The wind howled like a wounded beast, screaming through the treetops as Prince Heiko galloped across the borderlands, his warhorse lathered in sweat, hooves thundering against the cracked soil.
The sun had long vanished behind a curtain of cold grey clouds, and the roads stretched ahead like a never-ending trail carved through the wilderness. He barely stopped in nearly two days. Barely ate. Barely drank. Sleep was a stranger, chased away by the weight in his chest and the burning in his soul.
His wolf beast paced violently inside him, fur bristled, fangs bared.
“This is not right,” the voice echoed inside his mind, primal and enraged. “You should be with her. Not here. Not again.”
Heiko clenched his jaw, his fingers tightening on the reins.
“I know,” he growled out loud, “but it’s o
