One moment Vessara had been standing in front of her father, listening to him explain why her future no longer belonged to her, and the next she was walking down the hallway toward her room.
The corridor stretched endlessly before her. Her legs felt unsteady beneath her, each step strangely disconnected from the one before it. The entire space felt distant as though she were moving through someone else's life.
Her father's voice continued to echo inside her head.
"The deal is done. You belong to House Vaeroth now."
The words refused to leave, no matter how hard she tried.
She pressed a trembling hand against her stomach. Her wolf remained silent. Not even a whisper. Not a growl. Not even comfort. It was as if she didn't have one at all.
The realization hurt more than it should have. All her life, she'd been told wolves felt things their humans couldn't. And that they guided, protected, and warned. Yet now, when she needed her wolf the most, there was nothing.
Just silence.
