The days started to blur together after that, like one long dream she couldn't wake from. Sia followed the pack through the woods, her bare feet getting tougher on the rough ground. They showed her the hidden trails—narrow paths winding between ancient oaks and ferns that brushed her legs like soft hands. Hunting was something else entirely. She'd watch in awe as the wolves moved like ghosts, silent and fast, circling a deer until it had nowhere to go. 

Their jaws snapped quick, blood spilling warm and metallic on the earth. Kael took time with her alone, teaching her to sniff the air for scents—damp earth after rain, the musky...