IRIS POV — CHAPTER 37
The house didn’t feel empty.
It felt held—like the walls were clenching their fists, bracing for impact.
I stood in front of the dresser, tightening the leather strap around my wrist for the third time even though it was already snug. Fire pulsed beneath my skin, a low, obedient heat that rolled through my veins like it had finally found its rhythm. Not wild. Not destructive.
Aware.
That scared me more than the flames ever had.
Behind me, metal whispered against fabric as Skye laid weapons out across the bed. Knives. Guns. Sigils etched into steel that hummed faintly when my power brushed too close. He moved like a soldier preparing for war, shoulders squared, jaw locked, eyes darker than they had any right to be.
Darker than they’d been since last night.
Sinc
