All Chapters of LOST AND FOUND: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

Dawn slipped through the narrow slits of the stronghold walls, pale light spilling across cold stone. Serenya woke to silence, broken only by the creak of footsteps in the corridor outside. The air was sharp with the smell of smoke from the hearth.She pulled the blanket tighter around her shoulders and stepped into the hall. Voices dropped the moment she appeared. A pair of women whispering by the stairwell froze, their eyes fixed on her gray gaze. One turned her head sharply, leading the other away with a stiff set to her shoulders.She kept walking, though her pulse hammered. Every turn of the corridor seemed to tighten with watchful stares. A boy carrying a bundle of kindling passed her, wide-eyed, nearly dropping the wood before scurrying down the steps.The whispers followed like a draft. Cursed. Omen. Why did he bring her here?Serenya’s throat tightened. She wanted to ask, to shout at them that she didn’t understand either. But her voice stayed locked in her chest.At the end

The courtyard lay hushed beneath the gray wash of morning. Smoke from last night’s fires clung to the stones, the faint scent of ash drifting between the timbered halls. Serenya lingered near the shadow of the old watchtower, away from the murmuring pack.Their voices carried whether she wished to hear or not.“She’s the reason wolves were sniffing around the village.”“Cursed, or worse. Did you see the mark?”“If Kaelen keeps her here, he’ll drag us all down.”The words pressed against her ribs until her chest ached. She drew her cloak tighter, though the chill was not in the air but in the stares that followed her whenever she crossed the yard. Her fingers trembled as they knotted in the fabric.Kaelen found her there, half-hidden against the wall. His boots struck hard on the flagstones, but his voice softened when he spoke.“You shouldn’t listen to them.”Serenya lifted her eyes, gray as storm clouds, and tried to summon a smile. It fell short. “It’s difficult not to when they spe

The chamber was steeped in silence, broken only by the low whistle of wind threading through the narrow window slits. The moon spilled pale light across the stone floor, painting long shadows that reached toward the bed where Serenya lay. Her body was still, but her breath came shallow, uneven. Every muscle in her frame trembled as if something unseen brushed against her soul.Her eyes fluttered open.At first, she thought it was a dream—the way the air grew colder, as though winter had crept in despite the heavy fire on the hearth. Then she saw her.A figure stood at the foot of the bed, cloaked in flowing black silk that shimmered like liquid shadow. Her skin gleamed pale against the darkness, her emerald eyes bright, unblinking.“You wake sooner than I expected,” the woman said softly, her voice calm but cutting, like a blade wrapped in velvet.Serenya stiffened, clutching the blanket to her chest. “Who—” Her throat was raw, the word almost a whisper. “Who are you?”The woman tilte

The highlands had fallen into one of those rare silences when even the wolves did not stir. Mist crept low along the valley floor, curling around roots and stones, while the river murmured as if it carried secrets only the mountains could hear. Serenya followed the sound of water, her cloak drawn tightly around her shoulders, though the night was not cold. It was guilt that chilled her.The fortress walls had pressed too close. Whispers grew louder every day—her name carried in sharp, distrustful tones. She was the stranger, the cursed one, the reason wolves prowled at their borders. None said it to her face, but eyes cut sharper than blades. Tonight, she needed air before the weight of it suffocated her.Her steps slowed when she reached the riverbank. Moonlight lay like broken glass across the water’s surface. She crouched, letting her fingers brush the stream. It was cool, almost sharp, as though it meant to wake her from a dream.“What am I doing here?” she whispered. Her voice va