ng replayed in her mind. Every creak of the old house, every gust of wind rattling the window, sent her he

y sign of the rogue's return. Lachlan lounged in the living room, though the casual slouch in his posture was betray

achlan asked, bre

The rogues are pushing closer, but their movements are disorganize

comforting. A pack of rab

ng attention. "They'll come back," he said grimly. "And n

try?" Lachlan asked, raising an eyebrow. "The girl's got figh

Rowan said firmly

you be

r, but the set of

es, it doesn't change what's coming. The rogues know she's here

dged with seriousness, "are we ready to defend her? Because t

the dim light. "We'll do whatev

sion unreadable. "We need to tell her every

Rowan argued, his v

n said, smirking. "You saw her tonight. She fought b

cker of admiration in his eyes di

She sat up slowly, her body aching from the tension of the previous night. He

he practicality of the outfit grounding her. As she des

ed. Three sets of eyes turned to her, each expression revealing something differe

an said with a lopsid

rms as she leaned against the doorframe. "I want ans

n nodded, gesturing for

nough,"

her lap. "Start with the house. Why is it so

t's a place of power, tied to our history and our future. Your grandmother lived here because she was a protector of sorts-a guardia

ll? You mean the fact t

hing. Your presence here disrupts the balanc

me?" Selene asked, her voice tinged

thing in you," Declan sa

r not, you're part of this now. Your bloodline ties you to us, to this land.

of the puzzle still not fitting to

his tone matter-of-fact. "The rogues want power. T

ust fight them o

t acting alone. Someone-or something-is organizing them, giving them

ing. "So, what? I'm supposed to just... stay h

"because it's the safest place f

owed. "And what ha

but the tension in

voice calm but resolute. "We'r

on. Despite her fear, something inside her shifted. She wasn't sure if it was trust

ht in the back of her mind: What if stay