Maren's POV
We reach the well in thirty seconds.
Too late.
Wolves are already gathered around it, drinking from wooden cups. Laughing. Talking. Children splashing each other with water from the bucket.
They have no idea they're dying.
Stop! Kael's voice cuts through the night like a blade. Nobody drink from that well!
Everyone freezes.
A small girl maybe six years old has a cup halfway to her lips. Her eyes go wide.
Put it down, Kael says gently. Slowly.
She does.
The cup hits the ground. Water spills into the dirt, dark and innocent-looking.
Deadly.
How many drank already? I ask.
An older woman steps forward. Grey hair. Kind face. Maybe twenty? Thirty? We were refilling for the night. She looks at Kael. What's wrong with the water?
Poison, he says flatly. Nightshade.
Gasps. A mother grabs her child. Someone drops their cup.
How long ago? I demand.
Ten minutes? Fifteen at most.
My heart sinks.
Nightshade works fast. Fifteen minutes means it's already in their blood, spreading, shutting down their bodies from the inside out.
They should be showing symptoms by now.
I scan the crowd and my stomach drops.
A man in the back is swaying. His skin is too pale. His eyes unfocused.
Him, I point. And her. And those three.
Five wolves total. All showing early signs.
Get them to the infirmary, Kael orders. Now.
There is no infirmary, someone says. The Council burned it.
Then clear a cabin. Any cabin. Move!
They scatter.
Kael grabs my arm. The bond flares. Can you heal poison?
I don't know.
That's not an answer.
It's the only one I have! I pull free. The Ember Gift heals injuries. Physical damage. But poison isn't damage it's corruption. It's different.
Then figure it out. His grey eyes bore into mine. Because if those wolves die, we lose twenty percent of our fighters. And the Council is coming.
I know!
Do you? He steps closer. Because Lira didn't poison the water to kill us. She poisoned it to weaken us. To make sure when the Council attacks, we can't fight back.
The bond pulses with his fear. His rage. His absolute certainty that this is just the beginning.
I'll save them, I say. Even though I don't know if I can. Just... give me time.
You have until dawn. He turns to Ronan, who's appeared from the shadows. Double the guard. No one sleeps. If Lira comes back, I want her alive.
And if she doesn't come back?
Then we go after her.
Ronan nods and disappears.
Kael looks at me one more time. Don't let them die.
Then he's gone, barking orders, organizing defenses, being the alpha, his people need.
Leaving me alone with five poisoned wolves and a gift I barely understand.
No pressure.
The cabin they've cleared is small and cramped. Five wolves on makeshift beds blankets on the floor, really all of them getting worse by the minute.
The man I saw first is convulsing. Foam at his lips. His mate is holding his hand, crying.
Please, she whispers when she sees me. Please save him.
I kneel beside him. Place my hands on his chest. The Ember flares gold.
And nothing happens.
The poison is still there. Still spreading. The Ember can sense it I can feel the Gift pulling toward the corruption, trying to understand it but it doesn't know how to fix it.
Because it's not broken bones or torn skin.
It's something alive. Something foreign.
Come on, I mutter. Work. Please work.
The man's convulsions get worse.
His mate sobs.
And I realize with crushing certainty that I'm about to watch him die.
Unless
An idea hits me.
Crazy. Desperate.
But maybe.
The Ember doesn't just heal damage. It accelerates natural healing. Which means it speeds up the body's own defenses.
What if I can speed up his body's ability to fight the poison? Push his immune system into overdrive?
It's never been done before.
It might kill him faster.
But doing nothing will definitely kill him.
Hold him down, I tell his mate.
What?
Just do it!
She does. Two other wolves help, pinning his arms and legs.
I place both hands on his chest and push.
Not gently. Not carefully.
I dump every ounce of Ember power I have into his body and tell it: Fight. Faster. Harder. Now.
The man screams.
Gold light explodes from his skin, so bright I have to squint. His body arches off the floor. Every muscle locks.
His mate is shouting I can't hear what but I don't stop.
Can't stop.
The Ember shows me his blood, his cells, his body at war with itself. The nightshade is dark and spreading. But his defenses are rallying, faster than they should, burning through the poison like fire through paper.
It's working.
It's working.
The man collapses back onto the blanket, breathing hard. The convulsions stop. Color returns to his face.
He opens his eyes.
What he croaks.
You're going to be fine, I gasp. The room spins. Using that much power that fast has left me dizzy and weak. Just... rest.
His mate throws her arms around him, sobbing with relief.
I don't have time to celebrate.
Four more to go.
By the time I finish, the sun is rising.
All five wolves are alive. Weak. Exhausted. But alive.
I'm barely conscious.
The Ember Gift is a cold, empty thing in my chest, drained down to nothing. My hands shake. My vision blurs.
But they're alive.
I stumble out of the cabin into the grey dawn light. Wolves are gathered outside word spread fast all of them staring at me.
Kael pushes through the crowd. Did you
They're fine. My voice is hoarse. All of them.
Something in his face cracks. Relief. Disbelief. Something too complicated to name.
You saved them.
I told you I would.
He opens his mouth. Closes it. Then does something I don't expect.
He drops to one knee.
Right there. In front of everyone.
What are you doing? I hiss.
Thanking you. He looks up at me. You didn't have to save them. You could have let them die. Used it as leverage to escape. But you didn't.
Of course, I didn't! They're innocent!
Exactly. He stands. Which is why I'm offering you this.
He pulls something from his pocket. A small silver key.
This opens every door in the sanctuary, he says. You can go anywhere. Talk to anyone. Access any supplies you need. He presses it into my palm. You're not a prisoner anymore. You're...
He trails off.
What? I ask.
Family, he finishes quietly. If you want to be.
The bond hums.
Around us, wolves are watching. Listening. Judging.
Some look sceptical. Some look hopeful.
All of them are waiting to see what I'll say.
I look at the key. At Kael. At the sanctuary he's built from nothing.
I'm not leaving, I say. Not until Lira is dealt with. Not until the Council recognizes this place. Not until
A horn blast cuts me off.
Not from the forest.
From the sky.
Everyone looks up.
And freezes.
Because swooping down from the clouds massive, impossible, terrifying are three griffins.
Real griffins. With Council riders on their backs.
They circle once, twice, then land in the center of the sanctuary with earth-shaking thuds.
The lead rider dismounts. He's tall. Sharp-featured. Wearing the silver crest of an Elder Councillor.
Kael Duskhorn, he says. His voice carries across the silent clearing. By order of the Elder Council, you are under arrest for treason, conspiracy, and harbouring illegal refugees.
Kael doesn't move. On what grounds?
On the grounds The councillor pulls out a scroll. that you have kidnapped and bonded against her will one Maren Ashvale, daughter of Alpha Aldric Ashvale, and used her bloodline gift for illegal purposes.
My blood turns to ice.
That's not true! I shout.
The councillor's eyes find mine. Then you deny the bond?
No, but
And you deny that he purchased you at an illegal auction?
He did, but
And you deny that he brought you here against your will?
I open my mouth. Close it.
Because technically, all of that is true.
The councillor smiles. It's not a kind smile. Kael Duskhorn, you are hereby sentenced to execution. To be carried out immediately.
The griffins scream.
Wolves scatter.
And six Council soldiers drop from the saddles, weapons drawn, advancing on Kael.
Who doesn't run.
Who doesn't fight.
Who just looks at me with those grey eyes and mouths two words:
I'm sorry.
The soldiers grab him.
And the bond in my chest shatters.