Chapter 84

Winter arrived with its usual drama—sudden storms, bitter cold, and the kind of enforced isolation that gave everyone too much time to think about decisions made and consequences still unfolding.

Arianna spent the first weeks of winter reviewing everything that had happened in the past year. From inheriting a fractured pack in crisis to becoming a recognized continental leader who'd fought a war over governance principles. The transformation felt surreal, like it had happened to someone else rather than her.

"Stop brooding," Ruth said, finding her on the eastern wall staring at snow-covered forest. "You've done well. Better than anyone could have reasonably expected from someone thrust into...