Claiming the Fallen

Corbin’s POV

The air stank of burning wood and blood. It choked me. The smoke curled into my nose and clawed down my throat, but I didn’t stop walking. The wind carried ash in thick clouds, and every breath scraped. I walked fast, past bodies, past the dead and the dying, my boots crunching over bones and broken blades. The world had collapsed into fire and noise, but I only saw her.

Valerie.

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