جميع فصول : الفصل

A cold wind swept through the council hall. Beauty read the letter again, hoping the words would somehow change. > You are looking for the wrong prisoner. Your father isn't the one I captured. The ink was fresh. The parchment carried a faint scent of cedar and smoke—the same scent that lingered in the abandoned monastery. Victor. Alex gently took the letter from her trembling hands. "It's meant to unsettle you." "Or it's the truth," Beauty whispered. Marcus folded his arms. "We shouldn't assume either." Gabriel turned to the guards stationed by the entrance. "Find the messenger." "He couldn't have disappeared." The guards rushed outside. Minutes later they returned, breathing hard. "Alpha... there's no sign of him." "What?" "The horses are still here." "The gates never opened." "It... it's as if he vanished." An uneasy silence settled over the room. Hours later... The council dispersed, but no one slept. Beauty stood alone on the balcony overlooking the compo