Chapter 10
The sun was rising as we emerged from the mountain—soft golden light pouring over the snow-covered trees, the forest glowing like a place untouched by war. But we were touched. Every inch of us was.
He held my waist as we walked, steadying me when I stumbled. My legs barely worked, my side throbbed from the gash Radek left, but I didn’t care. The pain reminded me I was still alive.
Behind us, the others followed. The wolves we had freed were quiet, but not out of fear—this silence was different. It was the kind that came after a storm. The kind filled with disbelief that the worst might actually be over.
Someone stepped beside me. The silver-furred girl from the cells. Her eyes, still wide with hunger and weariness, met mine.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
I opened my mouth, but no words came. What could I say? That it wasn’t just me? That I wasn’t their savior—I was one of them?
He answered for me. “You saved yourselves. We just lit the fire.”
They nodded. Some smiled. Others cried.
We made our way deeper into the woods, moving slowly. He said there was a safe place nearby—an abandoned outpost from when he first scouted this region. It wasn’t much, but it had walls, heat, and clean water. That was more than any of us had known for years.
When we arrived, the survivors spread out. Some collapsed by the fire pits. Some searched the supply crates he had hidden years ago—blankets, dried food, old clothes. A few simply stood in silence, staring at the sky like it was the first time they’d seen it.
He guided me into a small cabin, tucked between two massive trees. Inside, it was cold and dusty, but safe. He sat me down and tended to my wounds again, tearing his shirt to wrap my ribs, careful and quiet.
I watched his face as he worked.
He looked older now—not just in years, but in weight. Like every soul he’d had to fight through had left a scar behind.
“Do you regret it?” I asked softly. “Becoming this version of yourself?”
He didn’t look up. “No. I regret not doing it sooner.”
I reached out and touched his face, brushing away the dried blood. “You found your way back to me. That’s all I care about.”
He finally looked at me, his voice barely above a whisper. “I never stopped loving you.”
The words hit harder than any wound ever had.
I swallowed, feeling the ache behind my eyes. “Then why did you leave?”
He took a deep breath, sat beside me, and leaned his back against the wall.
“Because I was afraid. Afraid I’d never be enough for you. That I’d only get you hurt. I thought… if I could become stronger, if I could destroy the ones who made this world so cruel, maybe then I could come back and keep you safe.”
I leaned into him, my head on his shoulder.
“I didn’t need you to be a warrior,” I said. “I just needed you to stay.”
“I know that now.”
We sat in silence, the fire crackling outside, the soft murmurs of the others drifting in through the cabin walls.
After a while, I whispered, “What now?”
He looked out the window.
“Now, we rebuild. Not just the pack. Not just the world they tried to break. But us. You and me. If you want to.”
I smiled through the pain. “I do.”
The sky outside grew brighter, the sun climbing higher, melting the frost bit by bit. It would be a long journey ahead—healing, learning to live again, helping others do the same.
But we had time now.
Time to breathe.
Time to be more than survivors.
Time to be whole again.