The forest was too quiet.
Kael's team moved like shadows beneath the trees, boots crunching softly against the frost-laced earth. The air was sharp with the promise of winter, every breath visible in the dim morning light. At the center of the formation, Aria walked with her head low but eyes sharp, scanning, remembering.
This was one of the zones she'd marked on the map. One of the places Ronan used to move his wolves like ghosts.
A rustle to the left. Kael raised a fist. Everyone froze.
The silence stretched tight, everyone moving with sharp eyes incase of danger .
Then—
A snarl tore through the trees, followed by the thud of paws slamming into earth.
"On your left!" Toben shouted.
A rogue wolf twice the size of a normal one, its eyes glassy and wild looking for a prey burst from the underbrush. Kael met it head-on in his shifted form, crashing into it with the force of a boulder.
Aria spun, ducking behind a tree. Her heart pounded, instincts from Ronan's pack screaming at her to run—but she didn't. Not this time. Not again when people are depending and trusting her.
A second wolf lunged from the opposite direction, aiming for Toben's exposed back. Without thinking, Aria grabbed a silver-blade from her thigh and drove it forward just as the creature leapt and fell.
The blade sank deep. Blood hissed against the cold.
The wolf dropped.
Toben turned, startled. "You—"
"I'm fine," she signed quickly, though her hands trembled.
He stared at her for a beat, then gave a nod of respect.
Within minutes, the attack was over. Five wolves dead. One wounded, breathing shallow on the snow.
Kael shifted back, chest heaving. Blood streaked his shoulder, but his eyes locked onto Aria.
"You were right," he said. "They're circling."
It's a bait.
She stepped forward, eyes fixed on the fallen wolf. This one had markings she remembered—an enforcer from Ronan's elite guard. The same ones who used to patrol the dungeons.
Kael followed her gaze.
"You know him?"
She nodded once.
Kael crouched beside the dying wolf. "He's not feral. Not like the others."
"No," Aria signed slowly. "He's a message."
Kael's jaw tightened.
The wolf coughed blood and laughed. "She remembers me."
Aria's entire body locked up.
"Little mute girl. Ronan sends his love."
Kael stood and without hesitation, drove his blade into the wolf's throat.
Silence fell.
The team moved on after burning the bodies. Aria didn't speak again until they reached the ridge overlooking Ronan's border.
Kael stood beside her, arms crossed. "He's playing a deeper game."
She nodded. Then signed, He knows I'm not afraid anymore .
"That makes you dangerous," Kael said. "To him."
And to you?
Kael met her eyes. "Only if you stop trusting me."
She looked away. That was getting harder to do.
Later That Night
The war council gathered around the hearth. Maps redrawn, strategies whispered over flickering flames. They'd lost no one, but the attack had been coordinated—far too deliberate.
"This wasn't a scout patrol," Toben said. "They knew we'd be there."
Sera frowned. "Which means either we have a leak—"
"—or he's reading Aria's mind," Lina finished darkly.
Kael shook his head. "He's not that powerful."
Aria stayed quiet, arms wrapped around herself. The wolf's words still echoed. Ronan sends his love.
What did that mean?
What was coming?
What were they planning?
Across the Border
Ronan watched his wolves return, bloodied but victorious in their true goal.
Chaos.
Confusion.
And fear.
"She led them well," his Beta said, tone almost admiring.
Ronan's smile was cruel. "Let her."
He turned toward the mountains, where something darker slept beneath the stone.
"Because when she falls, I want her to think she had a chance."