Ella.The pain hit me at three in the morning.Not my pain. Kyle's.I bolted upright in bed, gasping. My chest felt tight, like someone was squeezing my ribs. My shoulder burned with phantom agony that wasn't mine but somehow was.The mate bond. Something was wrong.I fumbled for my phone on the nightstand, hands shaking. No messages. No calls. Just the crushing sensation of Kyle's distress bleeding through our connection."No, no, no," I whispered.Maya stirred in her room down the hall. I forced myself to breathe slowly, quietly. She didn't need to wake up to her mother panicking.But inside, I was screaming.The pain faded slightly but didn't disappear. Kyle was hurt. I knew it with absolute certainty. The bond never lied about these things.I threw off the covers and paced the bedroom. Each step felt wrong without Kyle beside me. The empty space in our bed mocked me, reminding me he was out there somewhere, bleeding, hurting, fighting.And I couldn't do anything to help him.The c
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