Elara's POV
We reached Silver Creek at first light, and I was off my horse before it fully stopped, running for the lodge with a fear I couldn't fully name yet, only feel, humming through the pendant at my throat like a struck bell.
"Selene! Lyra!"
"Mama!" Selene appeared in the doorway, whole, unharmed, blinking sleep from her eyes, and the relief that crashed through me nearly buckled my knees. "What's wrong? You look terrified."
"Nothing's wrong. Not yet." I pulled her into my arms anyway, needing the solid warmth of her before I could steady myself enough to explain. "Where's your sister?"
"Still asleep. Mama, you're scaring me."
Dorian arrived behind me, Wren and Ophelia close behind him, and within minutes the whole household had gathered in the lodge's main hall, Kael posting
