THE SECRETS WE BURN

THE COUNCIL'S WATCHFUL EYES

The greenhouse sat at the edge of the west field, glass panels fogged and cracked, surrounded by a rusted fence. Midnight air bit at Elara’s skin as she walked alone, flyer in her pocket and a hundred alarms in her head.

This is stupid, she told herself. You don’t need their approval.

But something deeper—something hungry for control—pushed her forward.

Inside, the air was thick with dust and silence. Vines curled over old benches. The moonlight spilled through the glass like silver ghosts.

She wasn’t alone.

Three students stood in the center, each wearing a black blazer marked with a silver emblem: a crescent moon pierced by a sword. The Council.

Sera leaned against a pillar, arms folded, smirking again. “Told you she’d come.”

Milo, the quiet one with sleepy eyes and dark curls, nodded at Elara but said nothing.

Then there was him.

Killian Graves.

Tall, sharp-jawed, and all slow danger. His voice carried like velvet soaked in smoke. “Elara Sinclair. Our newest dare.”

Her name on his lips made her stomach twist—but she kept her face blank. “You gonna haze me or what?”

His smile didn’t reach his eyes. “Feisty. I like it.”

Sera rolled her eyes. “Get on with it, Killian.”

Killian stepped forward, holding out a small black box. “Your dare is simple,” he said. “Open this. That’s all.”

Elara raised a brow. “That’s it?”

“For now.”

She took the box. It was cold and heavy, the kind of weight that felt personal. Her fingers hesitated at the latch. Then she opened it.

Inside: a silver lighter. Smooth. Familiar.

Her breath caught.

Milo’s head tilted. “You okay?”

But Elara couldn’t speak. That lighter—it was identical to the one from the fire. Her fire. The one the police never found.

She slammed the lid shut. “Funny joke.”

Killian’s expression shifted—curious now. “It’s not a joke. That lighter was found in the ashes of the old library wing. The one that burned down last year.”

Elara’s throat dried. Last year?

“I didn’t—” she started, then caught herself. Wrong reaction, Elara. You're not a suspect. Yet.

“I mean… cute prop. You trying to scare me off?”

Killian stepped closer, studying her like a riddle he was dying to solve. “Not scare. Just… test.”

The Council began to leave. Sera whispered as she passed, “You just made it interesting.”

Milo gave her a long look. Not judgmental. Just knowing. Like he saw the truth.

Killian was last to leave. He glanced back. “Welcome to Halebourne, Firestarter.”

Elara froze.

He couldn’t know.

He couldn’t know.

But the lighter was real.

And someone had dug into her past.

In the silence of the greenhouse, the vines shivered as if the place itself remembered the fire.