alliance itself-a display of power, speed,

ct. Her bones cracked and reformed, her skin splitting to reveal the thick, midnight-black fur of her wolf for

on her burning skin. The run was supposed to be abo

ogant, predatory grace, his presence a constant, oppressive weight on the rest of the pack. His stormy grey wol

i

ve shadow. Kade would occasionally nudge a fallen branch out of her path or growl at any male who strayed too c

hroat. Fine. If he wanted to ignore her, she

It was a place where speed was useless and only skill mattered. She urged her wolf on, leaping over

a foolish risk, a show of defiance. She didn't care. She gather

us moment, s

sharp

specialized gear for long-distance runs-had inexplicably given w

me to think, no

stole the air from her lungs, and the world dissolved into a kaleidoscope of pain. S

ting away under the duress of her injuries. She lay naked and broken on the cold, damp earth, the coppery scent of her own

r forms silhouetted against the moon. A massive black shap

a

was real, a primal fear that shot through their broken bond and stabbed into her own heart.

howled in his mind, a sentimen

red, his Alpha command shakin

, blood-streaked body. Lila appeared at the top of the ravine,

surprisingly gentle, almost reverent. "Stay still, Elara," he

ed with Lila's sweet vanilla. It made her stomach churn. Her weak struggles only m

into Elara, a searing heat that began the agonizing process of knitting bone and mending torn flesh. Through the haze of pa

the world a blur of light and shadow. In a moment of clarity, she

el wrong, almost... rotten. This looks deliberate, like it was cut or weak

glacial whisper that froze

been too defiant. She n

rld st

't an a

was

is response to her challenging his authority. He had orches

e held her... it was all a lie. The guilt of a mas

st of her wounds. But Elara couldn't feel it. She c

breathing even, playing the

olf was no longer snarling. It was sil

promising a

Kade?* she thought, the words a

that my place is on a thro