Chapter 70

• LYDIA
• Whatever fantasy I had conjured in my head died when I arrived at the gates. The great oak that had once barricaded the entrance had been shattered to smithereens. I saw bodies scattered across the ground. Some were missing heads. Some legs. The singular thing the bodies did share was that they were extinct.
• "Run!" A sentinel shoved me away from his path. The distress in his face was eminent as he raced for the creature his brothers were also fighting. Whatever it was, it looked like a man. It was double in size and riddled with tattoos that glowed red hot and singed deeper into its blue skin every passing second. The wind that blew my way confirmed that the enemy was anything but human. My nose simmered just inhaling. The air surrounding us smelled like sulfur and rotting meat. Behind the creature was a smaller figure unbothered by the chaos enveloping them. I squinted my eyes a little and realized the figure was that of a woman. Her hair danced in the hot whiff that encompassed the territory where we stood. I willed my feet to move. Unsure as to why I even wanted to step close to the creature or the woman. My instinct wanted me to run. Yet I couldn't bring myself to do it. The bodies on the ground were a constant reminder that this was legitimately my fault. My wolf was intent on telling a different story, however. In her eyes, the bodies on the ground deserved the fate that befell them. This was karma. But despite its trying effect to push the blame off me, I still felt guilty.