[ Old world – The Cave's Threshold ]
Kieran stumbled into the open hollow, claws gouging deep grooves into the dirt.
His breath tore ragged through his chest, blood dripping from his muzzle in thick ropes, his ribs screaming with every staggered step.
"Autumn…" His voice cracked inside him. It was half snarl, half plea. He wanted it to be her and didn't want it to be her blood at the same time. "Please, just answer me… please…"
The air stank of iron…of death.
It was too suffocating.
His heart seized with every inhale, the rejection's agony feeding into the scent that was tearing his world apart.
And the fact that she was probably bleeding to her death…
His eyes darted wildly over the jagged walls, across the stone floor slick with scarlet. Claw marks streaked the rock. Wolf fur…Autumn's wolf no doubt…clung to the cracks in the ground.
He froze, chest heaving, ears flicking for even the faintest sound of her heartbeat.
" AUTUMN?" No answer.
