The room was silent except for Nikolai's broken sobs.He held Elise's body close to his chest, his whole body racking violently with the force of his grief, and his tears fell on her pale face while her eyes remained closed and peaceful."I'm sorry," he whispered again, his voice cracking. "I'm so sorry."Lucian watched Nikolai break apart and even though they'd always been at odds from the beginning, his heart ached for him, but there was nothing he could say that would make this better.Dante wiped blood from his mouth, the shadow wolves around them having gone still when Elise died like puppets with cut strings."Is it over?" he asked quietly.Zephyr pulled the sword from his shoulder, wincing but not making a sound."I don't know."Laura tried to stand but her legs were still weak from the fight, though she forced herself up because something still felt wrong, the air too quiet and too still."Nikolai," she said softly. "We need to—"The temperature in the room suddenly dropped and
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