Chapter 366: When the Signal Lies

Sophia froze the instant the sound cut through the forest.

Two short whistles.

One long.

Her heart lurched.

She spun toward the direction it had come from, already moving, boots digging into the thick snow as she ran between the trees. Branches snapped against her arms, cold biting through her gloves, but she didn’t slow.

Then another whistle rang out.

Closer.

Her steps faltered for half a heartbeat as her mind recalculated.

There were two signals coming from two different directions. One was closer, but the other one was farther than where she was right now.

Her jaw clenched.

Without hesitating again, she changed course and sprinted toward the nearer sound. The others would do the same—everyone would go for what was closest. That was the fastest way to cover ground, after all.

Snow flew beneath her boots as she ran, breath burning in her lungs, pulse roaring in her ears. The forest blurred around her, trees rushing past, black rocks jutting through white like jagged teeth.

She pushed harder.

Harder.

Until she burst into a small clearing, chest heaving—

And found Miles.

He was bent slightly forward, hands on his knees, breathing hard, his spear still clutched in his grip.

Sophia skidded to a stop. "Was that you?" she demanded. "Did you whistle?"

Miles shook his head quickly, breathless. "No—no, it wasn’t me."

He lifted his arm and pointed past her.

Sophia turned.

And finally noticed Holly.

She stood several steps away, eyes wide, face pale, fingers still hovering near her lips like she hadn’t fully realized she’d already made the sound.

Sophia’s expression darkened instantly.

She turned back to Miles. "She did it?"

He nodded once.

Sophia didn’t say anything at first.

"What happened?" Sophia asked Holly. "Where’s the beast?"

Holly swallowed. Her eyes flicked to the surrounding trees, then back to Sophia. "I—I don’t know."

Sophia stopped less than a step away from her. "What do you mean, you don’t know?"

"I mean I don’t know," Holly told her.

Sophia frowned. "Then why did you whistle?"

"I felt something," Holly said quickly. "Something brushed my arm. I thought it was the korrath, so I— I signaled."

Sophia stared at her.

For a second, it looked like she might actually strike her.

She took another step forward, fury flashing in her eyes—

And Miles moved fast, stepping between them, arms spread slightly.

"Sophia," he said urgently. "Calm down. Please."

Her fists were clenched so tightly her knuckles had gone white.

She forced herself to stop.

Barely.

She dragged in a sharp breath, then looked at Holly again, voice low and dangerous. "Are you okay?"

Holly nodded stiffly. "Yes."

"That was a fucking rhetorical question," Sophia said, anger swimming through her veins.

"But since you claim to be okay, explain then. Why would you signal if you weren’t sure?" Sophia demanded. "Do you realize what you just did?"

"I was scared!" Holly snapped. "I didn’t come here to die!"

"And you think we did?" Sophia shot back. "You used the signal we all agreed to use only if we saw the beast. That signal pulls everyone to you. You could’ve gotten someone killed."

Holly’s eyes flashed. "So what, I was supposed to just wait and hope it didn’t attack me?"

"You were supposed to be certain before sounding an alarm," Sophia said sharply. "Or use the warning call, not the sighting signal. We went over this."

Holly’s chest rose and fell rapidly. "I panicked."

Sophia stared at her for a long moment, then shook her head slowly. "Are you even listening to yourself? Do you hear what you’re saying?"

"What’s wrong with being afraid?" Holly shouted. "You act like you’re not scared at all, like you’re so much better than everyone else."

Sophia’s eyes hardened. "Being afraid isn’t the problem. Refusing to take responsibility is."

Holly scoffed. "Oh please. You don’t even deserve to be here. You shouldn’t even be taking this test in the first place."

Miles sucked in a breath. "Holly—"

Sophia cut him off without looking away from her. "Say that again."

Holly’s voice trembled with anger now. "You think you belong with us? You don’t. You shouldn’t even be taking the test, you already have your position next to the alpha. You should be content..."

Sophia chuckled. "You say I don’t belong, and maybe you’re right. Unlike you all, I don’t plan to become a hunter or warrior. But don’t you find it funny how the one person who isn’t aiming to be one is taking this more seriously than you are?"

Holly’s hands shook at her sides. "You mean by making signals and leaving someone to die when said signal is used, you are taking this more seriously than I am?"

"I am fucking trying to help, and every time you keep hindering it. And the stupid signals are to help, not to use so people run to you at every point. The signals have meaning, and you fucking misused it!"

Miles stepped between them again, voice firm. "Enough. Both of you. This isn’t helping."

Sophia tore her gaze away from Holly and looked at him. She sighed. As much as she hated to admit it, exchanging words with Holly wasn’t helping. It wouldn’t do them any good.

"The second signal. It came from farther out," she said to him.

Miles nodded grimly. "Yeah. And this one wasn’t hesitant. I think we should go there instead." 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

"You guys are just going to leave me here?" Holly asked them.

"Do you not know this is a test? You have to—"

Just then, a sound cut through the forest. It was a whistle, but it was different from the previous one. This one came in short bursts, and it was faint in Sophia’s ears, but she could make it out.

Miles turned stiffly; he could hear it clearly.

His eyes widened. That was the signal for when someone was in trouble.

She turned back toward the direction the sound had come from, fists unclenching slowly. "We need to move. Now."

Miles nodded. "We should shift. We’ll get there faster."

Sophia hesitated.

Just for a second.

Then shook her head. "I can’t."

Miles blinked. "What do you mean, you can’t?"

"I can’t shift," she said quietly.

He stared at her. "Why not?"

At that point, Miles didn’t even care. They needed to move fast because this sound came from even farther than the first whistle had come.

"You’ll ride with me then," he told her, then turned to Holly. "I trust you can shift, or do you have the same problem?"

Holly rolled her eyes. "I’m not that weak."

Miles didn’t even bother with a reply.

Before Sophia could react, he stepped back and shifted.

His body dropped and reshaped, bones cracking as fur surged across his skin. A second later, a large gray wolf stood where he had been, eyes bright and alert.

He dipped his shoulder slightly toward her.

Sophia hesitated only a heartbeat, then moved forward and leapt onto his back, gripping the thick fur around his neck for balance.

She turned her head just enough to look at Holly. "We’ll settle this later. And I better see you there helping out."

Then Miles’ wolf took off.

He ran hard and fast, tearing through the forest, snow exploding beneath his paws as he followed the direction of the frantic signal.

The wind cut against Sophia’s face, cold and sharp, but she barely felt it. Her eyes were fixed ahead, heart pounding in her chest with a fear she refused to voice.