(Ava’s POV)
The scent of home hit me before I even saw the trees. It was faint—aged pine, crushed moss, and that familiar chill in the wind that used to mean safety. But now, all it did was reopen the wounds I thought had healed.
Ravenwood’s borders stretched ahead like a ghost from my past, the same place where I’d once believed I’d spend the rest of my life. Now I was back, cloaked in a stranger’s scent, my name hidden beneath lies and borrowed courage.
Dominic walked a few steps ahead of me, his stride measured, confident, as if this wasn’t the heart of enemy territory. The sun bled through the treetops, casting his silhouette in amber light. Even in disguise, he radiated authority—calm, composed, impossible to ignore.
“We stay two miles out from their main patrols,” he said, voice
