I read the words once. Then again. And something deep inside me—ancient, feral, long restrained—finally broke free. I blocked his number, erased the conversation, and slipped my phone away.

The smile that touched my lips wasn’t happiness.

It was my wolf awakening at last, teeth bared, eyes clear.

I was finished protecting a house that had never sheltered me.

Finished pretending this place was home.

I was returning to the only place that ever truly was.

Back to my pack.

Back to blood and roots.

Back to the forest where my name still echoed.

I was going home.