EVELARAThe forest did not welcome me.The moment my bare feet touched the cold earth near the border, the air shifted. It thickened, heavy with something old and wrong, as though the land itself recoiled in my presence. My breath came in uneven gasps, lungs burning from the relentless run, my body still trembling from the violent shift that had torn Dravara free moments ago.I staggered forward, clutching my side, vision blurring as exhaustion finally caught up with me.The pain was not only physical.It was inside my chest, lodged deep beneath bone and muscle, where realization had carved itself raw. Every heartbeat echoed with Lucien’s face, with Vladimir’s name, with the unbearable truth that love and ruin shared the same bloodline.My knees gave out.I fell hard to the ground, palms scraping against gravel and roots, the impact knocking the air from my lungs. I stayed there, bent forward, gasping, my shoulders shaking as the sobs finally tore free.“I can’t,” I whispered hoarsely
Read more