The body lay twisted at the edge of the castle grounds, its hollow eyes frozen in an expression of eternal hunger.
Evelyne's breath hitched.
She had seen these things before.
No.
She had felt them before.
But they had never gotten this close.
Her gaze shifted to the arrow protruding from the creature's skull. A black-feathered shaft, just like the ones she had seen near her window. Just like the ones that had always appeared when she strayed too far from the castle.
It was him.
He wasn't hunting her.
He was protecting her.
---