The sound didn't come again.
That was almost worse. If it had howled a second time, at least she'd have known where it was. Instead the trees just stood there, dark and ordinary again, giving nothing away, and Ronan stood in front of her with his shoulders squared toward the border like he could hold the whole forest back with his body if it came to that.
"Ronan."
He didn't answer. Didn't move either, not for three full breaths, eyes fixed on a gap in the trees where the shadows sat a shade too still.
"Ronan." She caught his sleeve. "You're scaring me more than the noise did."
That got him. He blinked, and some of the rigidity went out of his spine, though his eyes kept flicking back to the treeline every few seconds like he didn't trust it to stay empty.
"Sorry." His voice had dropp
