ie down. I hesitate, every instinct screaming not to. The wound

ays... maybe..." I mutter, uncertain. Each beating had blurred into the next. Days had no meaning when pain dominated them. Any day without a new mark had been a rare victory. Raven shakes her head sharply. "No. This has been festering for at least a week. The infection didn't just appear overnight. You need to be honest, Neah. Who di

y existence was a problem. Those lessons run deep. This is worse somehow, being seen, revealed in a pack hospital that isn't mine, a room full of strangers who might not care if I survived. "Heal her!" Alpha Kael barks after a long pause, then storms from the room, pulling a phone from his pocket and pacing as he speaks. The air is thick with tension, every second stretching unbearably. "You'll have to f

gments of what I know or think I know about the

tly, distracted from the wound for a second. "Yes. Don't worry, the terms confuse

the infection. If not, you'll come back and we'll try something stronger. Your brother waits out front; I'm sure he wants to speak with you after this."

y out to find Alpha kael pacing near the front. Phone forgotten, hands clasped behind him, eyes sharp. I show him the cream, and without comment,

entirely unexpe

me. I don't guess, Neah. Ever." I nod, swallowing hard. I can barely form words under the weight of his stare. One hand st

spite myself. "You've killed, conquered, absorbed. People fear you. It would be stupid not to fear you." He tilts his head, smirk tugging at his lips. "That's not what I

ou should ever feel invisible, unworthy, or unprotected. You are not them, and you never will be. You don't need to fear me, Lara. Only trust. And trust is earned." I watch him, eyes flitting everywhere but his. The clock.

t, no pack run for me. My legs ache, my mind buzzes, yet there's a strange calm in the order he brings, in the authority he wields effortlessly. Entering the bedroom, he applies the cream one last time, carefully, de

an enigma. "Pack run?" My brow furrows. "You'll see. Moonshine doesn't leave anyone behind. Everyone participates. Everyone contributes. Everyone survi