Chapter 42

Syria’s POV

Everyone froze.

I stared, wide-eyed, with my heart racing.

Kael.

My entire family stood up from their seats at once. My aunt, uncle, cousins…every single one of them. Their expressions were a mix of disbelief and fear. My aunt gasped. My uncle’s eyes narrowed sharply. My cousins looked frozen in place. They weren't ready for this. No one was.

The air changed.

A dense fog of smoke seeped in behind Kael, crawling in through the broken doorway like a living shadow. It wrapped itself around the aisle and filled the space with tension so heavy it was almost suffocating.

Before anyone could speak, glass shattered somewhere above us.

The stained windows that symbolize of peace and divinity broke into sharp shards that scattered like rain. Screams followed instantly as shards hit the floor and bounced. A few even nicked the wooden pews.

People panicked. Some ducked. Others backed away or ran to the side. Chaos erupted.

But I... I couldn’t move.

My body was frozen in place, but n