Chapter 41

• Astrid POV
• The night air was cold, and the council chamber cloaked in it like a shroud, but it was not cold by a cool breeze there in the room--it was cold by the rumors. I should have not been here. The Elders had referred to it as a “privileged meeting” their words soaked in desperation and brimming with inanity. I’d followed instinct—and the scent of fear—to the edge of the upper balcony, just above their so-called secret meeting.
• From my hidden perch, I could see the shadows of them circled below, voices low but sharp enough to cut. Elder Renard’s voice was unmistakable—bitter and crisp like old bark.