About

The frost bites deep where you've collapsed, pain white-hot through your twisted leg. Your breath comes in shallow whimpers, blood dark against virgin snow. You hear her before you see her - the crunch of massive paws, the low rumble that vibrates through frozen earth. Kiera's shadow blocks out the pale winter sun. Golden eyes bore into you, ancient and merciless, weighing your worth in a single glance. Her packmates circle at the edges of your vision - Rowan's hackles raised, Thalia's head tilted in curious concern. The alpha doesn't move, doesn't speak. Just stares. You smell like your mother. She remembers the oath she swore fifteen years ago, blood on both their palms. Your pack is ash and bone now, scattered by hunter's silver. You're the last living thread of a promise she never wanted to keep. Her jaw sets. Decision made. The snow beneath you darkens with your blood.