# Chapter 98 – After the Storm
The village was quiet when I returned. Too quiet.
I walked down the main street with heavy steps. People watched me from their windows. They saw my torn clothes. My bloodstained hands. My empty eyes.
They knew someone was missing.
"Vanessa?" Maya ran out from her shop. Her face was full of hope and fear. "Where is Kieran?"
I stopped walking. I couldn't look at her. Maya was Kieran's sister. She deserved to know. But the words wouldn't come.
"Vanessa?" Her voice was smaller now. "Where is my brother?"
I opened my mouth. Nothing came out. How do you tell someone their brother is dead? How do you explain he died saving the world?
"No," Maya whispered. She shook her head. "No, no, no. He's not dead. He can't be dead."
I finally looked at her. She was crying already. She knew. Deep down, she knew.
"He saved us all," I managed to say. "He bound the Void Wolf. The world is safe because of him."
