Tom's POV

In the evening, illuminated by the light from the night sky, the moonlight was working through the thicket of trees and created an eerie light on the forest floor. My team of shapeshifters and I had been lying low, our ears pricked up for the slightest squeak or crunch of leaves. The night breeze was chill with a hint of the pine woods and the earth. The night could not have been more suitable for an attack.

With the creeping sound of footsteps coming closer, we prepared for the ambush. A group of southern soldiers stepped out of the woody area, their whispers hanging in the air about...