The embers in the hearth had long since dimmed, but Vireya's skin still burned.
She lay tangled in Kael's arms, body humming, pulse thudding somewhere deep in her core. His knot had finally subsided, but the bond hadn't quieted.
If anything—it was louder.
Stronger.
Kael's hand rested over her stomach like a brand. His thumb brushed idle circles against her bare hip. His breath was slow. Calmed. Grounded.
Hers wasn't.
She stared up at the stone ceiling, every nerve in her body still lit up like a battlefield at dawn.
And that's when it started.
Again.
At first, it was a whisper.
A name that wasn't hers.
"Vireya..."
Not a voice she recognized.
Not Kael.
Not even Drekken.
Her eyes blinked open, heartbeat spiking.
She sat up slowly, sheets falling from her skin.
Kael stirred beside her, eyes half-lidded, tracking her immediately.
"What is it?" he asked, voice still low, gravel and moonlight.
"I think she's... speaking again," Vireya murmured.
He was fully awake now.
"Your wolf?"
She nodded. "But it's more than that. She's not whispering anymore. She's—she's calling me."
Kael moved behind her, his hands resting on her waist.
"Where?"
"I don't know," she said softly. "It feels like... everywhere." She swallowed hard. "And something's wrong. Something feels off."
Kael's eyes darkened. "The potion?"
They both looked toward the corner of the room where the empty bowl still sat, the faint scent of magic faded into the air.
Vireya's skin crawled.
"I don't think it's working anymore."
Kael's grip on her tightened. Not out of fear.
Out of need.
"Then we need to find her," he said, voice razor-sharp.
"No," Vireya whispered. "She's finding me."
Later that night, she tried to sleep.
But her dreams weren't dreams.
They were memories that hadn't happened yet.
She was in the forest again. Barefoot. Moonlight spilling across twisted roots and glowing moss.
But this time... it wasn't quiet.
The wind howled through the branches like it carried voices.
Her wolf was there.
Watching her.
But not alone.
There were others in the shadows now. Eyes she couldn't see clearly. Shapes that moved like spirits.
She stepped forward, trembling.
And the wolf spoke.
"You are not ready."
Vireya's breath hitched. "Then help me."
The wolf bared her teeth. "You must go where blood still remembers. You must wake where she died."
"Who?"
But the forest began to fade.
And Vireya woke with a gasp, heart racing.
Kael sat beside her, already watching. Waiting.
"What did she say?" he asked.
Vireya looked down at her shaking hands.
"She wants me to go into the woods."
Kael's jaw flexed. "Which woods?"
She met his gaze.
"The ones from my dreams. The ones where my wolf lives. The ones she said my mother died in."
"Then we shall go my queen"
_______________________________________________________________________________
They left before dawn.
No guards. No servants. No one but Iska, Kael, and Vireya.
The fewer who knew where they were going, the safer it would be.
At least that's what Kael said.
But the way he gripped the reins, jaw tight, storm-grey eyes locked on the horizon—
He wasn't just worried about safety.
He was afraid of what they'd find.
The horses moved through the misted trail like they knew better than to make noise. The air grew colder the deeper they rode, the trees thicker, older. The forest didn't smell like pine or moss. It smelled like stone. Like forgotten magic. Like silence carved into roots.
Vireya's skin buzzed the moment they crossed a threshold she couldn't see.
It wasn't a gate.
It was a presence.
The Hollow Grove.
Iska turned in her saddle, already grinning. "Told you it still breathed."
Vireya swallowed. "What is this place?"
Iska's smile didn't reach her eyes. "This is where wolves go when the old gods aren't answering anymore."
Kael didn't speak. He hadn't since they left the castle.
But she could feel him.
Tense. Alert. Rage barely contained under skin and muscle.
Vireya didn't ask why.
She knew.
This place had taken someone from him.
Or maybe from Drekken.
Or maybe both.
The trees began to twist the deeper they went. Not dead. Not quite alive. The bark shimmered faintly in the low light, veins of glowing green snaking up the trunks like the forest had a pulse.
Vireya's breath hitched.
"This is it," she said. "This is the place from my dreams."
Kael dismounted first, hand reaching for her before she even finished speaking. "You don't leave my sight."
She nodded, slipping down beside him.
But her attention was already locked on the clearing ahead.
The trees parted around a circle of stone, moss-covered and half-swallowed by time. In the center—an old, broken altar. Runes carved into the base. Stained.
Iska stepped toward it, fingers brushing the markings. "This is Virellen bloodline work. This altar was built for calling the elements. For binding."
"Binding what?" Vireya asked.
Iska looked at her.
"Power. Wolves. Sometimes... curses."
Kael's voice was a low growl. "We shouldn't be here long."
But Vireya was already walking.
Drawn.
She reached the altar and knelt, brushing her fingers over the stone. Cold. Familiar.
And then her wolf spoke.
"This is where she died."
Vireya's breath left her in a rush. "Who?"
"Your mother."
Kael stiffened behind her.
Iska stepped back.
The runes on the altar glowed faintly. Just for a second. Just for her.
Vireya didn't move.
"Why would she come here?" she whispered.
"To protect you."
Images slammed into her mind like lightning strikes.
—A woman with her hair. Running. Bleeding.
—A hand cradling a newborn. Her.
—Voices screaming. The altar lighting up.
—A curse carved in fire.
Her body swayed.
Kael caught her before she fell.
She clutched his arms, gasping. "She hid me here. She bound my wolf."
Iska's eyes narrowed. "To keep you off the bloodlines' radar. To make you invisible."
"It didn't work," Kael muttered. "They found her anyway."
"But they didn't find me," Vireya breathed. "Not fully. Not until now."
The wind shifted.
And a low rumble moved through the ground.
Kael's head snapped up. "We're not alone."
Shadows stirred at the edge of the trees.
Not wolves.
Not rogues.
Something else.
Something ancient.
Iska's voice dropped to a whisper.
"Oh... fuck me sideways. That's not a trap. That's a guardian."
Vireya stood slowly, legs shaking but sure.
"What does it guard?"
Iska looked at her. Dead serious.
"You."