Chapter 146

VALENTINA When my eyes opened, the ceiling above me wasn’t the forest sky. The familiar carved beams of the packhouse pressed down on me, suffocating in their weight. My body ached as if I had been ripped apart and stitched together by shadows. The Hollow still lived in my bones, whispering, reminding me. And then—chains. Not physical ones, but the scent of guards, the scrape of boots outside my door. I sat up slowly. The room was dim, the curtains drawn. My father’s scent lingered faintly, layered with command. My pulse quickened as a whisper in my head crackled… ‘you aren't free.’ When I swung my legs off the bed, the scrape of chairs followed outside. Voices low and tensed. Someone shifted. They were stationed there—for me. For my protection that itself felt like a cage… The words were as clear as if he had spoken them himself. My heart hammered in its cage. It felt more like a poison than protection. A low growl threaded through me, not Kira’s. A darker sound, rougher, edged with p