Chapter 0157

"Julian, I came alone." Tobias crouched low, palms raised in surrender. "The others split off in another direction. Just talk to me, brother. Help me understand why this..." His gesture encompassed the dense forest around us. "Why this exile is better for your family."

Truth rang in his words. Even Valeria couldn't detect deception in his scent.

We emerged from the thicket, my small human form dwarfed by Valeria's massive silver-furred frame. Father exhaled sharply. "Valeria, I told you to stay hidden."

Tobias's sharp intake of breath cut through the forest. "Guardian." The reverence in that single word made my skin prickle. His wide eyes darted between me and Father before landing on me with dawning realization. "This child—"

"Is my daughter Seraphina and her wolf Valeria." Father's voice turned gravelly. "The Guardian spirit awakened on her tenth birthday."

Joy transformed Tobias's face. "This changes everything! Alpha Vincent will—"

A vicious snarl ripped from Father's throat. "She's not going back."

Confusion creased Tobias's brow. "You'd deny her birthright?"

Father scrubbed a hand over his stubbled jaw. "Think, Tobias! You've got a daughter too. What would Vincent do if she manifested as a Guardian? Would you hand her over to be claimed like property?"

The truth hit Tobias like a physical blow. He took a halting step toward me. Father's warning growl vibrated through my bones.

"I'd die before harming your pup." Tobias knelt until we were eye-level. "And no, I wouldn't let any Alpha claim my girl against her will." His calloused fingers carded through Valeria's fur with practiced ease—a father's touch.

"Eleanor's here too," Father admitted.

My mother stepped from behind a moss-covered oak, her worn leather boots silent on the forest floor.

"You look..." Tobias's gaze swept over her threadbare clothes. "Better than expected." He turned back to Father. "I've got a cabin in the Sierra Madre foothills. Off-grid. No pack ties."

Mother produced a charred stick and birch bark—our makeshift writing set. Tobias sketched a rough map with quick strokes. "Cover your scent trails. I'll misdirect the hunting parties."

As he turned to leave, Tobias clasped Father's forearm. "For all the times you saved my hide."

The forest swallowed his retreating form.

Weeks of cautious travel brought us to the weathered cedar cabin. Father took construction jobs in the nearest human town while Mother and I chinked the walls with river clay.

For three peaceful years, we lived in the golden hush of the mountains. Until the shadows found us again.