The argument between Ayla and Luca became the talk of Black Hollow faster than either of them expected.
Not because anyone had overheard every word.
But because villages had a way of knowing things.
Especially small villages.
A few people had seen them walking away from the clearing separately.
Others noticed Ayla spending most of the previous evening alone.
Someone had seen Kyla storm away from the training ground two days earlier.
By the time the sun rose on the third day, half the village had already pieced together their own version of events.
Most of those versions were completely wrong.
Ayla found it exhausting.
She had barely stepped outside her cabin that morning before one of the village women smiled knowingly at her.
"Everything alright with Luca?"
Ayla nearly turned
