Anthony’s POV
The rogue had gotten too close—closer than any intruder should ever get. As I paced the strategy room, the shadows of uncertainty stretched long across the walls. Colin's steps were steady behind me, his presence grounding, but my thoughts spun in a thousand different directions.
“How did none of us pick up his scent sooner?” I muttered, more to myself than to Colin. “Not a damn sign of him on our land until he showed up in front of Elara.”
“Doesn’t add up,” Colin replied, his brow furrowed in the same frustration. “Our borders are patrolled constantly, especially around the forest. We would’ve sensed something, someone. But he waltzed in like he knew the territory better than we did.”
That was what gnawed at me the most. The rogue—Sergio, as he'd called himself—hadn't ac
