The forest felt like it was holding its breath.
Amelia stood at the riverbank, water lapping at her boots, the moon a silver eye above her. The world was too still—too quiet. Even the trees seemed to lean in, waiting for her next move.
Raze hadn’t followed her.
Good.
She didn’t want to see the look in his eyes again—the betrayal, the disbelief. She hadn’t chosen Cain, not really. But she hadn’t stopped him either. And that mattered. Maybe more than she wanted to admit.
She dipped her fingers into the water. It was freezing, but it grounded her. Gave her something real to hold onto while everything else spun like ash in a storm.
Behind her, a twig snapped.
She didn’t turn.
“You walk loud for a ghost,” she murmured.
Cain’s voice was amused. “You always this charming when you’re thin
