"And the third group?" a council member asked.
Neal's expression tightened. "The third group may never fully recover. The damage is too extensive. For them, the sanctuary might be a more permanent home."
"We're talking about lifetime care for some of these wolves."
"Possibly." Neal didn't flinch from the reality. "The experiments that created them were designed to be irreversible. We've made progress that no one thought possible, largely due to Lumi's influence. But we have to be realistic about outcomes."
The debate continued. Funding concerns. Security concerns. Political concerns about how the broader wolf community would react to a dedicated facility for ferals.
Through it all, I watched and listened.
This was what it looked like when systems actually tried to do better. Messy. Complicated. Full of competing interests and practical limitations. But moving forward, inch by inch, toward something that might actually help.
When Cal stood to speak, the chamber quieted again.
He'd been sitting with my pack throughout the proceedings, silent and watchful. But now he moved to the center of the room with the easy confidence that had always characterized him.
"I'd like to volunteer," he said.
Murmurs rippled through the seats.
"For what exactly?" Rae asked.
"For the academy portion. As staff." He looked around the chamber. "I was feral once. Not as far gone as some of them, but far enough. I know what it's like to lose yourself. To fight your way back. To need someone who understands."
"You're proposing to work at the new academy full-time?"
"If the council approves." Cal's jaw tightened. "I've been at Frosthaven for months now. Stable. But part of me still remembers what it was like before. Part of me always will." He met my eyes briefly. "The wolves at the sanctuary are going to need people who get it. Who don't just understand intellectually, but who've lived it. I can be that person."
"You'd be leaving your pack," someone pointed out. "Your Omega."
"Not leaving. Just... expanding." Cal smiled slightly. "The sanctuary is only five miles away. And Lumi will be involved in the program regardless—her presence is essential to the recovery process."
He was right. We'd discussed it the night before—the inevitability of my involvement, the way my abilities tied me to the ferals whether I liked it or not. Cal volunteeringwasn't abandonment. It was an extension of what we'd already committed to.
"The council will consider your offer," Derrow said. "Thank you, Cal."
He nodded and returned to his seat.
The final vote came late in the afternoon.
Rae called for it formally, her voice steady despite the fatigue visible in her face. "All those in favor of approving the sanctuary campus and academy as proposed?"
Hands rose around the chamber. I counted automatically, holding my breath.
Unanimous.
"All those opposed?"
Silence.
"The motion carries." Rae's gavel fell. "Construction will begin in spring, with an expected completion date of early fall. Cole will oversee the planning committee in coordination with the council's facilities committee."
It was done.
The chamber began to empty, council members gathering their materials, conversations breaking out in clusters. I sat still for a moment, processing.
A sanctuary. A real place, designed specifically for wolves like Stone and Gray and Ben. Not a medical ward or a containment facility, but a home.
