They arrive at dawn.
The first warning is the silence.
No birds. No wind through the trees. Just a stillness that presses against my skin like a held breath. Rose stirs uneasily beneath my ribs, her instincts sharpening, her awareness stretching outward into the woods.
Then—
Movement.
Cade and River burst through the tree line like forces of nature unleashed. Their wolves are enormous, shadows of muscle and fury, their eyes locking onto mine across the distance with an intensity that steals the air from my lungs.
The bond snaps tight.
It hums—alive, desperate, relieved. Recognition floods through me, warm and aching and fierce.
I take one step toward them.
And the world explodes.
The eastern wall of the stronghold erupts in a violent blast that splits the morning apart. Stone sha
