Alina

The night wrapped around me like a cage.

Every path looked the same—tall hedges, silver leaves whispering secrets to the wind, statues with marble faces that seemed to watch me bleed. The moon was cruel tonight, throwing light only where I didn’t need it.

I hugged my arms around myself and kept walking. My shoes were soaked, my hair tangled with leaves, but I didn’t care. The only thing that mattered was the ache clawing inside my chest.

Ares’s voice still echoed in my ...