Val’s life changes forever. She is no longer a weak girl who can’t stand up for herself. She rises from the ashes of old hopes to be reborn in a new guise—the cold-blooded assistant of the lady of a gang of outlaws. Her dagger is stained with blood, and her heart has turned to ice. The only ones who matter to her are a wandering boy and a dog. It seemed that the future was predetermined, but the past relentlessly catches up and forces her to face a difficult choice. What matters more: her former loyalty to the pack, or new friends and attachments? And what is stronger: the tormenting love for a black beast, or freedom?