t didn’t start as a whisper this time.
It started as a pulse.
A deep, bone-deep thrum that rippled through my blood like a second heartbeat.
The mark on my palm, faint for days, flared to life without warning, veins of molten gold streaking up my arm and threading beneath my skin until it looked like roots trying to escape. It hurt, but not in a way I could fight. It was a summons I couldn’t ignore.
I was still furious at it.
The forest had taken my flame. It had burned me hollow and left me gasping in the dirt. Now, it dared call me back as if I were its tethered hound.
And gods help me… I answered.
Nyra didn’t even try to stop me. She was already waiting at the threshold of the palace doors when I shoved them open, her satchel slung over her shoulder, the chained book pressed tigh
