The forest was almost too quiet.Not the calm of peace, but the silence before something breaks.Kaelira woke to the sharp whisper of steel.Zevran was already standing, blade half drawn, eyes fixed on the darkness beyond the campfire. The faint orange glow carved him in pieces—jawline, shoulder, the glint of his weapon. Every line of him was coiled tension.She reached for her bow. “What is it?”“Scouts,” he murmured. “Two, maybe three. Council hunters.”Her pulse kicked. “They found us.”Zevran gave a single nod. “Stay behind me.”Kaelira almost laughed. “You forget who’s faster?”But before she could move, he turned slightly, and the look in his eyes rooted her. Not command. Not arrogance. Fear.“Please,” he said, voice low and raw. “Just this once.”Something in her chest tightened. She nodded.They waited, breaths shallow.The first shadow broke from the trees—a tall figure wrapped in the Council’s gray armor, the crest of the
Last Updated : 2025-11-09 Read more