The icy winds howled outside the cave, the cold seeping through the stone like a phantom. My power pulsed beneath my skin, restless and untamed, as I stared at the entrance. I had thought Ash gone for good, swallowed by the shadows he loved so much. But the truth was, his absence felt like a wound that refused to heal.
The snow outside shifted, and I felt him before I saw him. The air grew heavier, darker, a sharp contrast to the crystalline purity of my domain. He stepped through the entrance, his crimson eyes locking on mine, a slow, wicked grin spreading across his face.
“Lux,” he said, his voice like velvet over steel. “Miss me?”
My breath hitched, though I refused to show it. “What are you doing here, Ash?” I asked, my tone as cold as the frost clinging to the walls.
“Looking fo
