Hope

I pace the length of my room until the stone floor feels worn thin beneath my bare feet.

Back and forth. Window to door. Door to window.

Too slow, my wolf murmurs inside me, her voice a low ripple of unease. We should already be running.

“I know,” I whisper, fingers twisting in the hem of my nightdress. My heart beats too loud, each thud a countdown I can’t see. Time is everything tonight. Not just the hour—down to the breath. One misstep, one delay, and everything unravels.

Our escape doesn’t just ride on timing. It rides on Lina.

On the Quiet Heart.

If we leave the castle without...