The Lantern's Shadow

Not all legends are kind. Some are hungry.

After a brutal term at Whitestone School of Magic, Empath Saree fled to Moonwater Falls seeking solitude: a Solstice night to forget her heartbreak and the chaos she left behind. The last person she expected to find was Levi, a charming Mind-Reader who never learned to leave well enough alone.

When he dares her to chase the town's most beloved legend-the Lantern Stag that grants wishes to the pure of heart-it should be harmless. A fairy tale. A distraction.

Until the forest goes silent.

Beyond the warmth of lantern-lit streets, something waits in the snow. A creature beautiful and hollow. Shadows that hunger for life itself. And a light that burns cold and blue.

What they find in the frozen woods isn't salvation. It's a warning. The Mist has teeth, and legends have consequences.

Now Saree and Levi must survive the longest night, armed with only their gifts, their wits, and a connection neither of them expected. Because sometimes the most dangerous thing isn't what you're running from-it's what finds you in the dark.

And what follows them out of the forest will change everything.