Chapter 12

• The silence that followed my words was suffocating, the weight of my declaration hanging in the air like a storm about to break.
• Damian and Elijah stood on either side of me, their eyes burning with an intensity that made the forest around us feel too small, too confining. I could feel the power of their rivalry simmering just beneath the surface, ready to explode at any moment.
• But this time, I wasn’t going to let them pull me into it. This time, I wasn’t just a bystander in their battle.