Chapter 552

• Kari’s resurrection ceremony was done the very next night. James had insisted on it. He didn’t want her to be vulnerable without her healing again. Kari hadn’t spoken to me since that night we brought Gunnar home, as if she too blamed me, like I blamed myself. I called and texted, but all I got in return was silence. She read my texts, but that was the only thing I got, a read notification.
• Her resurrection had been done in private. Only James was with her in the clearing. He was shutting everyone out, and we only knew she’d shifted successfully, when we heard her sorrowful howls from deep within the forest.
• Four days later, we stood in the clearing with Gunnar’s body lying in the middle. We’d already held his funeral, and the church had been packed. The lie we told was that he’d died from anaphylactic shock from an allergy we hadn’t known about. It was hard to swallow, but it was still better than the truth.