Chapter 44. Ashes on Main Street

By nightfall, Crestwood didn’t look like the same town.

Storefronts were shuttered early, their windows boarded. Neon signs flickered over empty sidewalks, casting pools of color nobody walked through. The hum of the diner, the buzz of the arcade, the chatter spilling from the pool hall—all gone. Only the wind moved through the streets.

The Crownless rolled in quiet, engines throttled low, shadows stretched long under the streetlights. Bikes that usually drew stares now passed unseen; no one dared look out their windows.

Riven’s hands stayed clenched on her grips. Her palms throbbed under the bandages, her knuckles raw, but she kept her spine straight. The Ravens’ threat—NEXT THE CITY—stuck sharp in her head.

They’d meant it.

The crew split when they reached Main. Half peeled off toward the square, the rest toward the side streets. Kenzie swung her chain slow as her bike crawled past a row of darkened shops. She grinned without humor. “Town looks dresse