CHAPTER 62WHERE LIGHT PRETENDS TO STAY The Fae lands had a way of lying without ever actually speaking. Day here didn’t feel like safety. It felt like permission. As if the world briefly decided not to end things just yet and called it peace. Rylan had stopped questioning it. For now, at least.————The morning after the fire gathering didn’t carry the same weight as the night before. The tension was still there, buried under routine and movement, but it had softened around the edges. Like something sharp wrapped in cloth so people could pretend it wasn’t dangerous anymore.Kael, of course, was the first to ruin the quiet. “So,” he said, walking backwards in front of them, “we’re just pretending yesterday didn’t happen?”Tarin didn’t even look up. “We’re pretending you’re not talking.”“I like that plan less.” Rylan exhaled a quiet laugh despite himself. It came easier now. Easier than it used to. Mira walked slightly ahead of him. Not distant. Just careful. Like she had learned how

CHAPTER 64THE FOREST NOTICESPeace in the Fae lands never announced when it was leaving. It simply became thinner. By morning, even Kael noticed it, which was impressive considering his relationship with awareness was mostly theoretical. “This place feels rude today,” he said, glancing around the clearing as if the trees had personally slighted him.“They have always disliked you,” Tarin replied.“Unfair. I bring charm.”“You bring noise. Noise is very uncomfortable that means you are uncomfortable to be around..”“Ouch.” Kael said, clutching his hart dramatically.Rylan looked up from where he sat near the fire. Something was different. The air held too still, as if the forest had paused mid-breath and forgotten how to continue. Even the birds were quiet. That bothered him more than it should have. Lyra noticed it too. “No songbirds,” she murmured.Eran’s expression sharpened immediately. “Since when?”“Since dawn.” Mira had already risen. Her gaze swept the tree line once, careful

CHAPTER 66LEAVING LIGHT BEHINDMorning arrived gently, which felt almost insulting. The Fae lands glowed in that soft, impossible way they always did, silver mist clinging low to the grass while sunlight filtered through branches like it had been carefully arranged by someone with too much time and excellent taste. Birds returned. Streams sounded cheerful. Leaves shimmered. Everything looked peaceful. Which was how danger often preferred to dress itself.Rylan stood at the edge of camp with a pack slung over one shoulder, staring toward the northern path. He had packed lightly. There was something bleakly funny about trying to prepare for being hunted by forces older than reason. Behind him, Kael yawned dramatically. “You know,” Kael said, “most people announce suicidal travel plans after breakfast. There are customs.”“I’m leaving,” Rylan replied.“Yes, I gathered that from the bag and tragic posture.”Rylan turned sl

CHAPTER 68WHAT WALKED OUT OF THE TREESThe forest held its breath. No wind moved through the black pines. No birds broke the silence. Even the road beneath their feet seemed to wait, as if stone itself had developed curiosity. Ahead, branches shifted again. Slow. Deliberate. Something large enough not to care about being heard. Mira stepped forward first, blade drawn low and ready. Seris moved beside her without asking permission, posture loose in the way only dangerous people managed.“I dislike this formation,” Mira muttered.“I adore it,” Seris replied. “Very nostalgic.”“Move away from me.”“Make me.”Rylan almost told them to stop, but another crack sounded from the trees and decided priorities for everyone. Darian kept Niko behind him, one arm out like that would somehow solve supernatural violence. Admirable instinct. Poor strategy.Rylan held the path-key in one hand. It was burning now, pale lines

CHAPTER 70WHAT SMELLED THE BLOODNight settled slowly over the camp, reluctant and watchful. The fire had burned low to a bed of red coals. Shadows stretched long between the stones and brush, shifting whenever the wind remembered to move. Above them, the sky remained clear and cold, stars scattered with the kind of careless beauty that only appears when lives below are becoming complicated. Everyone rested lightly. No one trusted the road enough for real sleep. Darian sat with his back against a boulder, arms folded, eyes closed in the theatrical way of someone pretending not to be awake. Niko had lasted longest before sleep took him mid-sentence, curled in a blanket near the fire with one hand still gripping a half-eaten piece of meat like it might escape. Seris stood at the edge of camp, gaze fixed on the dark tree line. Mira moved beside her, arms folded. Close enough to annoy. Far enough to deny intention. The silence between them lasted only a