LOGINSerena's POVI'd been sitting against the wall for what felt like hours.My wrists burned from the chain holding them bound. My shoulders ached from being pulled back for so long. I wasn't going to just sit here and wait for whatever they planned for me.~Think, Serena. Think!~My shift was still suppressed. I felt a dark force pressing down on my wolf every time I tried to shift.But I hadn't tried everything yet. I hadn't pushed past the pain.I closed my eyes and pulled every bit of focus I had left and directed it inward. At the wolf behind it.I thought about Josh and Mira. They would be so worried about me. I needed to break free from here.I pushed until my head felt like it was splitting open and my whole body was shaking and the pain in my shoulders exploded white and hot.~Free me now!~I strained my muscles and let the shift take me. The darkness holding me back slowly cleared. My wolf broke free. I shifted fast. Faster than ever before. My bones rearranged, and my muscl
Vessa's POVAs Bastian kissed Kayla on the stage, the crowd clapped harder. I clapped too, barely. My focus wasn't on the stage.My eyes were on Caden.He was sitting three rows ahead of me, next to Mira and Josh. His body language was off, like someone sitting through something they were enduring rather than watching. He didn't clap, although his friend had delivered a wonderful performance with Kayla on the stage.Mira and Josh were the same. They all seemed disconnected and worried about something.~What are they so worked up about?~The instructor returned to the stage to announce the next performers. I watched Caden lean over and say something to Mira. She nodded once.Caden stood up.Then Josh. Then Mira. Then Riven and Cael, one after the other, like they'd rehearsed the exit. They moved along the row quietly, stepping past knees and bags, and slipped out through the side door of the arena before the next act had even gotten on stage.Nobody around seemed to notice. The crowd's
Justin POVThe first night was rough. The shelter barely fit all three of us, and none of us slept well. Every sound from the jungle had us jerking awake - birds, insects, rustling leaves. Without our wolf hearing, we couldn't tell if the sounds were threatening or harmless.When dawn broke, we were exhausted but alive."We need to organize," I said as we sat outside the shelter. "Divide responsibilities.""Who made you leader?" Mateo asked, that familiar challenge in his voice."Someone needs to take charge," I shot back. "Unless you have a better idea?""Maybe we should vote," he suggested sarcastically."Seriously?" I stood up, frustration already building. "We're stranded on an island and you want to have a democracy debate?""I'm just saying you don't automatically get to—""Stop!" Nivia interrupted, standing between us. "This is exactly what we can't do. Fight over stupid things like who's in charge.""It's not stupid," Mateo said. "Leadership matters in survival situations.""T
Mira's POVAfter breakfast, we converged in the common room to discuss our next course of action. I sat on the arm of a worn sofa. Josh paced in front of the window, arms crossed tight over his chest. Caden stood near the door with his shoulder against the door frame. His eyes met mine and he flashed a gentle smile. I smiled back. I missed us hanging out, doing simple things together. Now, we didn't have time to train together or hold hands. Serena was our priority. Riven and Cael sat side by side on cane chairs. Tyrell came too, standing apart near the bookshelf. He looked dashing in his denim jacket. I knew Caden wasn't happy I called him, but we needed as many trusted hands as we could get. "If the security unit gives us nothing by tonight," I said, "we’ll follow the trail ourselves. We'll start at the garden gate. That's the last confirmed point. And from there, we'll work outward. I'm very sure we'll find her." "I'd already be out there already if it were only up to me," Jo
Veron's POVI stepped into the woods, heading to the same Douglas fir tree I used the last time. I found the spot easily this time. My feet already knew the path through the trees without me needing to think about it.I shouldn't have needed to come back so soon. But those Dractharis are running wild. We had an agreement. I pressed my palm against the trunk and spoke the sacred words that would connect me to the realm beyond ours. The forest went quiet. Birds fell silent. Wind died down. It was like the air itself understood something unnatural was about to happen here. Darkness spiraled out from the bark and widened into a black hole that swallowed the space in front of me. The hum followed. It was low and grating against the inside of my skull. I hated these rituals, the process it took to connect to the Dractharis. I couldn't wait to hold physical meetings with them. Two figures emerged from the darkness and stood with their arms folded in front of me. "Why have you summoned us
Josh's POVMira and I met Caden waiting in front of the security office."Where's the evidence?" He asked Mira. "Did you bring it along?""No, we didn't touch it. Only took videos.""What if someone tampers with it before we get back?"Mira shook her head. "Not by this time. Apart from the guards, we're probably the only ones awake."Caden shrugged."Let's go in," I told them, and then I led the way to the door."Come in," a thick voice boomed from the other side when I knocked.The security office looked different at night.The same wide desk. The same filing cabinets along the wall. The same board covered in patrol schedules and shift rotations. But the fluorescent light overhead was harsher in the dark and the room felt smaller somehow.There was a different officer at the front desk from the one we spoke to that morning. Younger, with a thin face and careful eyes. He had a tablet on his desk when the three of us walked in and he quickly turned off the display."We need to speak to
Mira's POVJosh rushed over to me. He stepped between me and the Ironridge boy and put one hand on my shoulder. His grip was firm."What are you doing?""I'm trying to make him eat his words."An instructor cut through the crowd before Josh could say something. He was a thin man with permed hair an
Mira's POVThe leopard guy stepped closer. His three friends fanned out, blocking every direction I could run.My ribs throbbed. My shoulder was wrecked. My ankle still burned from the fight with Caden hours ago. I had nothing left in the tank."I beat you fair," I said. "What more do you want?""Y
Chapter SixMira's POVThe medic pressed two fingers against my ribs. I winced."Breath out," she said. "Slowly."I exhaled. Pain gripped my side like an electric shock.She nodded. "Not broken. But close."Thank Goodness.She moved to my shoulder next. She rotated it carefully and I bit my lip, tr
Mira's POV The crowd pulled back to give us space.I rolled my neck and flexed my wrists. My ankle was still throbbing from the leopard fight. My forearm had a long red scrape from where I had hit the ground. I did not look at either injury. Looking at things made them hurt more.Caden stood acros







