The forest behind Silver Crest still felt half-asleep when Liana stepped onto the trail. The dawn was pale, the mist drifting through pines. Earthy and damp—she breathed it in, hoping the cool air would calm her nerves.
Her heart wouldn’t settle. It beat so hard she was sure someone, or something, could hear it.
After the ceremony two nights ago, nothing felt right. The rejection. The sudden awakening. The burn of the mark on her skin. She wasn’t herself anymore.
And then there was the wolf. Last night she paced her room for hours, restless, feeling the creature underneath her skin, itching to break free—a storm caged tight.
Her wolf wasn’t just awake; it was alive. Loud. Hungry.
Most wolves ease into their awakening around eighteen, feeling the wolf inside first, shifting weeks later
