But not far from the woods, the council was already stirring.
The blood moon had passed.
The beast lived.
And the girl had survived.
Elder Corbin slammed a fist onto the stone table. "This cannot stand. The Hollow will punish us."
Another elder, eyes sunken and mouth twisted, spat bitterly, "She's bonded to the beast. The curse bends when that happens."
"She must die before the bond completes," Corbin growled. "Or the curse ends. And we lose the power it gave us."
Silence followed.
The truth hung heavy: for centuries, the curse had been their scapegoat. Their leash on the people. Their protection from enemies.
If it broke…
They were nothing.
---
"Send the Watchers," Corbin barked. "Send the fire. Burn the cabin. Burn the forest if you must."
"And the girl?"
He smiled coldly.
> "Bring her back alive. We'll rip the love from her heart and spill it into the roots ourselves."
---
Back in the forest, Evelyn stood outside the cabin, her hand still warm from where he touched her.
She didn't know why her chest ached—longing, fear, or something deeper.
But when she looked at Silas, who now stood at her side like a shadow she could lean on, she realized something terrible:
> "They won't stop coming, will they?"
He didn't answer.
Because they both knew the truth.
The real war was just beginning.