Page 149 of A Sunwoven Ascent

She couldn’t—

Her head snapped toward the manor just as more Noskari streamed through the shattered glass and disappeared inside.

No. No. No.

Panic seized her, sharper than pain. Her mother. The housemaids. The guards. Seraphine.

A raw, deafening roar tore from Evelyne’s throat as adrenaline surged through her limbs. She dug her claws into the ground and forced herself upright beneath the weight clinging to her back. She could not stay pinned here. She could not let them get any farther inside.

With everything she had left, she threw her body backward, slamming hard against the ground. The impact crushed one of the creatures beneath her, forcing its grip to break, while the other loosened just enough—

Evelyne broke free, ripping herself out of their hold, blood slick against her fur as she staggered forward. Toward the house. Toward the doors. She didn’t care if she survived. She just needed to get inside. Because if she didn’t, everyone in there was dead.

Chapter 59

We’re almost there. Almost there, love. Kaldrek’s voice thundered through her mind again and again, but Evelyne couldn’t answer—not while she was still fighting, still biting, still throwing herself at anything that moved just to stay alive. Every step she took was toward the ones who had slipped inside the manor. Toward her family. She couldn’t let the Noskari reach them.

Evelyne lunged to her right, sinking her teeth into the neck of another Noskari. Dark blood burst across her snout as she tore into it, shaking her head violently before ripping free and casting it aside. Her back screamed in protest, pain radiating through her limbs with every movement, but she forced herself onward.

Keep going. Keep killing, she told herself. Don’t you dare stop, Evelyne, or they will all die.

A loud cry cut through the chaos and she froze mid-step, snapping her head toward Aurelia.

Three Noskari had her pinned, their claws dug deep into her legs and sides, dragging her down as she struggled beneath them.

Evelyne sprinted.

All those years spent sneaking out, chasing the wind, pushing her body further than it should have gone—it all surged through her now.

Speed. Power. Anger.

She threw herself forward, slamming into the two creatures raising their arms to strike Aurelia. The impact knocked them off balance just long enough for her sister to let out another cry, and Evelyne realized the third still had her. She skidded hard, then twisted to run back toward them. Her limbs felt heavier now, but she did not stop. She couldn’t. Not while Aurelia was still in danger.

Then the forest shook with the sound of heavy paws closing in. For one brief moment, the Noskari paused, their focus snapping toward the trees beyond the manor, but Evelyne seized the opening. She lunged, her jaws closing around the throat of the creature still gripping Aurelia, and sank her canines in with everything she had left until its body gave way beneath her and she wrenched its head free of its shoulders.

Growls rolled through the clearing. From the forest line, the Ironwolves burst into view with a white wolf at their head. Kaldrek. His presence sliced through the night like a blade, his dark eyes fixed with the promise of death. The others followed close behind, driving into the remaining Noskari.

Holden reached Aurelia first, concern plain in every movement as he checked her, though she still forced herself upright.

I’m all right, Evelyne sent quickly, before Kaldrek could reach her.

He still came anyway. Always would.

I’m going inside, she pushed through the bond. They’re still in there.

You did well, he answered, pride threading through his voice. Keep going.

The words struck deep, steadying her in a way nothing else could. Evelyne turned at once and ran.

A group of wolves surged after her, but not the Ironwolf pack.

Oathroot followed her lead, falling in behind her as she charged through the foyer and into the manor. They picked up speed and moved as one, sprinting through the halls, tearing into every creature they found.

Evelyne’s heart sank. The manor no longer felt like home.

The moment she crossed the threshold, the world turned unrecognizable. The thick, suffocating scent hit her first. Blood. It clung to the air, soaked into the floors, and lingered in the walls as though the house itself had begun to bleed.

Desperate screams echoed down the corridors. Her paws slipped over the polished floor as she ran, claws scraping for purchase, following the sounds toward the dining room. Her chest heaved, every sense overwhelmed by the chaos engulfing her home.