NORA POV
Everything sounded muffled.
Like I was underwater, sinking beneath layers of regret and rage.
The shards of the crystal glittered across the vault floor like stars fallen from the sky. The unbroken Alpha bond—the last proof that fate could be defied—was gone.
Marek had shattered it with a blade forged in lies.
I sat in the center of it all, fists clenched around ash and broken glass.
“What now?” Reya asked, her voice cracking.
Kalen placed a hand on my shoulder.
But I couldn’t look at him.
I couldn’t look at anyone.
Because I wasn’t sure what was left of me.
VEYA POV
My brother was gone.
Just like that.
No warning, no confrontation. He threw the blade and vanished into the shadows like a coward.
Or maybe… he knew he couldn’t face me.
The vault trembled around us.
