The pain was unbearable.
Kaden pressed his hand against his chest as he walked through the palace corridors, his jaw clenched so tightly his teeth ached.
The mate bond, the connection he had rejected, severed, destroyed felt like a living wound in his chest, pulsing with agony that seemed to grow worse with each passing hour.
He had thought rejecting Ava would bring relief. Freedom. A clean break that would allow him to focus on his mission, on his duties to the Guild, on the life he had chosen for himself.
Instead, it felt like he was dying.
Every breath hurt. Every heartbeat sent fresh waves of pain radiating through his body. And worst of all was the emptiness, the hollow, aching void where the bond had been, like a part of his soul had been ripped away and nothing could ever fill
