Chapter 7 Seven

AUTHOR’S POV

Morning came pale and cold. Rain still clung to the stone courtyard, turning the air sharp with the smell of iron and pine.

Lilith stood at the high window of her chamber, watching mist crawl over the forest below. Every sound reached her with startling clarity: paws striking wet ground, the scrape of armor, even the rhythm of breath from wolves passing beneath her window.

A knock sounded at the door. Ryan's voice followed. "We start at dawn, remember?"

She turned. "It's already dawn."

The door opened. He was dressed for training - dark tunic, sleeves rolled to his forearms, calm expression hiding the same tension she felt.

"Good," he said. "Then you're late."

They met in the same courtyard as the night before. The stones were slick, the torches burned low. Travis was already there, leaning against a pillar, eyes bright with amusement.

"Try not to shake the ground this time," he said.

Ryan ignored him. He handed Lilith a small knife with a blunt edge. "Focus isn't about strength," he said. "It's about control. Your wolf is awake now. You need to teach it to listen."

Lilith took the blade, turning it in her hand. The metal hummed faintly against her palm.

"How do I teach something I can't even see?" she asked.

"By not fighting it," Ryan replied. "When you push it away, it pushes back."

Travis smirked. "Spoken like a monk. She's not a Council pup, brother. She's raw."

Ryan gave him a warning glance. "Raw isn't the same as wild."

Lilith moved to the center of the courtyard. The air shifted around her, responding to her heartbeat. She could feel it - the pulse of every living thing nearby, like threads connecting her to the pack.

Ryan circled slowly. "Close your eyes. Breathe through the noise. Find the rhythm that's yours."

She obeyed. At first, there was chaos - voices, footfalls, heartbeats - but then one sound cut through everything: a low, steady thrum coming from inside her chest.

"Good," Ryan said softly. "Now call it."

Lilith exhaled. The energy rose, warm and alive, spilling down her arms into her hands. The knife began to vibrate.

A thin golden light crawled along the blade's edge before fading. Her eyes snapped open.

"What was that?" she asked.

"Your wolf," Ryan said. "Answering."

Travis gave a low whistle. "Pretty trick. Do it again."

They moved to the lower grounds, where the walls met the forest's edge. The ground was covered in frost, the trees heavy with mist.

Ryan explained what little the pack lore said about latent wolves - those whose blood slept until a trigger called them awake.

"It's rare," he said. "Usually it happens in bloodlines that have been sealed."

Lilith listened, fascinated. She could feel the energy of the pack pulsing through her, like a heartbeat.

As they walked, Travis paced nearby, restless. "Change is dangerous," he said. "The Council hunts anything that doesn't obey the old rules."

Ryan met his gaze. "Maybe the rules need breaking."

The brothers stared at each other, the air thick with unspoken tension.

Lilith turned away, gripping the staff Ryan had given her. "So what do I do now?" she asked.

"Listen to your instincts," Ryan said. "Your wolf knows the ground better than your mind. Trust it."

She closed her eyes again and let her senses open. The earth beneath her feet felt alive - cool, steady, thrumming with the same rhythm that had moved through her in the courtyard.

When she inhaled, the air tasted of metal and pine and something deeper: the pulse of the pack.

Her heartbeat matched it. For the first time, it didn't hurt.

Minutes stretched into an hour. Lilith stayed near the tree line, trying to focus on the hum beneath the soil.

Every heartbeat around her was sharp, but one thread called louder than the rest - the faint echo of Travis's energy.

Then she felt it break. Pain flared through her chest, sharp and cold. She stumbled, gripping the nearest branch.

"Ryan - something's wrong," she said.

He froze, then inhaled deeply. His expression hardened. "Rogues."

He shifted before she could speak - a flash of motion and muscle, black fur rippling, eyes burning silver.

The change was fluid, almost silent, and yet the ground trembled when his paws hit the earth.

He looked back once, as if to tell her to stay, then vanished into the forest.

Lilith stood in the clearing, heart pounding. She could hear them now - growls, snapping jaws, the sound of wolves clashing in the dark.

The bond between the brothers burned like a thread of fire in her chest, every blow echoing through her nerves.

She couldn't stay still. Without thinking, she reached for that inner rhythm again - the hum of power.

It came easier this time, sliding through her like a breath. The air thickened, vibrating with her pulse.

When she stepped forward, the forest seemed to open around her. The fog shifted. For an instant, she saw flashes of movement - Ryan locked in combat with two rogues, Travis pinned beneath a third.

Blood darkened the snow.

Something inside her snapped. A sound tore from her throat - half scream, half growl.

The energy surged outward, wild and bright. The ground cracked; light raced across the roots like lightning.

The rogue wolves froze mid-attack, their eyes glazing for a heartbeat before they turned and fled into the trees.

The power collapsed as quickly as it came. Lilith fell to her knees, gasping.

When the world steadied, Ryan stood a few feet away in human form again, chest heaving, blood streaking his shoulder.

Travis lay on the ground, breathing hard but alive.

Ryan's eyes met hers. "You called them off," he said.

"I didn't mean to," she replied.

They returned to the manor at dawn. The courtyard was crowded; wolves whispered as they passed, eyes following Lilith with wary curiosity.

Ryan dismissed them all with a glance. "Keep this quiet. No word leaves these walls."

When they reached the hall, a messenger waited - mud-spattered, trembling. He knelt before the brothers, voice shaking.

"A Council envoy rides from the capital. They say the Balance has shifted. They're coming for the girl."

Ryan dismissed him and turned to Travis. "Double the perimeter. No one gets in or out."

Travis nodded, but his eyes lingered on Lilith. "They'll come for her no matter what we do."

Ryan's jaw tightened. "Then we buy time."

Lilith stood between them, the hum in her chest stronger than ever. "And if they take me?" she asked.

Ryan looked at her - steady, unblinking. "Then they'll learn what happens when they hunt something they don't understand."

That night, the pack howled again - one long, low note that rolled through the valley.

Lilith lay awake listening, her pulse matching the rhythm. The power under her skin no longer felt like a stranger. It felt like a heartbeat waiting for her to answer.

Somewhere beyond the forest, the Council riders were already moving, and the moon, pale and thin, was starting to turn red.