chapter 4: The Rescuer's Price

Freedom tasted of pine needles and cold, running water. For three days, I pushed deeper into the Silverwood, my senses on high alert, my body aching from the relentless travel and the ever-present, dull throb of the severed bond. The vial of blood I’d left behind felt like a phantom weight in my pocket, a constant reminder of the world I’d fled. I was alone, but I was my own. The gnawing emptiness in my chest was a price I was willing to pay. But the wilderness was not kind. My human stamina...