Aurora's POV

The witch knew. The witch knew I wasn't the one.

Panic was a live wire in my chest, threatening to crackle out of control. I pressed myself harder against the wall, my mind screaming.

This couldn't be happening. I had come too far, schemed for too long, to be undone by a cryptic hag in the woods.

Rael's turned back was a portrait of rejection. He didn't want me. He wanted a cure I could never provide.

And then, the thought came, unbidden and venomous: if it ...