The storm outside Thorn Pack didn’t let up. It howled through the trees like a voice trying to speak a name no one remembered.
Inside the warded room, Quinn held Rowan close to his chest. The boy had passed out again—his body fevered, his pulse erratic. But it wasn’t the heat of illness. It was something more ancient. Something watching him from within.
Jace stood by the window, arms crossed, every muscle locked tight. The tension in his shoulders had grown unbearable since Rowan’s chilling whisper.
“The one who wasn’t chosen.”
Kairis had retreated to her scrolls and runes, muttering under her breath, her hands shaking as she traced ancient seals into the floorboards.
Quinn looked up. “You knew, didn’t you?”
Jace turned, startled. “Knew what?”
“That your bloodline was more than a sy
