#Chapter 175 – Ambushed

Lila The forest looked like it was holding its breath. Mist hung in the hollows like watery milk poured between the trees, soft and cold against my shins. Every step I took unstitched a thread of sound – wet leaves crunching, a twig snapping – and then the hush stitched itself back together as woods swallowed me whole. It’s too quiet. The thought slid down my spine and settled there, prickling. Ruby flickered once at the edge of my mind like a candle guttering in a draft. She was so far away. Come on, I begged her, please. The bond shivered once, a faint, aching ripple, and went still again. I pressed a hand against my belly as if I could anchor all three of us with the touch. My other hand tightened on the dagger. It bit the soft meat of my palm. Sweat loosened the wrap; I twisted it tighter with my teeth and tried to breathe through the iron taste. A twig snapped to my left. I spun, back to a trunk tacky with sap, lifting the blade. The mist shifted and shadows flo