LOGINRoselyn’s POVThe northern watchtower had never looked particularly threatening to me.It was an old structure, built from grey stones that had darkened with age. Its upper windows were narrow, and parts of its roof had begun to collapse. Most villagers avoided it unless they had a reason to pass through the northern grounds.But tonight, as I followed Noah towards it, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something inside was waiting for me.Not someone.Something.“Stay behind me,” Noah said.I glanced at him. “You said that already.”“And I’ll say it again if necessary.”“You don’t have to treat me as though I’m made of glass.”He looked over his shoulder. “I don’t.”“Then stop acting as though I’ll break if I take three steps without you.”A faint smile touched his mouth, but it disappeared almost immediately.“Just stay close, Roselyn.”I wanted to argue, but the seriousness in his voice made me reconsider.Gideon walked ahead with two guards, carrying a lantern. Rowan followed behin
Roselyn’s POVThe peaceful feeling from breakfast did not last.I was returning from the garden when I heard hurried footsteps behind me.“Roselyn!”I turned.Gideon was approaching, his expression serious. Noah followed a few steps behind him, with Rowan at his side.“What happened?” I asked.“We found something,” Gideon replied.Noah stopped beside me.“An old keeper’s body was discovered beyond the southern ridge.”My stomach tightened.“Is he alive?”Gideon shook his head.“No. He appears to have been dead for some time.”“Then how do you know he was a keeper?”Gideon held up a small silver badge.A crescent moon surrounded by three circles had been engraved into its surface.“The same symbol we found near the underground passage,” he explained. “There were records scattered around the place, but most of the pages were missing.”“Someone searched the room before you arrived,” Noah added.“Or they wanted you to find what was left,” I said.Gideon looked at me.“That was my thought.
Roselyn’s POVThe first thing I noticed when I opened my eyes was the parchment lying on the small table beside my bed.I was certain it hadn’t been there when I went to sleep.For a moment, I simply stared at it, wondering whether someone had entered my room during the night. The door was still locked from the inside, and the window was closed.Slowly, I reached for the parchment.There were only a few words written on it.Some doors open only for the blood they remember.My fingers tightened around the paper.I read the sentence again, hoping a second look would make it less unsettling. It didn’t.The message could have been a warning. It could have been an invitation. Or perhaps whoever left it wanted me to believe that I was being watched.After everything that had happened in Whispering Haven, I no longer considered those possibilities unreasonable.I folded the parchment and slipped it into the pocket of my dress.Then I hurried to the council lodge.The underground passage was
Noah’s POVI should have been asleep.Instead, I stood beside the window in my room, staring towards the northern forest.The guards had found no trace of the intruder.The barrier had closed.The village was secure.At least, that was what everyone kept telling me.I should have been satisfied.But my thoughts kept returning to one person.Roselyn.I remembered the way she had looked at me in the forest when she asked whether I was tired of being crown prince.Nobody asked me questions like that.Most people wanted something from the crown. Some wanted my favour, others wanted my protection, and a few wanted to challenge my authority.Roselyn had simply wanted to know whether I was happy.It was a strangely personal question.And I had answered it.I closed my eyes.My Great Wolf stirred.Find her.I frowned.“She is safe.”Find her.I pressed my fingers against my temple.The wolf had been restless since meeting her, but tonight its behaviour had become more difficult to ignore.It
Roselyn’s POV“The northern boundary…”Darius’s voice trailed off.For a moment, nobody moved. Then hurried footsteps filled the corridor, followed by the distant shouts of guards.Someone had crossed the boundary.But that wasn’t what frightened Darius.The boundary had opened by itself.“Seal the northern entrance!” Noah commanded. “Nobody enters or leaves until we know what happened.”Gideon immediately turned towards the guards.“You heard the prince. Move!”Rowan reached for his sword and hurried outside.I looked at Darius. “What is happening?”He didn’t answer. His attention remained fixed on the darkness beyond the windows.“Darius.”He finally looked at me.“The boundary surrounding Whispering Haven is not an ordinary barrier. It was created to protect this village from people who shouldn’t be able to find it.”“Then how did someone cross it?”“That is what we need to discover.”“Could it have been the woman from the northern watchtower?”“Possibly.”I tightened my grip aroun
Roselyn’s POV“Roselyn…”The voice came again.It was soft, almost a whisper, yet it travelled through the night with an impossible clarity.I turned towards the open doorway.Nobody stood there.The guards outside had already drawn their weapons. Rowan moved towards the entrance, while Gideon positioned himself beside Noah. Even Darius had taken a step away from the table, his eyes fixed on the darkness beyond the lodge.But I couldn’t move.I knew that voice.Or at least, something inside me insisted that I did.“Mother?” The word escaped my lips before I could stop it.Darius immediately grabbed my arm.“Don’t answer.”I looked at him. “You heard it too.”“I heard something.”“Something that sounded like my mother?”His grip tightened.“Roselyn, listen to me. Whatever you hear tonight, do not follow it.”I pulled my arm away.“You just told me you didn’t know whether she was alive or dead. Now you’re telling me not to follow a voice that sounds like her?”“Because I don’t know what







