The door slams behind him, rattling the warped frame.
And just like that, the only sound left is the wind scraping through the trees, and the thin, fragile thread of breath caught in my throat as Sebastian turns fully toward us, toward me.
His eyes are no longer furious or guarded.
They’re afraid.
“Why are you here?” he demands.
Sebastian’s question hangs in the cold air, sharper than the wind slicing down from the cliffs. His shoulders square as if bracing for a blow he can’t see coming.
I take a step forward.
“You ran off,” I say, voice steadier than I feel. “And it’s not safe here.”
His jaw tightens. “I can handle Myrindale.”
“No one can handle Myrindale alone,” I counter. “Not with the way things have been shifting. Not with the scouts whispering through these woods.”
His eyes flicker, denial and anger, all tangled in a single beat. “You shouldn’t have followed me.”
“And you shouldn’t have come here by yourself,” I snap back. “We didn’t know what you were running into.”
“You didn’t need to,” he fires. “It isn’t your concern.”
“Sebastian,” Liam interrupts, his voice low but firm, “Harper’s right. This place… it isn’t like it used to be.”
Sebastian whirls on him. “You think I don’t know that? You think I haven’t seen-”
A crashcuts him off.
Wood splinters. Something heavy thuds against the floor inside the cottage. The unmistakable sound of a man cursing follows, Sebastian’s uncle, his voice thick with irritation and something darker.
All four of us tense.
Before Sebastian can react, the cottage door creaks open just a few inches. A small hand, thin and trembling, appears at the edge, gripping the doorframe.
Then a girl slips into view.
She looks no older than thirteen, maybe fourteen. Pale as moonlight. Long dark hair hanging limp down her shoulders. A blanket is wrapped around her frail frame, tied in a knot at her throat. Her cheeks are hollow, but her smile, gods, her smile, blooms bright and warm the moment she sees Sebastian.
“Anne,” Sebastian breathes, all the fight draining out of him in an instant.
Her smile widens. “You came.”
Behind her, her uncle’s bellow shakes the cottage.
“Anne! Get back inside! Now!”
She flinches at the sound…but doesn’t move. Instead she steps fully out onto the crooked porch, the blanket dragging slightly behind her. Her gaze drifts past her brother, to me, to Liam, to Theo. Her eyes brighten, curious despite the exhaustion clinging to her like a weight.
“You brought friends,” she says softly.
Sebastian moves toward her immediately, hand outstretched, protective instinct overriding everything else. “You shouldn’t be out here. It’s cold.”
“So?” Anne shrugs, pulling the blanket tighter around herself. “You’re never home. I wanted to see you.”
Their uncle appears at the doorway, red-faced, breathing hard. “Anne, I said inside.”
