LILA’S POV
The night refused to calm.
Even after the battle ended, the air still smelled of blood and fear. Smoke curled faintly above the treeline where the rogues had attacked earlier. Wolves moved through the forest, dragging bodies away, checking the wounded, whispering to one another in shaken voices.
But the silence beneath it all was worse.
It was the silence of a storm waiting to return.
I stood at the center of the clearing, staring into the dark forest where the red-eyed witch had disappeared.
She was still out there.
Watching.
Waiting.
And the worst part?
She knew exactly what she was doing.
“She’s playing with us,” I murmured, my voice low.
Marcus stepped beside me immediately, his presence heavy but steady. I could feel his wolf pacing beneath his skin, restless an
