(Kaelan’s POV)

The air inside the car grew heavier. Outside, neon lights reflected off the windows, stretching shadows across everyone’s faces. My grip on the steering wheel tightened as I tried to sync my heartbeat with the engine’s rhythm.

Every kilometer we drove toward the gallery felt like walking backward into the abyss I’d once left behind.

I knew the Elders must’ve already sensed us. The wolfsbane those hunters used earlier wasn’t some cheap brew. That mix could only be ...