Kael's POV
The smell of iron and ash clung to the wind that morning. Blackwood had always been dark, but ever since Ronan was crowned Alpha, it had turned suffocating. The air felt heavier, colder—like the land itself was mourning.
I followed him down the narrow trail toward the old mines, the ones Father had sealed years ago. Ronan had reopened them. Said he wanted "progress." What I saw instead was cruelty.
The clang of metal against stone echoed through the air. Omegas—weak, broken—worked with trembling hands under the lash of guards. Their faces were hollow, stripped of all pride. Some were barely standing.
And then I saw them.
Humans.
They were chained beside the omegas, their skin pale from exhaustion, their fear thick enough to taste. My chest tightened.
"Ronan," I said, stepping forward, my voice sharp. "What is this?"
