The room was quiet, too quiet, but Aurora’s head wasn’t. It felt like it was being crushed from the inside, like someone had their fingers pressed into her skull and were slowly squeezing harder and harder.

She couldn’t move her arms, not fully, and her legs felt like they didn’t exist. Her whole body was heavy, like a weight had been tied to every inch of her bones and dragged her down through the mattress.

Her throat was dry, her lips cracked, and her skin burned like fire was crawling beneath it. But it wasn’t just pain, it was torture. She could feel her wolf fighting and fighting.

She knew...