The packhouse felt different the morning after the bond. Everything seemed darker somehow, even in daylight. The air smelled of burned candles and old wood, mixed with the faint tang of sweat from the night before.
Arlo sat at the edge of the training field, shoulders slumped, staring at his hands. The faint silver mark on his wrist glowed softly, pulsing like a heartbeat. It wasn’t normal, not for him, and not for anyone in the pack.
I stayed a few steps away with Asher, letting him take the first step. He didn’t need words. We just watched.
“He’s… different.” Asher finally said, voice low. “The bond did something to him. It saved him from the shadow, but it also… changed him.”
I nodded. “I know. I can feel it too. He’s still Arlo, but something else is inside him now.”
Gage and Lill
