Mag-log inThe bond flared softly, not painfully. Not insistently.Just warm.Later, when the packhouse had settled and the boys slept soundly down the hall, Nolan and I retreated into the quiet of our shared space. There were no grand declarations, no frantic urgency.Just hands, warmth, and the steady reassu
Ellie POVThe news should not have surprised me. My trust had been tested and taken advantage of so many times at this point. I should have expected that someone as stubborn and determined as Kieran would play dirty.I shouldn’t have been surprised.And yet, I was.Claire had seemed like such an hon
“She chose what was familiar,” Claire snapped. “That’s not the same thing.”Cassian took a step closer. “You don’t get to override her autonomy because you don’t like her decision.”Silence stretched between them, heavy and aching.“I never meant to hurt you,” Claire said quietly. “Or Ellie. Or the
Third person POVCassian had always believed loyalty was a simple thing.Not easy—but simple. You showed up. You stood where you said you would stand. You protected the people you claimed to care about, even when it cost you something.He had built his life around that belief.That was why the truth
We weren’t trying to play roles anymore. We just were. Despite all of the chaos and danger that followed us, when it was just Nolan and me, things felt peaceful now.“I heard about Claire,” he said quietly.I stiffened almost imperceptibly. “Cassian told you?”“Yes,” he replied. “He didn’t want to a
Ellie POVThe packhouse was quieter than usual at night now.Not empty—never empty—but softer. The kind of quiet that came after long days filled with tension and watchful anticipation. Guards rotated through the halls more frequently, footsteps echoing faintly through stone corridors, but even that







