Selena's pov.
The wind was colder in Blackwood than I remembered. Or maybe it was just me.
I stepped through the main gates with two guards flanking me.
Their presence wasn’t gentle.
It was a reminder—don’t try anything, don’t run, don’t speak unless spoken to.
I kept my hands at my sides and my eyes down.
I didn’t want to see the faces around me. I already knew what they looked like. Anger. Fear. Disgust.
Some still remembered me as one of them. Some only saw a traitor.
I didn’t blame them.
The moment I returned to Blackwood, the whispers started.
“Why is she back?”
“She should be locked up.”
“She’s working for him.”
I heard them all. Each word was another knife, but I let them cut. I deserved it. Every last wound.
Ivy hadn’t said a word to me.
Not when we escaped the
