Chapter 17 Shadows Of Allegiance

• The forest air was thick with the scent of blood and damp earth as Celeste stood beside Rafael, her heart still racing from the kill. The unfamiliar beast lay lifeless on the ground, its fur slick with dark crimson. Whatever it had been, it wasn’t something natural to these lands.
• Darian wiped his blade on his sleeve, his expression unreadable. “This thing wasn’t just hunting,” he muttered. “It was watching.”
• Celeste swallowed, unsettled by the thought. Before she could dwell on it, a familiar scent drifted through the trees—a scent she hadn’t smelled in weeks.