I did not want to go home.
The thought alone made my stomach twist, but the whisper from the forest kept ringing in my head. Not angry. Not corrupted. Not the Moon. Something smaller. Quieter. Something that felt like memory instead of magic.
It pulled at me the entire walk away from the packhouse. Each step felt heavier than the last. Leah insisted on coming with me for the first stretch, pacing close to my side like she expected the trees to leap out and drag me into another realm.
Before we reached my street, she paused. “Margot. I should tell you something.”
My shoulders tensed. “What.”
“Mom has been stopping by your house.” Leah rubbed her arms nervously. “Every day. Sometimes twice. To check on your mom. She was worried.”
A sliver of cold crept into my spine. “Why was she check
