Lyla moved forward, but each step felt heavier than the last.

She had walked through forests her entire life but never one like this.

The air was dense, humming with unseen energy, as if the trees themselves were watching her.

Their bark was blackened, their roots twisted like serpents coiling beneath the earth. The deeper she went, the more it felt as if the land was alive.

It was breathing.

And it knew her name.

She swallowed, her fingers curling into fists.

She had left the ...