Ember's of the Silent Wolf

r surroundings. Yet, everything felt different now. Every conversation, every glance from the pack me

ritory, but the sound of footsteps approaching stopped her in her tracks. She turned,

ng on who you asked. His fur was dark, almost black under the moonlight, and his piercing blue eyes shone with a qu

when he spoke her name, it was as if h

Caelum," she said, her voice polite but distant. She did

vy, suffocating. "You've been distant. Out of place." His eyes flicked ov

eplied quickly, though her voice lacked conv

. "You've had plenty of time, Selene. A year, at least, sin

if they were a slap across her face. She wanted to lash out, to te

er her now, forcing her to tilt her head back just to meet his eyes. "The longer it takes for a wolf to e

o control the surge of anger rising within her.

aid, though the words sounde

mouth. "That's where you're wrong." His eyes narrowed, studying her like a puzzl

She had always felt like she didn't matter, like her existence was just a placeholder. But hearing it fr

"You think I don't see the way the pack looks at me? The way you look at me? I don

cut through her defenses, leaving nothing behind but raw emotion. His

ess. And you, Selene, are a reminder that even the strongest of us can fail. Yo

ing in her face, the sting of his judgment burning deep. It was the sam

ath her feet. "I'm not a flaw," she said, though th

ldness to his tone when he spoke next. "We don't have time for your mistakes, Selene. The coming day

cream, to throw every insult, every painful truth s

ft? What if I don't

her, weighing her. Then, he simply said, "Then you'll

thout another word, his foot

settled over her like a suffocating blanket. She couldn't breathe. She couldn't think. All she

n't make roo

d her cabin, her body moving on autopilot. But in her chest, the emptiness grew. The ache, the lon

if she would ever