The messenger arrived at Seren’s camp just before dawn, his horse stumbling with exhaustion, his face frozen in a mask of horror.

Seren met him at the edge of the firelight. Captain Voss had his sword drawn. Lysa stood behind them, clutching a blanket around her shoulders.

"Report," Seren said.

The messenger slid from his saddle. His hands were shaking. "Your Highness. The assassination operation. It failed."

Seren’s blood turned to ice. "Failed how?"

"Seven targets dead. The lieutenants. The quartermasters. The informant." The messenger swallowed hard. "But General Thorne was not among them."

"Impossible." Voss stepped forward. "The intelligence was solid. He was supposed to be there."

"He was." The messenger’s voice cracked. "He left an hour before the operatives struck. Someone warned him."

Silence fell over the camp.

Seren’s mind raced. Thorne was alive. The man who had sworn revenge, who had burned villages, who had made her the focus of his hatred—still breathing.

"Who warned him?" she asked.

"We don’t know. The operatives are still in the field, trying to track him. But he’s gone. Vanished into the mountains with maybe twenty of his most loyal followers." 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

The bond flared with the triplets’ shock.

Theron’s voice came through first, sharp and cold. It’s true. I’ve received confirmation. Thorne’s body was not at the meeting site. His lieutenants died in his place.

How? Aeron demanded. How did he know?

Someone betrayed us. Someone inside the palace, close enough to know the timing of the operation. I’m investigating.

Kael’s fury blazed through the bond. I’m coming north. I’ll find him myself.

No. Aeron’s command was steel. You stay where you are. Seren is already in the north. If you both go dark, we lose all coordination.

I don’t care about coordination—

Kael. Seren cut through his rage. I’m safe. He’s running. He’s not hunting. Not yet. Stay south. Protect the capital. I’ll handle the north.

The bond trembled with his struggle. Then, reluctantly: If he touches you—

He won’t.

But even as she sent the words, Seren felt the lie in them. Thorne would come for her. It was only a matter of time.

An hour later, Seren convened a war council in her tent.

Captain Voss. Lysa. Gracy from Fernwood. The old woman from Blackstone. A handful of village elders who had pledged loyalty to the crown.

"Thorne is alive," Seren said. "He escaped the assassination because someone warned him. That means there is a traitor in the palace...someone with access to royal intelligence."

Murmurs rippled through the group.

Gracy’s face was pale. "If Thorne is alive, he’ll regroup. He’ll find new followers. The war isn’t over."

"It’s not." Seren spread a map across the table. "But he’s lost his lieutenants, his quartermasters, his supply network. He has maybe twenty men left. He’s dangerous, but he’s not an army anymore."

"He’s a snake with a grudge," the old woman said. "Snakes are hardest to kill when they’re alone."

Seren nodded. "Which is why we change tactics. No more assassination attempts. No more covert operations. We starve him out. We offer amnesty to any of his remaining followers who surrender. We make it impossible for him to find food, shelter, or allies."

Voss frowned. "That could take months."

"It could. But it’s better than sending more operatives into a trap." Seren looked around the table. "Thorne knows someone in the palace wants him alive. That means he has resources we don’t understand. We need to figure out who’s helping him before we make another move."

Later that day, a scout brought word of Thorne’s escape route.

He had fled north, not south. Deeper into the mountains, where the snow was already knee-deep and the passes were closing for winter.

"He’s going to ground," Voss said. "He’ll hole up in some cave, wait for spring, then start raiding again."

"Then we block the passes." Seren traced her finger along the map. "We station guards at every route south. We make sure he can’t come down from the mountains without being seen."

"That requires more soldiers than we have."

"Then we ask the villages for volunteers." Seren looked at Gracy. "Thorne burned their homes. Killed their families. Some of them will want to help."

Gracy was silent for a moment. Then she nodded. "I’ll spread the word."

That night, Seren sat alone by the fire, the bond humming with the triplets’ presence.

Thorne is alive, she sent. But he’s trapped in the mountains. He can’t hurt anyone for now.

Someone warned him, Theron replied. I’ve narrowed the suspects to three. All have access to my intelligence network. All have been acting strangely.

Who are they?

I’m not sending names over the bond. It’s not secure enough. But I’ll have answers soon.

Kael’s voice, still raw with anger. When I find out who betrayed us, I’ll kill them myself.

You’ll have to get in line, Aeron said.

Seren raked her fingers through her hair. We need to focus on Thorne. Whoever warned him is a problem, but Thorne is the immediate threat. He knows the north. He knows how to survive. If we don’t catch him before winter ends, he’ll come back stronger.

He won’t come back, Kael said. Because I’m going to find him first.

Kael...

I’m not asking permission. I’m telling you. I’m coming north.

The bond flared with Aeron’s frustration. But Seren felt something else beneath it...resignation. Kael would not be stopped. Not this time.

Come then, she sent. But bring Theron’s intelligence. And bring more soldiers. If Thorne wants a war, we’ll give him one.

He wants you, Kael replied. Specifically. That’s what the informant told the operatives before he died. Thorne doesn’t care about the kingdom anymore. He just wants you dead.

Seren’s hand tightened on her hair.

Then he’ll have to come through all of you to get me.

He knows.

The bond dimmed. But the warmth remained...three wolves, far away, thinking of her.

General Thorne was proving hard to get.

The war was not over.

It had only just begun.