Max's POV

Now that Aurora was gone, the air in the room felt even heavier, thick with unspoken accusations and the raw sting of our collective failure. The flickering light from the oil lamps seemed to intensify, casting the deep lines of fatigue and worry on my face into stark relief. I felt a profound weariness settle into my bones, born not of physical exertion, but of the crushing weight of having been so profoundly, dangerously wrong.

Maya stood before us, her stance still ...