Rowan stood slowly, disbelief contorting his face. He looked down at Maddy then back to Aurora.

“I…Rowan, it’s not…this is all twisted, it’s a setup,” Maddy said quickly, her voice cracking. She looked cornered as she tried to defend herself.

Aurora’s voice turned sharp. “Tell him about the plan. How you tried to kill me. You failed, so you tried to push me out of the pack, and kill my spirit instead. But you failed at that too, because now I'm stronger than I ever was before. You are just a failure, Maddy, a failure.”

Maddy’s face was drained of color. She glanced over at Rowan, but his eyes were...