Lucien POV

The ride to the coast felt longer than it should have. None of us spoke much. The night air was cold, and the forest seemed too quiet. Matteo rode at my side, glancing at me every few minutes like he wanted to say something but didn’t know how to start.

When the trees finally opened and the coastline came into view, the stronghold stood at the edge of a cliff. It was an old stone building with half the roof fallen in. Parts of the walls were covered in vines. No guards. No ...