로그인The first sign something was wrong was the silence. Seeker camps were never silent. Someone was always arguing over food, sharpening a weapon, laughing too loudly, complaining about guard duty, or telling a story that grew more ridiculous with every retelling.But as we approached the camp, there was nothing. No voices. No laughter. No clang of steel from the training grounds.Even Bella slowed. Her ears rose, her entire body going rigid beside me.Carlin stopped so suddenly I nearly walked into him.“What?” I whispered. His hand was already on his sword.“Stay behind me.”I frowned. “That's never going to happen.”
“What… was that for?” Once The shock wore off. I looked at the woman."I know your tall, dark, and brooding friend wouldn't let me live. So I figured I'd prove it. I don't mean you any harm. Also, don't try to pronounce my full name. I hate my full name. Just call me Zin." She held out her hand to me for a shake. I took it, and she immediately pulled me in.She leans in close. And whispers in my ear, “ look forward being close with you.” and proceeds to kiss me below my earlobe sending shivers down my body, but not the bad kind.As I processed her words, I am quickly yanked back and silver metal is in the corner of my eye“What the hell are you doing?” Carlin asked.“Just givin
Carlin shifted beside me.“Nera.”I looked up. His expression had changed. The teasing was gone. So was his crooked smile. Instead, there was concern.“If Reimer is paying people to hunt you,” he said quietly, “she may not be the only one.”The thought landed like a stone in my stomach. I looked toward the dark trees surrounding our camp. They suddenly didn't feel empty anymore. Bella must have sensed my unease because she pressed against my leg, a low rumble building in her chest. Then the woman spoke.“If you're worried about the people Reimer hired…”I turned back to her. Her expression had gone grim. I didn’t like that.“You should be.”Zeph moved closer to me as Carlin's hand moved toward his sword. I swallowed.“Why?” I asked, I needed to know. My very life depended on it. The woman met my eyes.“Because I wasn't
“Can we please deal with the woman who kidnapped me?”That wiped some of the humor from the camp. Carlin's hand slipped from my waist. I told myself that it was because he trusted that I could walk on my own.Carlin moved me with me as we approached my kidnapper together.. Bella rose and followed, positioning herself against my leg. Zeph hadn't moved. He sat across from the her, elbows resting loosely against his knees. His expression was unreadable.I stopped in front of her.“Why did you take me?”She eyed me up and down before responding, "Like I said, my job was to bring you back.""By whom?
I awoke, my vision was blurry.“What the hell.” My vision began to clear and the first thing I could see was Bella by my feet snoozing away.“Dont move too quickly.” Carlin was next to me steading me.“What happened?” I asked him.“I don't know, Ev thinks the exhaustion got to you and you fainted. You never ate after the ritual, so your body was running on empty,” Carlin explained. You then noticed all the concern lines on his brow. I guess he was worried about me. Then it all came back. The Kidnapper and the murderous rage Zeph had. Granted Carlin had it too but he seemed to be willing to let me get my answers.“Wait… is she?” I asked.
We loaded my kidnapper onto the same horse she’d hauled me around on earlier. Hog-tied. Unconscious. The irony was almost poetic. I considered bowing to the universe for its commitment to symmetry.The horse snorted softly, shifting under the unfamiliar weight. I watched her chest rise and fall, steady and unaware, and felt a flicker of something dark curl in my stomach. Satisfaction, maybe. Or relief. Possibly both.We moved through the woods carefully, branches snapping underhoof in quiet, deliberate rhythms. The forest pressed in around us, tall and watchful, the canopy swallowing most of the light. Shadows stretched long and thin, as if listening.Bella ranged ahead, a blur weaving through the trees. Every so often, she doubled back, amber eyes sharp, tail high and alert, making sure we were still there. Still breathing.For hours, no one spoke.I felt Carlin’s attention before I saw it. The subtle shift. The way his steps slowed just enough to match mine. He glanced at me from th
That was a clear threat. My stomach knotted so tightly I thought I might be sick. The murderous glint in Remier’s eyes almost pinned me in place. Move. I had to move. By the grace of the goddess, my legs obeyed, carrying me down the corridor toward my father’s study.Knock. Knock. Knock“Come in.”
After that tense moment, my father dismissed me with a flick of his hand, ordering me back to my chambers as though I were a disobedient child. Humiliation burned through me hotter than the hearthfires, my fists clenching at my sides as I stormed away, my footsteps snapping against the cold stone f
My parents sat at the head of the hall, commanding every gaze. Father’s broad shoulders filled his high-backed chair, Mother’s poise as sharp as any blade. Both wore deep green trimmed with brown. The colors of House Verden, echoing the forests that bound our lands. Father’s gaze pinned me the mome
The tea room glowed with firelight and polite chatter, silver spoons clinking gently against porcelain cups. Yet despite the warmth, my father’s cold anger clung to me like frost, coiling tighter the longer I lingered at his side. Something gnawed at him beneath that regal composure, and I







