Reeve's hand shook so hard the cup of water in it spilled across the table.
"Kane," Reeve said, not looking up. "Sit down. Please."
Kane pulled a chair close, worry building fast at the sight of his old friend's pale, tired face. "You're scaring me, Reeve. Just tell me."
Reeve finally looked up, exhaustion and guilt both plain in his tired eyes. "Since the final battle, at the cave, I've felt something strange inside me. I told myself it was just leftover exhaustion. Old wounds acting up. Anything but the truth."
Kane's stomach dropped. "You think you absorbed a fragment."
"I don't think," Reeve said quietly. "I know. Fira confirmed it two days ago, when I finally admitted something felt wrong and let her check me properly."
"Why didn't you say anything," Kane said, hurt and worry bo
