Before the First Sunrise

Fifteen years of friendship shouldn't be this heavy. Ankia Mareau thought she knew every version of Edward Mounteen. Until the silence of a two-month misunderstanding nearly broke them. Now, as they navigate the wreckage of a calculated lie, Edward is revealing the parts of himself he intended to take to his grave. From the shadows of a survival training in an Indian forest at twelve to being dropped alone in the Amazon at seventeen, Edward's past is a map of scars and secrets. As they head toward the summit of Isle Mountain for a ritual older than the stones themselves, Ankia must decide if she can hold the weight of the Mounteen name and the blood oath that comes with it. A slow-burn story of legacy, survival, and a bond that refuses to be ordinary.