Semua Bab Christmas in ashes : Bab 61 - Bab 64

Morning in Hallowpine feels like the day after a really bad fight with someone you still have to live with. Nobody’s yelling anymore, but the air is thick with that careful, brittle quiet. Everyone’s walking on eggshells they laid themselves.I make coffee out of habit. It sits there getting cold while I stare at it. The silver thing inside me isn’t screaming anymore,just watching. Like that friend who stays too long after the party because they know something’s still about to go wrong.Outside, people are taking different routes to the same places. You can tell who’s avoiding whose street.Lucien’s scrolling local updates, jaw so tight I can see the muscle jump. “They’re calling last night a misunderstanding,” he mutters. “Community miscommunication. Emotional escalation.” I give a small, tired laugh that doesn’t reach my eyes. “Of course they are.”Ruby lights a cigarette by the window without opening it. The smoke curls against the glass like it’s trying to get out. “Give

The morning after you finally say the quiet part out loud, the town doesn’t bother with makeup anymore.Hallowpine wakes up prickly and red eyed, conversations stop mid sentence when I walk by, eyes linger a second too long before darting away, it doesn’t feel like rage yet, it feels like the moment people realize they’ve been living inside someone else’s machine and the gears just got loud.Ruby brews coffee so strong it could wake the dead, then drinks it like it’s punishment.“They’re rattled,” she says, almost smiling, “rattled people trip over their own feet, good.”Lucien stands at the window like he’s on sentry duty.“Elias won’t sit still now,” he mutters, “once the mask is off, he’ll get sloppy.”Milo’s curled in the corner of the couch, knees pulled up, hands tucked inside his sleeves, he hasn’t said much since last night, and with Milo quiet isn’t empty, it’s him turning the whole thing over and over in his head like a puzzle piece he’s not sure fits yet.The silver inside