The castle nains loomed ahead, inged stone walls covered in moss and broken windows staring out like hollow eyes. I burely registered the eerie beauty as she trudged through the overgrown path, my heart heavy with the weight of Elijah’s betrayal. The
the sky above, others followed behind mein tense silence, their expressions as dark
The place was haunted–by memories, by ghosts, by the terrible massacre that wiped out my bloodline. I barely glanced at the scorched stones where my family’s banners once hung, Ina consumed by the chaos in own mind. My hands wouldn’t stop shaking. and my heart felt like it was being ripped apart piece by plece,
My heart pounded against my ribs like it was frying to break free, nid I couldn’t get the image of Elijah handing over the map out of my head.
My feet moved without direction, dragging me through the overgrown path toward the shuttered archway. The others followed behind me in silence, their presence like shadows looming just out of reach. Everything felt muted, distant, as if I was watching myself from somewhere far away. My hands wouldn’t stop shaking, and my vision blurred as I tried to process what had just happened.
“How could he do that?” Austin growled behind me, breaking the silence. His anger crackled through the air, and I heard the distinct sound of ice forming at his fingertips, “Damn it! I knew something was off about Elijah a few days ago! I should’ve noticed
it sooner.
Isaiah shot him a glare, his voice tease but controlled. “Don’t jump to conclusions. We don’t know why he did it yet. There has to be an explanation–Elijah wouldn’t betray us
us like
that,”
A harsh, humorless laugh tore from my throat, and I spun around to face Isaiah, cage burning through the numbness. “Are you serious right now? What explanation could possibly justify what he did? Did you not see it with your own eyes? He gave her the map, Isaiah! Just… handed it over like it was nothing!”
Isaiah looked away, jaw clenched, his shoulders tense. “I know what it looked like, but Elijah wouldn’t do that without a reason. He’s our brother—my best friend. I refuse to believe he just switched sides.”
Alex scoffed, his hands flickering with angry flames. “Are you listening to yourself? He betrayed us. There’s no other way to see it. Mother didn’t even force him–ho just walked up and gave her the map. I don’t care what kind of reason you think he had, betrayal
is betrayal.”
Isaiah’s fists clenched at his sides. “He wouldn’t do that! You don’t know him like I do-
I snapped, the tension boiling over. “Isaiah! Stop defending him!” My voice broke, and I hated how weak I sounded. “He looked me in the eye and handed over the one thing we couldn’t afford to lose. le gave it to her, knowing it would destroy us. How can you
still make excuses for him?”
Isalah opened his mouth to argue, but no words came out. Instead, he just stared at the ground, guilt shadowing his expression
I turned away, dragging my hands through my hair and tugging until my scalp burned. My chest felt fight, like I couldn’t breathe, and every inhale was a struggle. I tried to make sense of it, but my mind kept replaying the nioment–the way Elijah’s hand didn’t hesitate, the way he wouldn’t meet my gaze.
I failed. I failed to protect the map. I failed to protect everyone. I didn’t see it coming, didn’t even suspect that he would…
A sob ripped out of me before I could stop it, and I pressed my hand against my mouth, trying to smother the sound. It hurt. It hurt so much that I couldn’t even think straight. My knees gave out, and I sank to the ground, dirt and broken stone scraping again, my skin.
Austin cursed under hits breath, taking a hesitant step closer. “Storm-
1/2
Chapter 168
“Don’t,” I whispered, shaking thy head. I couldn’t handle being touched tight now. If anyone come closet, I would break into a million ploces, and there would be no putting me back together.
Isaiah hesitated, glancing at Alex and Austin before cautiously approaching me. He knelt down, his voice softer than before, “Stormi, I know it feels like everything’s falling apart. But we’re still here. You’re not alone. We’ll get through this together.”
space my heart that nothing could I wanted to believe him, but it didn’t make the pain go away, Elijah’shetrayal carved a hollow fill. I couldn’t shake the image of his back tumed to me as he walked toward Mother–like he belonged with her instead of us,
“He promised,” I choked out, tears slipping free despite my efforts to hold them back. “He promised he’d stay by my side, no matter what. He was supposed to protect us… to protect me. Why would he do this? The hasn’t just betrayed me but every wolf out there.”
Isaiah sighed, reaching out slowly to place his hand on my shoulder his time, I didn’t pull away. “I don’t know,” he admitted, his voice cracking. “But I refuse to believe he’s joined the otherside so willingly, We’ll find out why, Stormi. We’ll make sense of this.”
Anger flared up again, fierce and unforgiving. I showed his lund off, taring through the tears. “And what if there’s no reason, Isaiah? What if he just… betrayed us because it was easier than fighting? You keep making excuses for him, but you didn’t see his face. He didn’t even hesitate. He looked right at me and gave her the map ”
Austin punched a crumbling stone wall, sending ice splintering through the cracks, “Damn it! We should’ve seen should’ve done something before it got this far.”
this coming. We
Alex crossed his arms, fire flickering more fiercely than ever. “What done is done. Wallowing in guilt won’t change anything. We need to focus on surviving and figuring out our next move.
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