Page 51 of Shattered and Saved

Scanning the area to understand why he was alone, I spotted Elijah a little further ahead with the rest of the wolves he was leading, all focused on their own battle. They must not have realized that Waylon was in trouble. By now, the warriors on my team were too far away to notice him. And without a pack bond, I couldn’t mindlink any of them to come back.

Only I could help Waylon.

“Bittersweet, isn’t it?”Col groaned.“Do you think these warriors are enough to cause him trouble?”he wondered maliciously.

“Col!”I scolded. Yes, I despised Waylon, but in the end, he was Avril’s family, and I’d sworn to fight by their side.“You want to hold onto your pride? Nothing would piss Waylon off more than having his ass saved by us.”

A wolfish smile played on his lips.“You make a good point.”

Hesitating no more, Col advanced silently, staying as close to the ground as possible to blend in with the snow. The Blood Rose wolves were fixated on Waylon, but their ears were perked and their eyes shifted from side to side attentively, as if expectingmore enemies to come. And just as Elijah had predicted, none of them anticipated an attack from below.

When we were close enough, my wolf leapt straight at the throat of one of the warriors. The precise sneak attack allowed a quick kill, and soon the group’s force was divided as they tried to deal with both Col and Waylon. As soon as he realized what was going on, the Ashen Wolf’s brows furrowed in a mix of surprise and confusion before he started fighting by my side. Together, we easily took care of the warriors.

As we caught a brief instant of peace, Waylon’s beast stared at Col - first, in bewilderment. Then, in silent gratitude. My wolf nodded in response before we both parted ways to return to our own teams.

Just as Col did, I caught a pair of eyes on us. Joe, who was on Theo’s team, was looking directly at me. It seemed they had been able to defeat the wave of enemies, and judging by the look on his face, he had witnessed my actions.

I caught myself trying to discern the emotions in his expression when a chorus of cries cut through the night. Sensing the grief in their mournful melody, I immediately knew - Brent had been killed.

From that moment on, it was an easy win for Azure Smoke.

The warriors all gathered at the heart of the territory, awaiting further commands. As I tried to distract myself from the blood in my paws and the heaviness in my heart, I scoured through the destruction for Avril. I found Kea watching the corpses, mostly expressionless, except for a tint of sadness in her eyes. She didn’t look proud or majestic, but rather thoughtful.

As if sensing my gaze, her head snapped toward me. With a quick flick of her muzzle, she signaled for me to follow, and I obeyed without hesitation. Still in wolf form, we moved through the debris, weaving toward what seemed to be the dungeons.

We passed two empty cells before finally finding what we were searching for, and my heart sank. Up until that point, I had been against Avril’s violent ways.

But everything changed when I saw with my own eyes what Blood Rose had done to the fledgling.

31

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A V R I L

My heart tightenedas Kea’s gaze fell on the young fledgling, kneeling with silver chains binding him to the concrete wall. Cuts and bruises marred his skin, evidence of the beating he must have endured after the episode I witnessed in the vision. Since his injuries weren’t healing, I assumed they had drugged him to suppress his wolf as well.

Regaining control, I shifted back into my human form to help Ruac. As I turned to grab a robe hanging by the desk near the cell keys, I noticed Koen had shifted back as well. His fists were clenched at his sides, his posture rigid, but it was his eyes that froze me mid-motion. They were fixed on the younger man, darkening with something I couldn’t quite name - until I could.

He had finally understood.

Koen’s disapproval of my methods had been clear when he vehemently reprimanded me for killing an innocent she-wolf. While I hadn’t expected him to react so strongly to the death of a stranger, I couldn’t blame him for struggling to grasp why it had to be done.

But as he witnessed firsthand what they had done to Ruac - a member of their own pack - the reason behind my actions finally became clear to him. They didn’t even know what Ruac truly was, but his abnormal strength alone was enough for them to want him dead.

It was the same fear that had brought my kind to the brink of extinction centuries ago.

They started it, I reminded myself, pushing away the resentment I had felt upon killing Brent earlier. Ashen Wolves were merely existing when they decided they couldn’t bear to share this world with a creature more powerful than themselves. Whether it was fear, pride, or envy, the reason didn’t matter - it didn’t change the fact that they had come after us. Back then, they hadn’t hesitated to slaughter the innocent.

So why should I now?

Handing Koen one of the spare robes, I turned toward the fledgling and hastily unlocked the door to his cell. Before I could step inside, he scrambled back against the wall, his wide eyes filled with terror. Even if he hadn’t been at the battle, I was certain he’d heard the sounds of his pack’s massacre. And I was still covered in their blood.

I knelt down slowly, lowering myself onto one knee with deliberate care, my arm resting lightly on the other. Now at his eye level, I softened my posture, hoping the gesture would reassure him, a silent promise that I meant no harm.

“My name is Avril,” I told him. “I just want to help you.”

This time, he didn’t flinch as I approached, though his voice wavered with uncertainty as he asked, “Why? They said I’m a freak. Why would you want to help me?”

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