The forest didn't care who was afraid.
It swallowed sound. It swallowed light. It swallowed names.
The convoy of two battered vehicles crawled along an old logging road, tires crunching over gravel and pine needles. Branches slapped the doors. Mud sprayed the undercarriage. The deeper they went, the more the city's glow vanished behind thick trees and wet fog.
Aria sat in the passenger seat, elbow braced on the window frame, watching the world turn into shadow and green. Her body still felt the city's panic like a ringing in her bones. Even out here, she could sense the strain in the air, like a stretched thread that hadn't snapped yet.
Kai drove with both hands on the wheel. His jaw was tight. He checked the rearview mirror too often.
In the back seat, Luna slept curled around her stuffed wolf, cheek pressed to the fabric. Every once in a while she twitched, like she was running through nightmares on small legs.
