My birth pack's den lay in the eastern reaches of the territory, nearly two hours by swift travel.
I sent word ahead to my mother.
"I'm bringing Liri home for the feast."
"Why now? Weren't you celebrating Moon Festival with your mate's pack?"
"It fell apart."
Silence stretched through the connection for two heartbeats.
"There's plenty of food. Come home."
Those simple words made my eyes sting with warmth.
When we arrived, my parents had already set out a full table.
Not as lavish as the Stormhart spread, but everything was food I loved.
Liri fell asleep quickly on the cushioned bench.
Only then did I have a moment to check my messages.
My stone showed countless notifications—nearly all from the pack alliance channel.
I didn't need to read them. They would all be curses aimed at me.
But one message stood out, from Branwen Duskbrook, a sentinel neighbor from our territory.
"Lyra, did someone breach your den? A whole group came through—they're tearing the place apart like raiders..."
I immediately opened the ward-stone vision linked to our home.
In the scrying image, Kael led his parents and his brother through our den, ransacking everything in sight.