“I’ve thought it through,” she replied evenly, placing the blood-marked parchment on his desk. “The position has remained vacant for half a year. I’m qualified, and I’m willing. I’ve also been told returning healers are considered for High Healer rank.”
Elder Rowan’s gaze lingered on the contract.
Promotion was possible, yes.
If she survived.
The Border Relief Pack often operated near rogue-infested lands and war-torn territories. Not every healer who left came back whole.
The elder sighed.
“You don’t need to push yourself this way. As Alpha Nathanie’s mate, your future here is secure.”
There it was—the unspoken truth.
Her identity had always been tied to him.
Nathanie, the youngest Alpha in decades. The wolf who had led countless victorious battles. The pack’s pride.
And her… the healer he brought home.
Years ago, she had been nothing more than a lone wolf tending to injuries in a remote settlement near the mountains. One brutal winter night, she had found Nathanie half-dead after an ambush by rogues. She treated him, guarded him through the fever, refused to let his wolf fade.
When the Council later invited him to claim leadership of this territory, he agreed on one condition: