I sat down on a cold stone at the edge of the village, knees drawn to my chest, arms wrapped around my legs. The snow had stopped, but the air was heavy and gray. The pond. The forest. The blood. It all spun around inside me like a whirlwind.

  I looked down at my hands. They were still shaking.

  What am I doing here?

  I wanted to go home. I wanted to hear my father's voice, smell our old house, hear Katty shouting for me to get out of the bathroom.

  But they were gone. And I was here.

  And the worst part was... a part of me didn't want to leave anymore.

  Will was out there. Sac was in there. The others—they weren't just figures in some strange adventure anymore. They were people. Creatures. Maybe even friends. Maybe something more.

  My eyes drifted toward the forest. It lay there, dark and silent. Too many answers were still out there. And one of them was Will.

  "Please..." I whispered into the emptiness. "Come back."

  I remained on the stone, my legs stiff from the cold yet unwilling to move. Thoughts buzzed around like mosquitoes on a summer night. Too many. Too loud. Too close to the heart.

  And then I heard it.

  A faint rustle. Snow being pushed aside. Twigs snapping.

  I froze and rose slowly to my feet. My gaze locked onto the forest's edge, and my heart pounded faster with every step that approached from the darkness.

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  Then I saw him.

  Rex.

  He stumbled out of the trees, snow swirling around his legs. His jacket was torn on one side, dried blood marked his temple, and his eyes—so tired—were still alive.

  "Rex!" I shouted and rushed toward him.

  He looked up, his smile weak but genuine. "Tracy..." His voice was hoarse, but filled with relief.

  I threw my arms around him before I even thought about it. "What happened? Where's Will? Are you hurt?"

  He placed a heavy hand on my back, as if it took all his strength just to stay standing. "I'm okay," he mumbled, "just a little banged up."

  "But Will?!" I pulled back, searching his eyes.

  Rex's face darkened. He hesitated.

  "He... he stayed behind longer. To distract them. The others managed to escape, I was the last one out."

  "Distract who?" I whispered.

  "The other wolves. Not from our clan. The Dark Side, the ones Sac warned us about. They knew you were here, Tracy. They were hunting for you."

  My blood turned to ice.

  "Why? Why me?"

  Rex met my gaze. It was as if he weighed his words carefully, as if the truth was something he almost didn't want to give me.

  "Because you're the key, Tracy. And it's not just our clan that knows it. If you break the curse... it won't just break for us. It will break for everyone. Light and dark. And they're not ready to give up the power it gives them."

  "So they want to kill me?"

  Rex nodded slowly. "Or control you. It depends on who gets to you first."

  I took a step back, feeling the ground shift beneath me. Everything I had felt before—the fear, the anger, the confusion—turned into something else now. Something heavier.

  "Will... is he still out there?" I whispered.

  "Yes," Rex said. "But if I know him, he won't go down without a fight. He'll come back."

  "How can you be so sure?" I asked quietly.

  Rex looked at me. Saw through me.

  "Because you're here."