I turned, already knowing.
Caleb emerged from the edge of the Wilds with a quiet confidence that made my stomach flip. He wasn’t alone. At least four dozen clan members followed him, some in human form, others hovering half-shifted, their eyes bright and alert. They moved like a unit without looking like one, spacing themselves instinctively around the perimeter of the gathering.
Caleb met my gaze and inclined his head. “We’ll escort you to the Hollows.”
I stared at him. “You’re coming.”
“We are,” he said simply. “You’re walking into uncertain ground. That makes you our concern.”
I opened my mouth, then closed it again, my thoughts scrambling to catch up. “I didn’t ask—”
“You didn’t need to,” he replied.
Keegan exhaled slowly beside me, something like relief flickering across his face before he masked it. The vampires, for their part, watched the shifters with wary curiosity, ancient instincts stirring but not flaring. Lady Limora stepped forward, her expression composed.
“Then it seems we are aligned,” she said smoothly.
Caleb gave her a polite nod. “For now. Just keep your fangs to yourselves.”
“You’re not my type, dear. Far too young and exuberant.”
“Can’t say he’s not mine,” a vampire whispered and giggled from behind, and I clenched my teeth.
And surprisingly, Caleb smiled.
Twobble leaned forward on the bramblemule, peering at the shifters.
“So just to be clear,” he said, “we’ve got vampires, shifters, witches, a fox, a wolf, a seer, and a goblin riding foliage into the Hollows.”
“Yes,” Nova said calmly.
Twobble sighed. “I should’ve brought a banner.”
I pressed my fingers to my temple, laughing softly despite myself. “I’m seriously questioning every life decision that led me here.”
Keegan’s hand brushed mine. “Starting with which one?”
“Returning to Stonewick,” I said without hesitation.
He smiled. “And yet.”
“And yet,” I echoed, glancing around at the assembled group, at the unlikely coalition forming before my eyes. “Here we are.”
The bramblemule snorted, as if in agreement, and began to move without prompting, vines creaking softly as it took the lead. The others fell into step around it, the group reshaping itself naturally, vampires drifting to the center, shifters taking the outer edges, Bella darting ahead and back like a scout.
I took one last look at the Academy, at the stone and light and history watching me go.
“I’ll be back,” I promised it silently, and at that moment, my parents arrived.
“Oh, no. You’re staying here to help with watching the Academy and…”
My dad scowled. “The Academy can take care of itself. We’re not letting our only child wander off to meet thousands of hungry orcs without us.”
“Fine.” I squared my shoulders and stepped forward, letting the pull of the path guide me.
Toward the Hollows, toward thousands of displaced orcs, toward answers I wasn’t sure I wanted, but knew I needed.
And with every step, as Twobble argued with Stella about seating arrangements and the bramblemule flicked its thorny tail in irritation, I felt the familiar mix of terror and resolve settle deep in my bones.
