Chapter 27 – Nightfall Confessions
The fire crackled low in the clearing, its light barely pushing back the night. Stars glimmered between the tangled branches above, cold and endless, while the forest hummed with unseen life. Lyra sat on one side of the flames, sharpening her blade with slow, steady strokes. Seren sat opposite her, knees pulled up to her chest, her borrowed cloak wrapped tight.
The silence had stretched long. Too long.
Since Kaelen’s departure that morning, Seren hadn’t spoken more than a handful of words. Lyra hadn’t pressed her. She never did. But Seren could feel the weight of her companion’s watchful gaze, the way Lyra measured every breath, every tremble of her hands, as if calculating the exact moment Seren might break.
And she was breaking.
Her thoughts wouldn
