Chapter 8 - Denial and Confession
They made it back to Moon territory by dusk. The gate opened without question.
Scouts peeled away. Warriors nodded. The pack house seemed to exhale. Someone clapped Tlacaelel on the back. Someone handed Renata a clean canteen and muttered something about good work. The team scattered. To report. To rest. To forget.
Tlacaelel didn’t move. He watched her.
She stood in the courtyard a second too long. Not speaking. Not blinking. Her shoulders were square. Her stance, sharp. But he could see the tension in her hands. The way her magic curled at the edge of her skin like it was trying to protect her—from him.
She didn’t look at him. Didn’t need to.
He felt her pulling away like a tide that had no intention of returning.
He hadn’t expected gratitude. Or s
