Raylin Today

Outside, the wind picked up, howling through the Ravenwood trees, and for the first time in her life, Sage Reed felt like she was exactly where she was meant to be—right in the middle of a story she hadn't yet learned how to end.

The air in the quiet town of Ravenwood was always a little thicker than it should have been, smelling of damp moss and old paper. Sage Reed didn't mind it; the scent felt like a heavy blanket, exactly what she needed after the chaotic, neon-lit years she’d spent in the city. When she moved into her aunt’s bookstore, "The Bound Spirit," she expected dusty shelves and the occasional chatty customer. She didn't expect the floorboards to hum under her feet. raylin

Sage smiled, though her heart had started a strange, frantic rhythm. "Most of the books in here technically shouldn't exist, according to the modern world." Outside, the wind picked up, howling through the

"I’m looking for something specific," Rome said, his voice a low rumble. "A book that isn't supposed to exist." When she moved into her aunt’s bookstore, "The

Sage looked at her hand, where a faint, silver mark was beginning to bloom on her skin—a mark that matched the one on Rome’s neck.