Chapter 44 The Heart's Defiance

Fynn POV The forest is a graveyard of silence, the air heavy with the scent of green blood and my own despair, the outpost’s promise a cruel mirage just beyond the trees. Morgan lies still in my arms, his chest unmoving, his blood pooling cold beneath us, his silver eyes closed, no spark, no fight left. My hands press his chest, trembling, desperate, my gold light gone, spent, the black flicker in me a traitor’s pulse, mocking my failure. I’m the Warden, the balance, but I’m breaking, and the pack—Elena, Jake, Mira—stands frozen, their faces carved with grief, blades useless, hope bleeding out with Morgan’s life.