I don’t wait. The tugging sensation is stronger now, pulling me upward, and my ears have already locked onto the sounds above—voices, weaker now. The thud of boots on floorboards. Male voices, cold and professional.

“Stop fighting. You’re only making this worse for yourself.”

The casual cruelty in those words makes my vision go red. My wolf roars for blood, for vengeance, for the right to tear apart everyone who dared touch what’s ours. I take the stairs three at a time, my claws gouging deep furrows in the wood. Behind me, I hear the inn owner start to scream, but he is cut off abruptly.

I reach the landing,...