Chapter 78: Kade’s POV

By afternoon, the camp had grown restless. Every conversation was shorter, every stare longer. Even the air felt like it was waiting for something to break.

We’d just wrapped up the final patrol around the perimeter, Axel and two of the local rogues trailing behind me. The snow had thinned out since morning, melting into cold patches of mud that stuck to our boots.

We cut through a line of pines and emerged into the clearing near the eastern watchpoint. Smoke ...