t had been the night before, but the smoke lingered in the air, thick and suffocating. She watched the embers dance with the wind, a twisted echo of the life she once knew. The

f her life. "You're destined for greatness, Lana. Remember who you are." But what did that mean now? There was

e, not after everything that had happened. It would be a betrayal to the memories of the people she had lost.

acy. The family crest, etched deep into its surface, seemed to mock her now. She was supposed to be the one to carry that legacy for

cts on high alert. Her heart pounded in her chest, adrenaline flooding her veins. For a moment, the world se

ding light of the blood moon. Lana's breath caught in her throat as the figure came into f

tment. Her body tensed, every muscle coiled in anticipation. She didn't k

ooked like a storm trapped in a human form-untamed, dangerous, and impossible

uldn't trust him. He was too unpredictable, too elusive. He had the power to des

he edge of her anger bled through. "You had your chance to

ir seemed to thicken around him, a palpable force that made

g her lips. "Help me? After everything you'

, like he was considering something. It was gone almost as so

ng. "The prophecy is set in motion. Your survival depends on the choices you

e needed was for Kian Silvershadow to think he had any power over her. She would survive th

help, why don't you just kill me now?"

lter. "Because I don't want

s pulse quickened, her mind racing. What did he mean by that? Why h

urnful. Lana's head snapped up, her senses immediately on high alert. Her heart skipped a be

ion shifting into something colder, more calculating. He turn

s voice firm. "They're coming. And if we don

come for her-she could feel it in the air, in the shifting energy around them. She had no choice but

ian think she was weak. She would fight-fight for her pack, for her l

shing with a dangerous gleam. "Stay close

behind him. She didn't know what awaited her, but she was ready. The prophecy, the betrayal, the

e trees. Shadows flitted between the trunks, too fast to catch, too dangerous to

hrough the tension

and she would face them head-on. The prophecy might say she was th