3:00 AM. The forest swallowed them whole.
Four wolves moved through the darkness like ghosts — Lucas at the point, Rhyker's golden fur catching the faint starlight and turning it to flames as he ran full speed. Levi on his left flank, Lionelle's black coat nearly invisible in the night. Marcus behind, Marion broad and dark and steady. Bianca at the rear, her tan wolf smaller but faster, the journal strapped to a harness against her side.
They ran in silence, communicating through the mind link in short, clipped bursts — direction changes, obstacle alerts, the occasional status check delivered with the crisp efficiency of a military operation.
Clear left, Levi sent. Clear right, Marcus confirmed. Pace steady. Two miles to the ward line, Lucas directed.
The forest was different at this h
