The compound sat deep enough into unmarked territory that Elena lost track of the turns within the first ten minutes of the drive. Rohan's hand never left hers the whole way, his thumb moving slow and steady against her knuckles, the only thing keeping her from unraveling at the thought of Theo's small, sleeping face still frozen on that stranger's phone screen. She kept replaying the image against her will, the shape of the blanket over his shoulder, the two silent men standing just inside the doorway of his room, close enough to reach him before anyone else could.
Cynthia's father had peeled off before they left the healer's house, grim-faced and silent, headed straight for McCall land with two of Rohan's remaining people at his side. It wasn't trust, exactly, that sent him. It was the
