"A wolf?"
His voice was barely audible.
"She met him weeks ago," her father said bitterly. "She had been leaving the village in secret. Meeting him beyond the boundary."
"No."
The answer left Gideon's mouth immediately. Agatha's father turned toward him.
"She admitted everything in the letter."
"No."
Gideon shook his head harder.
"Agatha would never do that."
"She did."
"No."
His magic shifted again. A dark mist crawled along the floor near his boots.
"She would not leave her family."
His voice cracked.
"She would not leave me."
Agatha's father picked up a folded piece of paper from the table and threw it toward him. It struck Gideon's chest before falling to the floor.
"Read it yourself."
Gideon looked down at the letter. For several seconds, he could not move. His hands
