CURSED LYCAN
The house felt empty.
Kael sat at the kitchen table, staring at coffee he couldn't taste. The bond was gone. Completely severed. For the first time in fifteen years, his mind was silent. Just his thoughts. Just him.
It felt wrong.
Emma found him there at dawn. Her eyes were red from crying. Daniel stood behind her, hand on her shoulder. Their bond visible in how they moved together.
It hurt to look at them. To see what he'd lost.
"You didn't sleep," Emma said. Not a question.
"Couldn't." Kael's voice was hoarse. "Every time I closed my eyes, I reached for the bond. For her. And there was nothing."
Emma sat across from him. Took his hands. "What do we do now?"
"We keep going. That's what she'd want."
"That's not what I asked. I asked what YOU want."
Kael looked at her. This woman who'd become his daughter in every way that mattered. Who'd lost her mother twice—once to Marcus, once to time.
