast, his eyes sweeping across the dining hall. "Including you, Elyse."
I looked up from my untouched plate. "I'm not feeling well."
"This isn't a request." His voice carried that edge of Alpha command that made my bones ache.
Kiara sat beside him, her hand possessively on his arm. "Everyone must contribute to pack defense," she said sweetly. "Even... former Lunas."
The training field was a flat expanse of land just beyond the pack house. Warriors demonstrated combat techniques while younger wolves practiced shifting and pack formations. I stood apart, my body heavy with exhaustion.
"Elyse!" Delta James called. "You're with Group Three for patrol simulation."
Patrol simulation meant moving through the forest in formation, practicing defensive maneuvers against potential threats. Normally, Silver would have been eager for the exercise. Now, I could barely feel her presence.
We'd barely reached the tree line when the first rogue appeared. Then another. And another.
"They're everywhere," someone shouted.
The rogues moved with coordinated precision that seemed rehearsed. They bypassed stronger groups, converging on my location with frightening purpose.
"Shift!" James yelled at me as a massive rogue lunged.
I reached for Silver, desperate for her strength. She responded weakly, my body beginning the painful transformation—but stopping halfway. My limbs caught between human and wolf, vulnerable and defenseless.
Pain exploded across my back as claws tore through my flesh. I fell forward, tasting blood and dirt.
"Elyse!" James's voice seemed distant as he fought off two rogues.
More claws found me—my legs, my sides, my arms. I tried to shift again, but Silver was too weak, too damaged by months of wolfsbane.
Through a haze of pain, I saw Marshall burst into the clearing, his massive wolf form cutting through the rogues like a blade. Relief flooded through me—he'd come for me.
But he didn't even look my way.
Instead, he charged toward the far end of the field where Kiara stood frozen in mock terror. One rogue had cornered her, though he made no move to attack.
Marshall's massive jaws closed around the rogue's throat, ending him instantly. Then he positioned himself protectively before Kiara, ignoring the rest of the battle.
"Elyse needs help!" someone shouted.
Marshall didn't turn. Instead, he gently nudged Kiara with his muzzle, guiding her toward safety while my blood soaked into the forest floor.
I watched through blurring vision as he carried her to safety, her arms wrapped around his wolf neck, her face pressed against his fur.
Not once did he look back at me.
Silver's presence flickered within me, a candle in a storm. As darkness closed in around my vision, I heard her whisper one last time.
*Hold on.*
But I wasn't sure how much longer either of us could.
