"You are in my forest, and you dare speak to me like that?" Isabella did not even bother sparing a glance at the men. Instead her fingers rubbed the side of her stomach slowly, almost absentmindedly, as if she were annoyed, not threatened.
For a moment, the intruders stared at each other in confusion.
She sounded too calm and too confident.
Her voice carried a quiet authority that made the leaves sway and settle.
Even though she looked fragile, even though she was pregnant, even though her arms were thin and her waist looked like a breeze could break it, something about her posture made it feel like the entire forest had bent itself around her.
For one strange breath, they actually believed her.
Then someone laughed.
Then another joined him.
They remembered that even city rulers in this world never claimed forests so boldly. Not mountain lords. Not tribal chiefs. No one. The idea that this delicate female owned anything beyond the clothes on her body was ridiculous to them.
